Spirituality and the human
“What are we even talking about when we talk about love? What is it?” So asks Lamott on the first page of her latest book, and she goes on to answer the question in a similar manner to her many previous books: Love is Jesus, but also each other, and also, sometimes, chocolate. In these varying anecdotes, the author plumbs familiar ground, including family and her church community, the adorable malaprop-prone kids in her Sunday school class, and her unhoused neighbors near her Bay Area home.
Too often, our society appears to be about consumption to the point of excess, even while we know that splurging and bingeing do not offer lasting fulfilment. There is another way, suggests Oakes, in this interesting book. Fasting, the decision to temporarily abstain from eating or radically reduce one’s intake of food, can bring a new appreciation of life, as long as it’s done sensibly.
Throughout history, solar eclipses have had profound impact on adherents of various religions around the world. They were viewed as messages from God or spiritual forces, inducing emotions ranging from dread to wonder.
Ahead of the total solar eclipse that will follow a long path over North America on Monday, here’s a look at how several of the world’s major religions have responded to such eclipses over the centuries and in modern times.
