Horns and Hooves

Fall of Lucifer
(Illustration by Gustave Dore)

A newfound bee with “horns” was named Megachile lucifer, supposedly because the Devil also has horny protrusions.

Why is Satan often portrayed with horns and accompanying hooves?  Live Science takes a look at the history of devilish depictions in order to figure this out.  After all, it’s about time that science enlivens religion.

There’s a popular theory which states that such images were modeled after the Ancient Greek god Pan, yet Pan was not widely linked with Lucifer until the 19^th century.  It seems instead possible that “the devil with horns and hooves originated in early Jewish literature,” as implied within “The Greek Apocalypse of Baruch.”

This text was written “between the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 and the third century.”  It describes a “satyr-like” demonic race that allegedly “constructed the lowest levels of the Tower of Babel.”  Early Christians might have been strongly influenced by this vivid version of what demonic could look like.

Resources

https://www.iheart.com/content/2025-11-11-new-bee-species-named-lucifer-bee-discovered-in-australia/

https://www.livescience.com/why-does-the-devil-have-horns-and-hooves

What AI Can't Easily Replace

You rang, Madam?
(Photo by Gnsin)

Spiritual teachers have long warned against falling into robotic-like ruts of thinking and behaving.  They’ve recommended mindfulness as an alternative to such habits.

AI will soon be able to out-robot humans in pretty much all rote tasks.  And yet there is one aspect of humanity that can’t, by its very nature, be easily mechanized.  That mysterious force within humans is commonly called creativity.

Creativity seems as unfathomable as Creation itself.  It might therefore be the twelfth of never before AI can replicate humanity’s inventiveness. Jeff Bezos recently explained that “people capable of generating original ideas, not just executing established tasks” will be the workers who robots cannot easily replace.

Resources

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/technology/jeff-bezos-says-only-one-kind-of-worker-will-remain-irreplaceable-in-the-age-of-ai/

Smile, you're on what?

(Public Domain)

Before shutterbugs became ubiquitous, there was a TV show called “Candid Camera.”  Unsuspecting  folks who were the target of rigged pranks would suddenly be told, “Smile, you’re on Candid Camera!”

Although those targets are long gone, one big-box Target remains.  And this Target is now telling its employees to wipe a silly grin onto their faces, camera or no camera.

Its rationale for insisting that workers resemble the cover of Mad Magazine is this: Upturned lips lure people into buying more and more.  Yet even when enforced hand-waving is added to the mix, customers have been heading out the door.

Why?  Because Target recently ended their DEI policy and replaced it with chirpy cheerfulness.  But  hypocrisy is no substitute for empathy.  The corporation could therefore miss moving sales targets as they quickly head downhill.

Resources

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/target-s-new-smile-policy-disrespects-its-employees-and-the-shoppers-who-left/ 

Ace and a King

Christ with the Eucharist
(Vicente Juan Masip, 16th Century)

In poker, the ace-and-king hand is considered to be a real strong beginning.  The ace is particularly versatile, in that it exhibits strength through humility.  Although it can trump the king, it can also morph low in order to help create a winning wheel.

Such seemed the case when Pope Leo XIV recently welcomed King Charles III to worship with him at the Vatican.  This was the first time in more than half a millennium that a Protestant Church of England king has publicly prayed together with a Roman Catholic pope.  

Although this has been called an “interfaith” meeting, it is more of a healing between disputed branches of the Christian faith.  Why break brotherhood when you can instead break bread?

Resources

https://www.aol.com/articles/king-charles-iii-pope-leo-153355663.html

Earth too shall pass

The Highest Heaven
(Illustrated by Gustave Dore)

Scientists are predicting that Earth will no longer be habitable in about a billion years.  Those who are counting upon AI for physical immortality will then have to flee to God knows where.

And that is the point. Although some conceive immortality to be Groundhog Day for eternity, others prefer a heavenly future. Not the kind of heaven that can be accessed with a spacecraft, but the kind of Heaven that does not require a flesh-and-blood appendage.

Although a billion years might seem ample for figuring out space-based logistics, consciousness would need to keep pace with intellect.  Otherwise, as Carl Sagan warned, it might be best for humans to remain quarantined on Earth until ready for another realm of Being.

Resources

https://www.dagens.com/world/nasa-supercomputer-predicts-when-life-on-earth-will-end-it-is-sooner-than-expected

Goodall's Goodbye

 

Goodall in 2015
(Public Domain)

The word “good,” found within both “Goodall” and “goodbye,” was originally associated with the word “God.”  It’s no wonder then that Jane Goodall’s goodbye to the world was filled with blessings and wisdom.

Goodall’s fond farewell was recorded several months before her actual death, under the strict condition that it only be released after her passing. Here are some excerpts that bear repeating, especially when times are tough and faith is weakened:

I want to make sure that you all understand that each and every one of you has a role to play… your life matters, and you are here for a reason… every single day you live, you make a difference in the world.  And you get to choose the difference that you make.

Don’t lose hope.  If you lose hope, you become apathetic and do nothing…  And if you want to save what is still beautiful in the world… then think about the actions you take each day.  Because, multiplied a million, a billion times, even small actions will make for great change.

I just hope that you understand that this life on Planet Earth isn’t the end.  I believe, and now I know, that there is life beyond death.  That consciousness survives…

Amen, Dame Jane!

Resources

https://janegoodall.ca/our-stories/dr-jane-goodall-leaves-behind-her-last-words/

 

 

 

  

Heaven bound? Perhaps not too late...

The Ladder of Divine Ascent
(12th Century, Public Domain)

When Donald Trump feels perky at 3 a.m., he might want to ask himself this: Have I really blown my chances of entering those Pearly Gates?  Although he recently declared that such chances are slim to none, perhaps it's not too late for a spiritual 180.

In publicly admitting these doubts, a first essential step has been taken.  Honest self-assessment can be an excellent springboard toward the Light.  Religious history is filled with accounts of sinners turned saints, and fallible folks are often forgiven.

Which isn't to say just keep on doing what you're doing while adding a few cute confessions...  But it is to say that where there's still life, there's still hope - so why let precious time slip away while putting all your somewhat-scrambled eggs in threadbare baskets?

Resources

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/10/13/donald-trump-heaven/