Eye on Faith

Sunday, September 7, 2014

As American as... yoga pants

Look out Levi! (Photo by Honeyhuyue)

America's obsession with yoga is not so much about spirituality as it is about fashion.

Consider this recent advertisement from the Orvis company: Whether you’re mastering your asanas or checking off your Saturday-morning errand list, these do-everything quick-dry yoga pants are made from our breathable… interlock stretch knit that’s perfect for travel, too. Not only that, these yogic wonders are also “superbly flattering…”

Yoga pants are even edging out blue jeans in the American market. Explains Anita Ramaswamy, a teenager from Scottsdale, Arizona: “You can make it as sexy as skinny jeans, and it’s more comfortable.”

Even Levi Strauss is admitting that this “athleisure” trend is cutting into their sales. Their denim is therefore becoming more “stretchy” by the New York minute.

Nevertheless, good old denim still accounts for approximately “20 percent of annual sales at the nation’s department stores.” However, sales of U. S. jeans recently fell 6 percent, whereas “sales of yoga pants and other ‘active wear’ climbed 7 percent…”

Resources

http://news.msn.com/in-depth/jeans-face-an-uncertain-future-amid-yoga-wear-rage

http://www.orvis.com/store/product.aspx?pf_id=9T9E&dir_id=832&group_id=857&cat_id=8337&subcat_id=8338&adv=12483&cm_mmc=Pricegrabber-_-Prod_feeds-_-Prod_feeds-_-12483&mr%3areferralID=a6adf5d9-369f-11e4-bc5f-001b2166c62d

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Gargoyles: Messengers or idols?

Notre-Dame de Paris (Krzysztof Mizera)

With the advent of drainpipes during the early eighteenth century, architectural gargoyles became less and less common.

These monstrous-looking additions to churches and other buildings can be not only psychologically frightening, but also physically threatening.

Wikipedia explains that “sometimes heavy ones fell off, causing damage.” Therefore, as early as 1724, “the London Building Act… made the use of downpipes compulsory on all new construction.”

Nevertheless, gargoyles remain on many famous churches (e.g., Notre-Dame de Paris, Cologne Cathedral and Washington National Cathedral). Why would such demonic-looking creatures be incorporated into these divine structures?

One historic reason was to send a message to the illiterate masses about the concept of evil. Another was to allegedly frighten evil spirits away from the church so that the congregation could feel safe within the decorated walls.

However, not all clerics of old were on board with this practice. During the 12^th century, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux voiced his displeasure with these words: What is the meaning of these unclean monkeys, these strange savage lions, and monsters… Surely if we do not blush for such absurdities, we should at least regret what we have spent on them.

Resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gargoyle

Friday, September 5, 2014

Temple Emanu-El: Remembering Joan

Temple Emanu-El (Public Domain)

Senior Rabbi Joshua M. Davidson of Temple Emanu-El recently released this statement concerning Joan Rivers to ABC News: We mourn with her family, friends and all those millions to whom she brought laughter and joy.

MSN Entertainment reports that Rivers’ funeral is set to be held this weekend at Temple Emanu-El of New York, “the synagogue where she was a member.”

Wikipedia explains that the term "Emanu-El" means “God is with us” in Hebrew. God has apparently been with the Temple since its founding in 1845. It was “the first Reform Jewish congregation in New York City,” and is currently “the largest, and one of the most beautiful synagogues in the world.” Rabbi

Davidson has been its leader since July 2013.

Although the Temple's first few years of services were “highly traditional,” by 1848 reforms began to be instituted. The German vernacular of the founders soon replaced the liturgical Hebrew, and instrumental music (formerly banned) was permitted in 1849.

Mixed seating (as opposed to gender-based seating) began in 1854. Rosh Hashanah was then celebrated for one day instead of two. By 1895, the Union Prayer Book had been adopted by the congregation.

This prayer book included significant departures from the “traditional concepts of Jews as a chosen

people, a personal Messiah, resurrection and of a return to Israel.” Reforms were then widely adopted by congregations throughout the United States.

Resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congregation_Emanu-El_of_New_York

http://tv.msn.com/tv/article.aspx?news=887497

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Prayer_Book

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Mr. T: Stands for "Teacher"

Mr. T in 1970 (Public Domain)

Although Mr. T was literally a teacher in the Chicago school system during the 1970s, he has consistently been a “Teacher” of life’s greatest lessons for most of his life.

Mr. T’s own education in the ways of this world began quite early. Growing up in an inner-city housing project meant that he “regularly witnessed murder, rape, and other crimes…”

When Mr. T later served as a bodyguard, his “commandments” began developing. For example, Mr. T insisted that clients “not lie to him.” He also required clients to “shop around before coming to him.”

Musically, Mr. T's philosophy translates into such works as “Mr. T’s Commandments,” a 1984 album which “instructed children to stay in school and to stay away from drugs.”

He also released a “motivational video” that same year titled “Be Somebody…or Be Somebody’s Fool!” This video includes Mr. T’s rap lessons on believing in God, respecting parents, dealing with peer

pressure, and controlling anger.

As a born-again Christian observing the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, Mr. T was moved to give up most of his trademark gold jewelry. He explained: I felt it would be insensitive and disrespectful to the

people who lost everything, so I stopped wearing my gold.

Resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._T

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Egyptian 'Dancer' show goes belly up

(Public Domain)

Somehow, the definition that Wikipedia presents for “belly dance” doesn’t quite convey the passion of it all. It simply reads: “solo, improvised dances based on torso articulation.”

It must be the “torso articulation” that is getting on the nerves of Egyptian authorities these days. The Cairo Associated Press reports that a new Egyptian belly-dancing show called “Dancer” has been suspended by Egypt’s top religious body for “corrupting morals.”

This show has also been accused of serving Egypt’s “extremists,” who could allegedly “use it as a pretext to depict Egyptian society as anti-Islamic.”

Although "conservatives in Egypt believe belly dancing is immoral,”

Wikipedia explains that it has been both a folk and a social dance in the Middle East for years.

The Ghawazi (“conquerors” of the hearts of their audiences) of rural Egypt have practiced this art since the 18^th century. During the first half of the 20^th century, urban Egyptians began practicing a version of belly dancing known as Raqs Sharqi (“oriental dancing”).

Resources

http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-religious-body-suspend-belly-dancing-show-160434153.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belly_dance

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Work 'til you drop: Tired or fired

Take a break! (Painting by Grant Wood)

A significant percentage of today's workforce is afraid to take earned vacation time.

According to Christine DiGangi of Credit.com, these employees fear that taking time off “makes them look replaceable, therefore putting them at risk of losing their jobs.” This potentially-lethal

mindset has been called a “work martyr complex.”

Is it even legal for employers to fire workers for taking earned vacation time? Unfortunately, it often is. DiGangi explains that “there’s no federal law guaranteeing people the vacation they’ve earned.” Not only that, “employers can fire people for pretty much whatever they want to.”

When even God modeled a Sabbath for would-be workaholics, what gives employers the right to deny their people some time away from the grind? Vacation time can strengthen employees’ health and personal relationships, which in turn can have a positive impact upon work performance.

In order to lessen the debilitating fear of being fired, Di Gangi recommends that employees build personal emergency funds. With at least a few months’ worth of savings set aside, they can breathe easier while rightfully claiming some hard-earned vacation time.

Resources

http://money.msn.com/leadership/article.aspx?post=5adcc258-c933-4cea-9f82-32ca9096067b

Monday, September 1, 2014

Cherish freedom? Thank a cat

(Compilation by Alvesgaspar)

During World War I, approximately 500,000 cats were assisting Allied soldiers on land and on sea.

Mark Strauss of io9 explains that these cats killed vermin on ships and in trenches, served as gas detectors, kept troops company, and sometimes actively saved human lives.

A kitten named “Pitouchi” was adopted by Lt. Lekeux of the Belgium army. When Lekeux was later trapped in a trench with the Germans approaching, Pitouchi jumped from the hole onto a piece of nearby wood.

When the Germans saw Pitouchi, they assumed that they had mistaken a cat for a man, and left the area. Pitouchi then jumped back into the trench to comfort the beloved lieutenant whose life he just saved.

Seafaring cats were just as advantageous to their human companions. Without cats on board, ships could easily be “overrun with rats and mice that would eat into the provisions, chew through ropes and spread

disease.”

Resources

http://io9.com/a-gallery-of-cats-who-served-in-world-war-i-1624713212