The Concept Of Prayer

Tucson Weather Today

____________________

"Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great."
--Mark Twain


The Folly Of Prayer

Is prayer ever answered? Of course not. In fact, religious and philosophical objections to the very study of prayer's efficacy exist. Many interpret Deuteronomy 6:16 "You shall not put the Lord your God to the test"to mean that prayer cannot, or should not, be examined.

The fact is, God never answers any prayers. The entire idea that "God answers prayers" is an illusion created by human imagination.

source:

"But who prays for Satan? Who, in eighteen centuries, has had the common humanity to pray for the one sinner that needed it most?"
--Mark Twain

Samuel Langhorne Clemens

(Mark Twain)

_____

I have been paying attention to some of the words being bandied about by some of the interviewed GOP candidates and it seems to me that their high-flown rhetoric contains many 50-cent words, of which the actual meaning they quite evidently do not correctly comprehend.

One of those words is:

existential [eggz-is-TEN-shul]
adjective
1. of or relating to existence.
2. concerned with existence, especially human existence as viewed in the theories of existentialism.
3. (of a proposition) affirming or implying the existence of a thing.

Existentialism is a term applied to the work of certain late 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject -- not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual.

Søren Kierkegaard is generally considered to have been the first existentialist philosopher, though he did not use the term existentialism. He proposed that each individual -- not society or religion -- is solely responsible for giving meaning to life and living it passionately and sincerely ("authentically").

Existentialism


"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug." 
--Mark Twain

_____

Did You Know . . .?

Macadamia nuts are toxic to dogs.

Ingestion of macadamia nuts by dogs has been associated with a nonfatal syndrome characterized by vomiting, ataxia, weakness, hyperthermia, and depression. Dogs are the only species in which signs have been reported.

_____

WORD FOR TODAY

apparatchik [ah-pah-RAH-chik]
noun
1. a member of a Communist apparat
2. an official or bureaucrat in any organization


"I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it."
--Mark Twain

__________

This Is Who I Am

Do Thoughts And Prayers Go Out? To Where?

Tucson Weather Today

_________________

In the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy, all the celebrity Network News mavens are so reverently reporting on the nation "coming together in prayer" and then the president speechifying once again, as always, about how, "We must (insert action)" and then, as always, personally doing nothing. (Not that there is anything he can do.)

Over and over from the television announcers, in solemn voices is proclaimed that nonsensical old bromide, "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims" -- as if such thoughts and prayers are of any use whatsoever.

I often feel that there does indeed exist a God, not the fairy tale God of the Christians nor any other supposedly supernatural creature who is directly involved with humanity and who is the creator of all things in the universe, and who is, by the way, creator of the universe itself.

Oh well. I'm going nowhere with this.

_____

Yesterday at around noon I walked down Camino-Seco to Broadway to conduct some business with my bank. After I did that I began the one mile walk back toward home. In the vicinity of the Sihuaro High School building I noticed, looking North, that the sky and mountains in the noontime  December daylight presented a fascinating view. I always carry my little camera in my pocket so I took it in hand and snapped a few shots. Below is one of them.

View From Sihuaro High School

Camino-Seco Between Speedway and Broadway
Tucson, AZ  December 18, 2012

_____

WORDs FOR TODAY

bromide
noun
A bromide is a phrase or platitude that, having been employed excessively, suggests insincerity or a lack of originality in the speaker employing it.

Nonsense
noun
1. Words or signs having no intelligible meaning.
2. Subject matter, behavior, or language that is foolish or absurd.
3. Extravagant foolishness or frivolity.
4. Matter of little or no importance or usefulness.
5. Insolent talk or behavior; impudence

_____

BORN ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY


Tim Reid

Born Dec 19, 1944
Age:   67 years old

Timothy L. "Tim" Reid is an American actor, comedian and film director best known for his roles in prime time American television programs, such as Venus Flytrap on WKRP in Cincinnati (1978–82), Marcel "Downtown" Brown on Simon & Simon (1983–87), Ray Campbell on Sister, Sister (1994–99) and William Barnett on That '70s Show (2004-2006). Reid starred in a CBS series, Frank's Place, as a professor who inherits a Louisiana restaurant.

Alyssa Milano

Born Dec 19, 1972
Age:   39 years old

Alyssa Jayne Milano is an American actress, producer and former singer, best known for portraying Phoebe Halliwell on The WB television series Charmed (1998–2006). Milano first rose to fame on television for her childhood role as Samantha Micelli on the ABC sitcom series Who's the Boss? (1984–1992). She also portrayed the role of Jennifer Mancini on the Fox soap opera Melrose Place (1997–98).

Marla Sokoloff

Born Dec 19, 1980
Age:   31 years old

Marla Lynne Sokoloff is an American actress and musician, known for playing the part of Lucy Hatcher on the TV show The Practice, and Gia Mahan on the ABC sitcom, Full House.

Cicely Tyson

Born Dec 19, 1933
Age:   78 years old

Cicely Tyson is an American actress. A successful stage actress, Tyson is also known for her Oscar-nominated role in the film Sounder and the television movies The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman and Roots.

Tyson married legendary jazz trumpeter Miles Davis on November 26, 1981. The ceremony was conducted by Atlanta mayor Andrew Young at the home of actor Bill Cosby. Tyson and Davis divorced in 1988.

__________

Belief cannot argue with unbelief, it can only preach to it.
--Karl Barth

More On Power Of Prayer

Tucson Weather Today
 

_________________

I was going to write some more about Prayer but haven't thought enough about it yet. It seems to me that prayer does not have to be the popularly recognized form, the supernatural kind, and it certainly does not have to be self-serving. Perhaps a manifestation of gratitude, of some sort.

But accurately describing it most probably will demand some more serious thought.

Maybe later.

_____

WORD FOR TODAY

supernatural
Adjective
Attributed to some force beyond scientific understanding or the laws of nature.
Noun
Manifestations or events considered to be of supernatural origin.
Synonyms
preternatural - unearthly - weird - miraculous

Wikipedia says, "The supernatural is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature."

_____

 

BORN ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

 

Alvin York

 

Birthday: December 13, 1887
Date of Death: Sept 2, 1964

Alvin Cullum York, known also by his nickname, Sergeant York, was one of the most decorated American soldiers in World War I. He received the Medal of Honor for leading an attack on a German machine gun nest, taking 32 machine guns, killing 28 German soldiers and capturing 132 others. This action occurred during the U.S.-led portion of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France, which was part of a broader Allied offensive masterminded by Marshal Ferdinand Foch to breach the Hindenburg line and make the opposing German forces surrender.

In 1941, the movie Sergeant York directed by Howard Hawks with Gary Cooper in the title role told about his life and Medal of Honor action.

Dick Van Dyke

 

Birthday: December 13, 1925
Age: 86 years old

Richard Wayne Van Dyke, known professionally as Dick Van Dyke, is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer with a career spanning six decades. He is the older brother of Jerry Van Dyke and father of Barry Van Dyke. Van Dyke starred in the films Bye Bye Birdie, Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and in the TV series The Dick Van Dyke Show and Diagnosis: Murder. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard. Van Dyke is scheduled to receive the The Life Achievement Award at the annual Screen Actors Guild Awards ceremony in January 2013.

Jamie Foxx

 

Birthday: December 13, 1967
Age: 44 years old

Eric Marlon Bishop, professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a musical/comedy. He is also a Grammy Award winning musician, producing three albums which have charted highly on the Billboard 200: Unpredictable, which topped the chart, Best Night of My Life and Intuition.

Taylor Swift

 

Birthday: December 13, 1989
Age:   22 years old

Taylor Alison Swift is an American singer-songwriter. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fourteen to pursue a career in country music. She signed to the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's eponymous debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. "Our Song", her third single, made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number one song on the country chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 2008 Grammy Awards.

__________

If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.
--Meister Eckhart

The Power Of Prayer



Tucson Weather Today
 

_________________

Making A Difference Through Prayer

 

 

 

From No Country For Women

I lifted the following photo:

 

Why would any sane person adopt the nonsensical idea that touching your face to the ground while sticking your butt in the air is going to get the attention of some Deity, and that said Deity will then be more receptive to hearing, and perhaps granting your prayers.

Evangelical christian rituals are just as ridiculous.

 

It's not that I care what religious people do; it's just that I can't help wondering how any thinking person, in light of today's knowledge, can believe that human beings are actually that important in the scope of the universe. Important to some all-powerful god, important enough to deserve personal favoritism from that god.

But, as always, that's just me, being me.

_____

WORD FOR TODAY

prayer
Noun
Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with a deity, an object of worship, or a spiritual entity through deliberate communication.

_____

 

BORN ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

 

Edward G. Robinson

 

Birthday: December 12, 1893
Date of Death:   Jan 26, 1973

Edward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo. Other memorable roles include Barton Keyes in the film noir Double Indemnity, and as Dathan in The Ten Commandments. Robinson was selected for an Honorary Academy Award for his work in the film industry, which was posthumously awarded two months after the actor's death in 1973. He was included in the American Film Institute's list of the 25 greatest male stars in American cinema.

Frank Sinatra

 

Birthday: December 12, 1915
Date of Death:  May 14, 1998

Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra, was an American singer and film actor of Italian origin.

Sinatra enjoyed a huge film career and began making movies almost as soon as his singing career took off. His most important pictures include The Manchurian Candidate with Angela Lansbury, From Here to Eternity with Burt Lancaster, The Man With the Golden Arm with Arnold Stang, Kings Go Forth with Natalie Wood, Guys and Dolls with Marlon Brando, High Society with Bing Crosby, Pal Joey with Rita Hayworth, Some Came Running with Dean Martin, Never So Few with Steve McQueen, A Hole in the Head with Edward G. Robinson, Meet Danny Wilson, On the Town with Gene Kelly, Robin and the 7 Hoods with Bing Crosby, Ocean's 11 and Sergeants 3 with the Rat Pack (Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop), Step Lively, None But the Brave (directed by Sinatra), The Detective with Lee Remick, Come Blow Your Horn with Lee J. Cobb and Barbara Rush, and The Pride and the Passion starring Cary Grant, among many others spanning most of his lengthy career.

Connie Francis

 

Birthday: December 12, 1938
Age:   73 years old

Connie Francis (born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero) is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw. Despite several severe interruptions in her career, Francis is still active as a recording and performing artist (as of November 2011).

Some of her most popular songs are Who's Sorry Now?, Lipstick On Your Collar, Stupid Cupid, Don't Break The Heart That Loves You, and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.

Bob Barker

 

Birthday: December 12, 1923
Age:   88 years old

Robert William "Bob" Barker is a former American television game show host. He is best known for hosting CBS's The Price Is Right from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history, and for hosting Truth or Consequences from 1956 to 1975

__________

Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the general public.
--H. L. Mencken (paraphrased)