Henry David Thoreau

"Christianity, on the other hand, is humane, practical, and, in a large sense, radical. So many years and ages of the gods those Eastern sages sat contemplating Brahm, uttering in silence the mystic "Om," being absorbed into the essence of the Supreme Being, never going out of themselves, but subsiding farther and deeper within; so infinitely wise, yet infinitely stagnant; until, at last, in that same Asia, but in the western part of it, appeared a youth, wholly unforetold by them,—not being absorbed into Brahm, but bringing Brahm down to earth and to mankind; in whom Brahm had awakened from his long sleep, and exerted himself, and the day began,—a new avatar. The Brahman had never thought to be a brother of mankind as well as a child of God."

-Henry David Thoreau

Pope adviser calls the UK a 'Third World country'

Pope adviser calls the UK a 'Third World country'

The Vatican said the cardinal was pulling out of the visit solely on health grounds

One of the Pope's senior advisers has pulled out of the papal visit to Britain, after reportedly saying the UK is a "Third World country" marked by "a new and aggressive atheism".

Cardinal Walter Kasper, 77, made the remarks in a German magazine interview.
The Vatican said the cardinal had not intended "any kind of slight", and was referring to the UK's multicultural society.
It added that he had simply pulled out of the Pope's visit due to illness.

They are saying it is ill health, but I wonder if that is the fact. I wonder if he has been dropped because he is an embarrassment”

End Quote Clifford Langley The Tablet

The German-born cardinal was quoted as saying to the country's Focus magazine that "when you land at Heathrow you think at times you have landed in a Third World country".

He also was reported to have criticised British Airways, saying that when you wear a cross on the airline "you are discriminated against".
Vatican sources said Cardinal Kasper - who stepped down in July as the head of the department that deals with other Christian denominations - was suffering from gout and had been advised by his doctors not to travel to the UK.
The Pope is spending four days in Scotland and England, starting on Thursday.
'Talking nonsense'
The BBC's correspondent in Rome, David Willey, said the cardinal's reported comments were "a slightly clumsy thing to have done on the eve of the visit".
However, he added that he did not think it would have much effect on the Pope's trip to the UK.
Clifford Langley, from Catholic newspaper The Tablet, said the cardinal was "obviously talking nonsense".
"I don't think he believes Britain is in the grip of secular atheism, and he shouldn't have said so," said Mr Langley.
"They are saying it is ill health [that has forced the cardinal to drop out of the visit], but I wonder if that is the fact. I wonder if he has been dropped because he is an embarrassment."
British Airways said the cardinal had been "seriously misinformed" in his claims about the airline.
"It is completely untrue that we discriminate against Christians or members of any faith," it said in a statement.

More on This Story

Papal Visit

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• Strength of the Catholic Church

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• Papal visit memorabilia

• Who would be a priest?

• Cardinal Newman's 'miracle cure'

More features and analysis

• Britain's only gay Mass

• Have immigrants saved the Church?

• Benedict and John Paul compared

Background

• Profile: Pope Benedict XVI

• At a glance: Pope's visit to UK

• UK Papal visit: glossary of terms

From other news sites

• Telegraph Pope visit: Stephen Fry and Terry Pratchett join critics 6 hrs ago

• Yahoo! UK and Ireland Pope seeks to ease tensions with historic visit 7 hrs ago

• Guardian.co.uk The pope's visit: your essential guide 8 hrs ago

• Mail Online UK Pope to tell British MPs to show more respect for the rights of Christians 13 hrs ago

• The Scotsman Letter: Papal visit 16 hrs ago

• About these results

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Religion may influence doctors' end-of-life care

Guidelines stress doctors should discuss treatment with their patients

Doctors with religious beliefs are less likely to take decisions which could hasten the death of those who are terminally ill, a study suggests.

The survey of nearly 4,000 doctors found those with a strong faith were also less likely to discuss end-of-life treatment options with their patient.
The London University research urges greater acknowledgement of how beliefs influence care.
Doctors and campaigners described the findings as "concerning".
Dr Clive Seale of Barts and the London School of Medicine analysed 3,733 responses from doctors practising in a wide variety of fields, with a particular focus on those who worked in palliative care and with the elderly.
The General Medical Council, which regulates the profession, says that while doctors should start from the assumption that life should be prolonged, this should not be at any cost.
While it is illegal to give drugs with the deliberate intention of ending someone's life, doctors may administer morphine or other medication to relieve pain or distress which may have the effect of shortening life - so-called deep sedation.
The GMC also advises that discussions surrounding end-of-life care, including issues such as tube-feeding, hydration and resuscitation, which can all cause avoidable distress, be started with those who are terminally ill well in advance of their dying days.
Patient communication
Those who described themselves as very or extremely non-religious were about 40% more likely to sedate than religious doctors, the study in the Journal of Medical Ethics reported.

Whilst entitled to their beliefs, doctors should not let them come in the way of providing patient-centred care at the end of life”

End Quote Dr Ann McPherson Dignity in Dying

Being very or extremely religious was also associated with significantly fewer discussions of decisions with patients around treatment at the end of life.

More than 12% of the doctors surveyed described themselves as very or extremely religious, compared with just over 6% of the UK general population - as documented in the last national survey of attitudes.
However one in five described themselves as very or extremely non-religious, slightly higher than the general population.
The UK medical population differs in ethnic profile from the population as a whole, with a higher proportion of doctors from South Asian backgrounds.
The survey showed that specialists in the care of the elderly were more likely to be Hindu or Muslim than other doctors, while palliative care doctors were slightly more likely to be white and Christian.
The British Medical Association said: "Decisions about end-of-life care need to be taken on the basis of an assessment of the individual patient's circumstances - incorporating discussions with the patient and close family members where possible and appropriate.
"The religious beliefs of doctors should not be allowed to influence objective, patient-centred decision-making. End-of-life decisions must always be made in the best interests of patients."
Deeply troubling
Professor Mayur Lakhani, chair of the National Council for Palliative Care, said he was concerned by the findings of the paper.
"Core training in palliative care should be mandatory for all doctors to ensure consistency of decision-making, based on best practice and current evidence.
"Decisions must be taken in partnership with people approaching the end of life and those close to them.
Dr Ann McPherson of the charity Dignity in Dying added that while there was growing awareness of the need to put patients' wishes first, the research indicated there was "still some way to go".
"The fact that some doctors are not discussing possible options at the end of life with their patients on account of their religious beliefs is deeply troubling.
"Whilst entitled to their beliefs, doctors should not let them come in the way of providing patient-centred care at the end of life."
David Praill, chief executive of Help the Hospices said the findings highlighted "the maze of complex moral and legal dilemmas that doctors can face when caring for patients at the end of life".
"Doctors need support to ensure that they have the information, skills and confidence necessary to make the best end of life care decisions with their patients."

jesus its mustard

The term Christ (or similar) appears in English and most European languages, owing to the Greek usage of Khristós (transcribed in Latin as Christus

As on many other occasions, Jesus answered the question with a parable:

"It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it." [Mark 4.31,32]

No doubt the prolific yellow flowers of the mustard plant would be in evidence all around them as the people listened to Jesus' words, since, as one authority remarks, wild mustard is conspicuous in the vegetation around the Sea of Galilee. [Plants of the Bible - Michael Zohary]
The mustard referred to by Jesus is probably which for a long time has been extensively cultivated, and in Bible times was the source of mustard seed oil and was also used as a medicament. It is an annual herb with large leaves clustered mainly at the base of the plant. Its central stem branches prolifically in its upper part and produces an enormous number of yellow flowers and small, many seeded linear fruits. It normally grows to just over a metre in height but specimens have been known to grow as high as five metres.
One writer, travelling in the region of Galilee during the last century, exclaimed: 'Is this wild mustard that is growing so luxuriantly and blossoming so fragrantly along our path? It is; and I have always found it here in spring and a little later than this, the whole surface of the vale will be gilded over with its yellow flowers. I have seen this plant in the rich plain of Akkar as tall as the horse and his rider.' [The Land and the Book - W M Thomson

Khristós)

Christ is the English term for the Greek Χριστός (Khristós) meaning "the anointed",^[1] which as a translation of the Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (Mašíaḥ,), carries much of its original Jewish meaning of "Messiah"—"one [who is] anointed" or appointed by God with a unique and special purpose (mission) on Earth.^[2]
In the 3rd- to 1st-centuries BC, the Tanakh (what Christians in later centuries would call the Old Testament) was translated into a Greek version called the Septuagint, in which Khristós was used as a translation of מָשִׁיחַ "Mašíaḥ." Jewish traditional customs associated an appointment to a special purpose with the customary "anointment" of a person with holy anointing oil.^{[citation needed]}
In the first century C.E., a growing sect of religious converts believed that Jesus is "the Christ" (Messiah), and these became known as "Christians." This usage remains current, such that while "Messiah" may specifically refer to the Jewish concept of "the Messiah" yet to come, or to the concept of such a being in general, the term "Christ" in English is almost exclusively connected with Christianity. 

stone cold

I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps,