Magazzino

The New Physics group follows the breakthroughs in our understanding of the universe and our place in it. Astrophysicist Piet Hut, PhD, a recent speaker at FIONS, proposes extending the study of space, time and energy to include the human dimension of intentionality. This is an exhilarating vista of the human part of the universe becoming able to interact consciously with the whole, including itself.

One of my favoirte writers wrote:
“We must prefer to fathom rather than flatter ourselves. And to fathom ourselves we need not only the courage to follow wherever the question leads us, but the willingness to let go of the certainty of thousands of years of traditional teachings to enter the unknown territory of our own experience.”
Simone de Beauvouir

Giacomo Taldegardo Francesco di Sales Saverio Pietro Leopardi (June 29, 1798, Recanati, Marche – June 14, 1837) was an Italian poet, essayist, philosopher, and philologist. Although he lived in a secluded town in ultra-conservative Stato della Chiesa, he came in touch with the main thoughts of Enlightenment, and, by his own literary evolution, created a remarkable and renowned poetic work, related to the Romantic movement, which makes him one of the greatest poets of modern Italy.

This beautiful hymn to Woman ends with this passionate invocation:

“If you, my love, are one
Of those undying forms the eternal mind
Will not transform to mortal flesh, to try funereal sorrows of ephemeral beings
Or if you dwell in one
of those innumerable worlds far off
In the celestial swirl,
Lit by a sun more stunning than our own,
And if you breathe a kinder air than ours,
Then from this meager earth,
Where years are brief and dark,
This hymn your unknown lover sings, accept.”

March 26, 2010

March 29 marks the beginning of the holiest week for Christians — when believers reflect on the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. This year, there’s something of a dust-up among evangelicals over core beliefs about who Jesus was and whether he is the only way to salvation.

Recently, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., convened a school-wide event to talk about a new book by a popular evangelical Christian. It wasn’t pretty.

“It is a new kind of Christianity that is no Christianity at all,” says Southern Baptist theologian Jim Hamilton.

Evangelical author Bruce Ware adds, “I’ve thought of Brian McLaren for years as a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but I think in this book, he took the sheep’s clothing off.”

(more…)

THE PRESIDENT: I just got off the telephone with Justice Souter. And so I would like to say a few words about his decision to retire from the Supreme Court.

Throughout his two decades on the Supreme Court, Justice Souter has shown what it means to be a fair-minded and independent judge. He came to the bench with no particular ideology. He never sought to promote a political agenda. And he consistently defied labels and rejected absolutes, focusing instead on just one task — reaching a just result in the case that was before him.

He approached judging as he approaches life, with a feverish work ethic and a good sense of humor, with integrity, equanimity and compassion — the hallmark of not just being a good judge, but of being a good person.

I am incredibly grateful for his dedicated service. I told him as much when we spoke. I spoke on behalf of the American people thanking him for his service. And I wish him safe travels on his journey home to his beloved New Hampshire and on the road ahead.

Now, the process of selecting someone to replace Justice Souter is among my most serious responsibilities as President. So I will seek somebody with a sharp and independent mind and a record of excellence and integrity. I will seek someone who understands that justice isn’t about some abstract legal theory or footnote in a case book. It is also about how our laws affect the daily realities of people’s lives — whether they can make a living and care for their families; whether they feel safe in their homes and welcome in their own nation.

I view that quality of empathy, of understanding and identifying with people’s hopes and struggles as an essential ingredient for arriving as just decisions and outcomes. I will seek somebody who is dedicated to the rule of law, who honors our constitutional traditions, who respects the integrity of the judicial process and the appropriate limits of the judicial role. I will seek somebody who shares my respect for constitutional values on which this nation was founded, and who brings a thoughtful understanding of how to apply them in our time.

As I make this decision, I intend to consult with members of both parties across the political spectrum. And it is my hope that we can swear in our new Supreme Court Justice in time for him or her to be seated by the first Monday in October when the Court’s new term begins.