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How do you maintain the proper balance between 'optimism' and 'getting your hopes too high'? [more inside]
posted by unicorn chaser at 10:34 AM - 9 answers

I am constantly identifying ways in which I am a hypocrite, and it's unsettling. [more inside]
posted by Anonymouse1618 at 10:43 AM - 21 answers

I'm looking for a book on Greek mythology with the best retellings, the best cultural/historical info, and -- most importantly -- the best art. I mean Classical relics, Renaissance paintings, maps, everything. Not just Edith Hamilton with some line drawings. Classical Myth from this question looks pretty good, but is there anything else?
posted by Flying Saucer at 7:36 PM - 4 answers

I overthink everything and doubt every little decision. I end up invariably playing it safe, saying no, and then regretting it. The result of this is that over the past 5 years I have made no real 'progress' with anything in my life. I think there are advantages to thinking things through, doing your research etc. But I'm seeking advice about how to not blow everything up into a big deal, taking a few risks, biting the bullet etc. How do you just go ahead and do the thing? [more inside]
posted by unicorn chaser at 3:30 AM - 19 answers

Hello! I remember reading a book on Tibetan medicine where a practitioner would put a healing 'patch' on someone. The 'patch' had a healing script or mantra on it. Maybe it was after someone had moxibustion. I remember the image in a book that had vivid photos, so this was not a dense book, it was more an overview of different healing ancient Asian practices-, I think. I also remember in the book, the patient had inking like Angliena Joile (not henna). Do you know what this practice is? Trying to learn more. [more inside]
posted by Boyd at 2:48 PM - 4 answers

It's my understanding that for Christians, after they die, they go to heaven and live there for all eternity, that's the belief system correct? I'm not knocking it, simply trying to understand it better. But what do the people do in heaven, once they're there? Is that mentioned anywhere? Does it vary among denominations, like the Lutherans believe X, while Methodists believe Y? Yes, I'm totally serious with these questions and mean no disrespect, just looking for understanding of what the Christian faith believes people do while in heaven.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:00 PM - 24 answers

I was listening to an audiobook of Stephen Mitchell's Can Love Last (sounds like a silly self help book, is a well regarded book by a psychoanalyst) and he quoted Jacques Lacan as saying (I thought) "Love is giving something you don't have to someone you don't know." [more inside]
posted by less-of-course at 11:30 PM - 1 answers

I am in a period of spiritual questioning, and I am thinking about converting to Judaism. But I believe that Israel often acts unjustly toward Palestinians. Is this a deal-breaker? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:32 AM - 23 answers

I was talking with someone raised Catholic whose children are now learning the catechism. Trying to answer the children's question, made her realize that she had real doubts about basic tenants like the virgin birth and the resurrection. I'm sure this must be a common experience - I would like to help her find some resources for how she can think about these questions as a Catholic. Or is it even possible to stay Catholic if a person decides they don't believe in some parts of the faith as expressed in the catechism? [more inside]
posted by metahawk at 6:09 PM - 20 answers

I am a middle-aged man working a job far below my capabilities due to COVID layoffs. I was baptised Baptist last summer alongside my wife, and at the time I felt something that I attributed to something bigger than myself in the months prior, but its faded and doubt has clouded my heart. How did you find faith and how do you recommend someone find faith? [more inside]
posted by Draccy at 10:29 AM - 22 answers

Where is that famous MeFi comment where the people that survived war/shelling actually helped each other rather than fought each other? It was during the Balkan conflicts I think. In the future how do I find such famous MeFi content?
posted by RuvaBlue at 2:39 PM - 4 answers

Can you help me research something? [more inside]
posted by nayantara at 9:02 PM - 18 answers

I'm putting together a financial plan that includes giving away a lot of money. I'm a very unobservant Jew, but Maimonides' levels of tzedakah is a framework that's always resonated with me, and I'm trying to use it as a framework (leaving out the stupid parts like only giving to other Jews). I'm struggling with how to interpret the top two levels in a modern context, with the laws and norms around charitable giving. [more inside]
posted by dorothy hawk at 11:12 AM - 10 answers

I would like to honour the memory of a friend who passed away, but can't really think how. It would be nice to have a private tradition I could do annually, in remembrance. What are some ways you have found to honour people you have lost? [more inside]
posted by unicorn chaser at 1:04 PM - 23 answers

I have found myself with an entire week off, and there's no better way to spend it than to scratch a literary itch. I want to be immersed in that feeling you get when you think about the vastness of the universe, the complexity of consciousness, the sheer strangeness of "existance" -- I want to read things that make me feel this way. Where can I start?
posted by Anonymouse1618 at 6:48 PM - 27 answers

This is something of a nagging philosophical question. My late mother’s long-deceased immigrant Jewish father died when she was in her teens. When she described him, she would say he was Russian from near Kiev, which was all she knew. Fast forward to 2020 when I started getting interested in genealogy, and suddenly I am confounded by what I’ve learned. Can you help me frame my heritage? [more inside]
posted by Violet Blue at 12:00 PM - 44 answers

What have you done when life feels as though it's on a rapidly changing course? [more inside]
posted by firstdaffodils at 1:43 PM - 18 answers

I have been thinking about Parasocial Relationships (PSR), but not from the angle of "creepy obsessive fans". Instead, I want to explore the human relationship to art itself, and then how that is projected onto the artist to form the basis of a PSR. To begin, is there a term (or concept) for the relationship between audience and art? n inextricable part of your personality. [more inside]
posted by pol at 4:38 AM - 15 answers

How do you cope when you are waiting for bad news? [more inside]
posted by unicorn chaser at 9:23 AM - 21 answers

I am engaged to a wonderful woman. Her family is Roman Catholic. First, I would like to accommodate her family's desire that our marriage be recognized by the Roman Catholic church, but I need help setting certain boundaries based on my own beliefs. Second, I want to know what sorts of promises the priest will require me to make as a condition of going through with this ceremony. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:14 PM - 23 answers