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I'm wondering how spiritual people would reconcile the following: I've had low thyroid this week, and it has dramatically altered my ability to feel "centered" and connected to something greater like I usually have the capacity to feel when I am healthy and chemically/hormonally where I should be. If my experience of spirituality is so fragile, is it real? If low thyroid can so affect my (and anyone's) experience of God and peace and joy, etc., how can I trust my experiences in times of balance? What if all I was experiencing was the health of my body? And how big can God be if we have to be balance chemically and hormonally in order to experience him?
posted by ygmiaa at 6:55 PM - 15 answers

I heard this CD by I think a couple in real life, very spiritual - guitar - where the only words in the lyrics I made out was the re-phrase: *I love you* but the song was in Hebrew. The vibe was mellow and laid back but musically rather well done. So, I'm seeking that artist if you know what I'm referring to - and also those similar in vibe to Ishai Ribo. THANK YOU for any help.
posted by watercarrier at 9:22 PM - 0 answers

I'm interested in books and other resources to learn about money and wealth from a philosophical point of view. How money moves through the economy. What it means to be wealthy. How these relate to more tangible goods and services, and other things you can do with money like influence how resources are spent. I'm interested in this a foundational qualitative sense, not in terms of how to predict recessions or set monetary policy. [more inside]
posted by serathen at 3:11 PM - 12 answers

Do students in parochial school for elementary/middle grades have to write reports on saints? If so, which class would assign these reports?
posted by pxe2000 at 2:50 PM - 11 answers

You're Jewish, but you're not planning on going to temple for Rosh Hashana or Yom Kippur. Your kid attends a public school where these are not days off. Do you let them stay home, knowing you're not really observing? Just on the principle that no Christian kid ever has to go to school on Christmas or Easter, irrespective of the fact that they might not attend church that day? Opinions wanted as I consider what to do with my kid. [more inside]
posted by BlahLaLa at 6:25 PM - 37 answers

I'm looking for philosophy sources that address the idea that a moral or ethical harm one causes to others (dehumanizing another person, for instance) also harms the self. What philosophers address this idea? Any specific passages, essays, articles, etc. would be very appreciated.
posted by Mystical Listicle at 12:20 PM - 8 answers

So my friend works in at a pizza place in Concord, California and the other day noticed this (see picture). Anybody know what it means (if anything)? [more inside]
posted by SloppyTree at 1:38 AM - 5 answers

I often listen to Universal Unitarian sermons just before bed. They align well with my social justice and self-awareness perspective. I find the more religious aspects interesting, and the lack of dogma approachable. My 7-year-old knows that I do this an has started asking to join me. Can you help me find something that is age-appropriate? [more inside]
posted by lab.beetle at 1:14 PM - 6 answers

I want to do some art referencing Isaiah 46:3-4 and I need the right translation. I heard good things about Robert Alter's version, so I would love to see his translation of those two lines, if anyone has access to it. I would also be curious if there are other variations that you love. It is for someone who is Jewish and liberal thinking (ie not gendering God as male would be good).
posted by metahawk at 4:29 PM - 2 answers

Political and philosophical history friends! I am curious about the outlier thinkers of the enlightenment and revolutionary eras (mainly 18th c. into the early 19th) and can't seem to find a good single volume to go over them. [more inside]
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 12:23 PM - 8 answers

Is it normal to experience a resurgence in grief a few years after the loved one has passed? How do I seek emotional comfort without being a burden on others? Are there productive/creative ways one can process one's grief? [more inside]
posted by unicorn chaser at 10:37 AM - 19 answers

How do high school aged people (13-18) interact with your church? Do you have programming for them that has been successful? [more inside]
posted by selfnoise at 1:30 PM - 13 answers

In a short story, I want some weird people to have John 8:44 on a placard on their door. But reading up on it, I fear there's no way to use it that won't have an (unintended) antisemitic cast to it. But then again, I'm not religious. Can you help me understand John 8 and formulate 8:44 so it's not icky? More below the fold. [more inside]
posted by angrycat at 3:58 AM - 10 answers

Mr. Kitty and I are looking a preschools for Little Kitty. We loved the facilities, tone of the teachers, administrators, and philosophy of the program at one place. It checks every box for me ... except it’s heavily Catholic. Like, each school year is designed to prepare you for the sacraments, taught by some nuns, heavily Catholic. We are...... not. [more inside]
posted by Suffocating Kitty at 7:36 AM - 49 answers

I'm looking for pieces about the soul (not arguing against its existence, but either presuming its existence or arguing for its existence) on the topics of evolution (specifically pre human ancestors) and neuroscience (focusing on things like Alzheimer's, dementia, hydrocephaly and other conditions that effect the consciousness). [more inside]
posted by Hactar at 8:04 PM - 5 answers

Ill keep it short. I suspect there is a God. But I prefer there wasn't. Believing In God puts me in a bad mood, and yet I do believe there is a God. [more inside]
posted by ygmiaa at 6:49 PM - 35 answers

My father is a fairly observant Conservative Jew. I am culturally Jewish, but an atheist and not observant. When he passes away, I do not intend to sit shiva (or, by extension, host it). What are my options for remaining respectful of his beliefs without doing something with which I’m uncomfortable? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 12:39 AM - 13 answers

I was a practicing Soto Zen Buddhist for over a decade, since lapsed but only because I got busy and lazy. Husband also practiced for a long time. We now have a 6-year-old who knows that Mommy is Buddhist and is curious about what that means. I am bad at explaining. Need books. Help. [more inside]
posted by soren_lorensen at 7:25 AM - 11 answers

I'm trying to find a quote that went something like: At the age of 30 I could draw a line, At the age of 40 I could draw a circle, ... Upon reaching 70 I was able to draw a landscape Something about the intensity of study required for mastery of seemingly simple things. I believe it's from a zen calligrapher. Similar to this: http://www.zenpaintings.com/deiryu-article.htm
posted by jkaplanenator at 3:12 PM - 2 answers

Help me find a progressive, friendly church in DC or NOVA. [more inside]
posted by nowadays at 4:56 PM - 9 answers