Fifteen years ago, if someone was dying inside Duke Raleigh Hospital, medical staff would run to the overhead PA system to ask, Is there a pastor anywhere in the hospital?

Back then, the hospital didnt have a spiritual care program.Today, as COVID-19 pushes hospitals toward capacity, chaplains are essential at least according to Rev. Amy Canosa, a clinical pastoral educator and chaplain at Duke Raleigh Hospital.

In a typical work week, members of her spiritual care team spend about 70 percent of their time attending to patients and 30 percent offering care to staff. COVID-19 has nearly flipped that ratio. The chaplains wear masks and have their temperatures checked upon arrival so that they can continue to safely care for both patients and staff.

On the day I interviewed Canosa, she had just finished praying for a few staff members after they expressed a need for her to ask God for some hope, and for this to end.Four women gathered, and Canosa offered up a prayer that as best she can remember sounded something like this:

God youre hearing your children who are showing up to work every day and seeking to be faithful. God we are tired. And we are worried about our loved ones. And were worried about the people in this place. And we need some hope.

And we need you to show up in ways that we can see. And we need you to help us see the ways in which you are already present, even now. Because God, it is so hard to see you sometimes in the midst of whats happening. So help give us signs and symbols to help us feel that we are not alone.

Canosa put together a Chaplain Compassion Cart full of things that she hopes might bring staff comfort paper mache flowers, lavender aromatherapy balls, worry stones and she posted a bulletin board that offers resources and asks staff to share, In this time of COVID-19, what is getting you through?

Doctors and nurses have Sharpied in answers ranging from prayer and family to Tiger King and red wine.

Canosa sees her job as both ministry and hospitality: At times shes offering water to loved ones awaiting scary news, at other times shes giving patients permission to be mad at God. And in these pandemic days of visitor restrictions, Canosa has also played the part of tech support, teaching an 85-year-old-patient how to FaceTime her grandson. In many ways, COVID-19 has pushed the spiritual care team to be nimble and creative, as doctors and nurses are pressed to the limits and dont have the time or training to take on the added emotional burden.

We walk in when everyone else is ready to walk out, Canosa said. Doctors didnt get trained to do all that emotional work. And the reality is they have to numb themselves to some of these feelings in order to do their job.

But chaplaincy isnt just about compassion, Canosa says, though thats essential. Its also about health outcomes. Stress is linked, for instance, to prolonged recovery periods and decreased pain thresholds.

When theres a code blue or a stroke when theres pandemonium and crisis everyone goes running, Canosa said. We joke that chaplains dont run. Part of what we do is offer that calm and compassionate presence.

Since 2018, Alyssa Adreani, the manager for the Department of Spiritual Care at Newton-Wellesley Hospital, has kept a Post-It Note on her desk that reads, compassionate, non-anxious presence a daily reminder of what she wants her interfaith chaplaincy to look like. But once the coronavirus grabbed hold of her hospital in the Boston suburbs, she made a slight revision.

Right now our role is often to provide a compassionate less-anxious presence, she said. What I am telling other people, I am telling myself: Now is not the time for perfection.

But shes still learning what that less-anxious presence looks like when it comes to spiritual care within the chaos of a pandemic.

These clinicians are responding to terrible trauma, Adreani said. A lot of people have likened our situation to nurses being on a battlefield.

So she wanted to learn from a spiritual care provider with war-zone experience. The Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, which facilitates conversation between chaplaincy leaders, theological educators, clinical educators, and social scientists, connected her with Andrew Shriver, an Army chaplain, via phone.

Shriver told her that spiritual care in times like these can look quite casual like gently showing up. It looks like following up with staff and making yourself available. Nurses and doctors usually dont have time for a heart-to-heart when theyre on the clock.

For clinical staff, theres a level of functional compartmentalization. Adreani said. They just need to get through the task in front of them. And if [they] break stride, [they] wont be able to get through the day. And so I want staff to know that they have my support on their terms. Not on my terms.

As doctors, nurses, and other frontline health care workers throughout the country see increased workloads, chaplains adjust with off-hours support, offering cell numbers and social media inboxes.

Right now at Duke Raleigh Hospital, visitors are only allowed to visit patients during end-of-life situations, one guest at a time.

Chaplains are the ones walking in with a phone so that loved ones can convey love and care, Canosa said.

But in other hospitals across the country and world, the regulations are more stringent: Chaplains dont have an opportunity to be in patients rooms at all, a huge obstacle for a person whose primary goal is to offer active presence. Tele-chaplaincy has played a role in spiritual care for years, especially for immune-compromised patients, but the highly contagious coronavirus has proliferated the practice. So what does active presence look like via Zoom or cellphone?

In March, when it was becoming clear that tele-chaplaincy would have to replace in-person care in many situations, the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab put together a virtual town hall to brainstorm. About 1,200 spiritual care providers signed up for the Zoom call, where they learned scripts that might help facilitate intimacy in the absence of physical presence. These scripts help communicate that theyre available to offer care, regardless of the patients faith background. For instance:

One of the things that I am here for is spiritual support. That can mean differentthings for different people. Sometimes it means supporting people in a certain religion and praying for them. Sometimes it means helping them connect to their meaning and purpose, but not a certain religion. Are you of a certain religious or spiritual orientation?

According to Canosa, tele-chaplaincy cant replicate the connections formed from sitting in the same room, but at times, the medium can foster a certain anonymity that gives patients and the loved ones of patients permission to be more vulnerable. She likened it to the Catholic confessional set-up.

Because people cant see us, theres that freedom of being more emotionally intimate, she said. If I cant see you, I can pour out a little bit more.

That being said, both Canosa and Adreani believe tele-chaplaincy is ultimately less impactful than in-person care. Silence over the phone feels different than silence in a hospital room. Hand holding during prayer is impossible.

But this is so much better than nothing, Canosa added. I cant imagine nothing.Your loved one dying and no one reaching out. And no one offering any care. And no one checking in. So while this isnt the active presence I would want, this is still a gift.

Chaplaincy in the time of COVID-19 is about figuring out what good-enough care looks like, Canosa explained. This is a loaves-and-fish scenario, she added, invoking the story in the Gospels in which Jesus feeds the multitudes with just a few rations.

The disciples look at the bread and say theres no way we can feed all these folks! Canosa said. It may not be a four-course meal, but we can feed people, if we have the faith and the imagination to do that kind of work.

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Spiritual Care at the Front Lines of the Pandemic - Sojourners

Dr. Bill Releford (Courtesy photo)

Did you know that spiritual wellness has a significant impact on your physical health? If youre wondering how spirituality and physical health is connected, research has shown that spirituality the state of being in tune with our spiritual selves, mostly through mindfulness, meditation, and prayer, allows us to: lower our stress levels, feel more gratitude and satisfaction, achieve a renewed sense of purpose and form meaningful and healthier relationships with others.

These spiritual wellness results usually translate into various physical health benefits, including:Improved Sleep greater emotional satisfaction boots your dopamine levels (aka happy hormones), allowing you to have a more restful sleep.

Lower blood pressure feelings of happiness and satisfaction reduces cortisol levels (aka stress hormones), resulting in lower blood pressure.

Lower Risk of Depression positive emotions such as optimism, a feeling of high self-esteem, and a renewed sense of purpose can dispel feelings of isolation, a leading cause of depression.

Invigorated Immune System mindfulness, meditation, and prayer can trigger the bodys healing abilities by encouraging a healthy state of balance of mind and body.

In uncertain and challenging times such as what were currently facing, it helps to awaken ourselves spiritually.

Dr. Bill Releford is the founder of The Black Barbershop Health Outreach Program. Follow him on Instagram @blackbarbershophealth and @drreleford

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The Amazing Health Benefits of Spiritual Wellness - Lasentinel

I suppose the details are all in the interpretation.

I went to church intent on hearing a particular preacher, only to find him absent from the pulpit.

The guest ministers sermon on humility was a stark reminder that it is all about the message and never about the messenger.

Fortunately for me, that was one of the spiritual lessons I learned from the minister who saved my life coincidentally, the one whom I was going to hear on that Sunday.

Humility, as the pastor was trying to clarify and explain, should be viewed as described in Philippians 2. The entire chapter is devoted to Pauls message to the Church at Philippi regarding imitating Christs humility.

As I listened, humility transformed from my initial context of docile behavior to a fact of faith and strength of character.

By that I mean, it was made clear that Christ chose to consider Himself at best equal to, if not lesser than his fellow man.

Remember, were talking about God here. He consciously chose to make Himself human in order to serve His divine purpose.

The text tells us, Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but, in humility, consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests but also to the interest of others.

Now, my recollection of Christ says thats a pretty good description of how He looked upon His duty and that was pretty much what got Him killed.

I mean, isnt it interesting that the most dangerous and, therefore the most powerful and important thing you can do in life is to care about someone else more greatly than you care for yourself?

This humility thing does indeed have inherent power.

Paul teaches us that it is our fundamental responsibility, as Christians, to be united in our effort to emulate Jesus denunciation of status, pride, ego and self.

Surely, if anyone had a right to be arrogant, it was the living Son of God.

You try being the walking, talking Word and deliberately transform yourself into a mere mortal human being.

If you can grasp that thought, please dont let it blow your mind because you know you couldnt do it become Christ and die willingly on the cross by the hands of mere men.

Fortunately, as the minister made clear, Paul is not asking us to do the impossible. He let us know that our goal is service unto man.

Put a lid on what we think of ourselves and our prideful independence in favor of our collective interdependence upon each other and the Almighty.

Christ died to save us all and here in Philippi, Paul tells us that our conduct must be rooted in the following truth: out of this thing called humility, Christ saved the world.

Are we better than him? Think it through.

If you look down your nose at anyone for any reason, if you truly think youre better than anyone else, then you think youre better than Jesus, who thought himself no better and even less than you.

He died in service to us, you and me.

Do something good for someone else today simply because you can.

If you dont get this, may God bless and keep you always.

See the original post:

Spiritually speaking: The inherent power of humility | Religion - The Philadelphia Tribune

WilliamsportTheres a story that we usually tell during the Easter season about how Jesus appeared before two disciples after his resurrection.

You can read it in the Bible yourself (Luke 24:13-35), but heres a summary. The two disciples in question were traveling to a village called Emmaus, just a few days after his death. Some of their friends had spread the rumor that Jesus was alive, but they didnt seem to know what to do with that information.

While they were talking, Jesus appeared to them, but they didnt recognize him. When he asked them what they were talking about, they began to tell the story of Jesus death and the rumors of Jesus resurrection, not realizing it was Jesus they were talking to. Jesus expressed disappointment with their inability to have faith that God would come through, but he stayed with them. When they reached their destination, they invited him to stay and have supper, which he did. And during that meal, when he blessed the bread, broke it, and gave it to them, they suddenly realized who he was.

What I love about this story is that it shows God revealing Gods self to people in ordinary ways. There was no burning bush, no angelic announcement, no going mute (as Zechariah did), and no going blind (as Paul did). It was just Jesus meeting two people on a journey and sharing food with them.

This year, however, our life is anything but ordinary. Perhaps this helps us hear the story with new ears. Because all of those ordinary actions that Jesus uses to reveal himself are things, we are currently restricting ourselves from doing during this time of pandemic. Most of us are not traveling very much these days. When we do, were not likely to engage strangers (or people we think are strangers). And were definitely not likely to share a meal with those strangers.

So many of the activities with which we can normally connect to this story are not part of our lives these days. But one thing that these two disciples experienced is still present for us: disappointment. As they talked to Jesus, they shared how his death seemed to bring an end to their hopes. Thats when he intervened.

We may not be doing any of the other things that those two disciples were doing that day, but we do know what it means to have our hopes dashed. Certainly, most of us have had our share of disappointment due to the pandemic. But most of us have experienced such disillusionment outside of it as well. It happens any time we come to the realization that the world is a harsher place than we had hoped it would be.

Like those disciples, we can be blinded by disappointment. When life doesnt turn out the way we had hoped, sometimes we adjust, give up hope, and move on, as those two disciples were trying to do. Thats not always a bad thing. Some dreams are ill-advised, after all, but not those which hope for the world to be as God intended it to be.

When those types of dreams are seemingly crushed, that is when Jesus shows up. We might not recognize him right away. We might be so resigned to defeat that we accept disappointment as the new normal, as the disciples did. But rest assured, Jesus will continue to walk along side of us, waiting to reveal himself at the right opportunity.

The opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints expressed in this editorial do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints ofNorthcentralPa.com.

Continued here:

Spiritual editorial: Jesus meets us wherever we are - NorthcentralPa.com

It is said that a person is made up of body, spirit and soul. Many translate this relative to their physical, spiritual and emotional well-being. Weve been fighting the coronavirus by observing limited social, spiritual and recreational activities since March 11 almost nine weeks ago. It has challenged us on every level, emotionally, spiritually, physically and economically.

Initially, Gov. Jay Inslee mandated a Stay Home, Stay Healthy order to every person in the state on March 23. On April 2, he extended that order to May 4. And last Friday, he extended it again to May 31. By that date, it will have been 70 days that the vast majority of the people in our state have isolated themselves in their homes away from others, except to go out for the few government-defined essential reasons. This is a very long time an unprecedented action by Washingtonians to be effectively required to sit in their homes.

Many have been willing to do it in good faith to fight off this foe. The efforts have been successful. Our state and county infection numbers have been trending downward. We have flattened the curve.

Unfortunately, weve also flattened the economy, which is negatively impacting Washingtonians. More than 230,000 small businesses and related jobs across Washington were shut down by the governors order. More than one million claims have been filed for unemployment since the beginning of this shutdown a record for the state.

These realities are deeply affecting peoples overall health and well-being. The emotional, financial and physical stresses of not being able to pay their bills, provide for their families, or being unable to keep employees working and earning a real paycheck are taking a toll. The premise that business owners and the unemployed are doing fine because theyre now living on the governments payroll is a false perception. They may be receiving some money, but for those who are, most would rather rely on a solid business or employment for their short and long-term well-being.

Last Friday, Gov. Inslee announced four phases to reopen Washington. He said it would be at least three weeks in between each phase before considering a move to the next phase all based on the data. At the very best, were looking at mid-July for the fourth phase, and more like the end of the summer. My concern is todays data shows weve already flattened the curve, were out of the flu season, and no real testing capacity timeline has been determined. Really, hes unnecessarily delaying a re-start of our state.

Several other states, including Colorado and Idaho, are safely reopening their states. Both California and Oregon have allowed more businesses to stay open than Washington over the past couple months. I believe now is the time to move ahead and safely reopen our state and economy, not just introduce a plan with delayed, potential timelines which is hurting Washingtonians.

With extra care and protections for seniors and those with underlying health conditions, we can work to safeguard their health, along with the overall well-being of the 7.6 million people across our state. Other states have figured this out. We certainly can as well.

Gov. Inslee hopes to get enough tests to start testing for COVID-19 soon. State and local public health officials say it will be months before we have enough tests to determine how many have had COVID-19 and have the antibodies for immunity. Public health officials say a vaccine may be 12 to 18 months away, for those who want this solution. Bottom line, its not practical to delay reopening our state any longer and certainly not until one of the above takes place. And what if by waiting, it's preventing Washingtonians from developing antibodies, which could protect people from getting this virus in the future? Its time to move ahead and safely reopen Washington now. Our emotional, spiritual, financial and physical health depends on it.

Rep. Vicki Kraft, R-Vancouver, represents the 17th Legislative District.

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Our emotional, spiritual, financial and physical health depends on safely reopening Washington now - The Reflector

SportFootballFOR Rotherham folk, the view from the bridge is nothing to do with a play by American writer Arthur Miller.

Saturday, 9th May 2020, 6:00 am

It does possess drama and a compelling plot all the same with Millmoor, that inimitable former home of Rotherham United, taking centre stage.

Glory days, legendary figures, crises and then it was all over and briefly off to an athletics stadium over the border in the Steel City before reconvening across the dual carriageway.

Museums, galleries and entertainment venues may be closed and Millmoors famous Tivoli Nitespot has long since staged its last dance but the view from Coronation Bridge overlooking Millmoor remains open and vivid.

A stadium vacated by its tenants in 2008, but still largely intact, including its half-built new main stand which was never finished. The CF Booth Ltd signage on the Railway End still standing sentinel-like.

Should you walk or drive by, you are instantly transported back for those of us who are not teenagers at any rate.

What memories Millmoor, a stadium rich in history and unique in character, provided. Goodness, gracious me as much-loved Millers radio commentator Brian Chapple once said.

It was Chapple whose words complete with an explosion of joy from co-commentator Gerry Somerton painted a golden picture to describe Alan Lees late promotion-clinching goal against Brentford in April, 2001.

It was a moment when time stood still and one that no Miller of a certain age will ever forget.

The Railway End also witnessed a similarly iconic moment 20 years earlier when the late Rod Fern latched onto a pass from John Breckin, that great servant of Millmoor, before firing home to secure another famous 2-1 win in the home finale of 1980-81, this time against Plymouth Argyle.

It enabled the Millers to claim the Division Three title at the expense of rivals Barnsley.

Sadly, tragedy would arrive on the final day of the 1999-2000 season when the Millers and Swansea City, both promoted and competing for the Division Three championship, drew 1-1.

Rival fans had clashed before the game with brewery drayman Terry Coles, a Swansea supporter, trampled to death by a police horse in an incident on a single-lane track just behind the Millmoor Lane stand.

A central figure amid the fanfare of those more treasured times in the early Eighties and early Noughties was the man known simply as The King.

All hail Ronnie Moore, whose sign used to hang above the old Millmoor Hotel, where the club legend used to enjoy a post-match pint with supporters.

It was opposite the Railway End in front of the Tivoli where Moore mostly held court on the pitch in front of his adoring Millmoor public in his playing days with Rotherham.

As he did with Fern on an unforgettable autumnal day in October, 1981 when they destroyed Chelsea in a 6-0 rout with Yorkshire TV cameras there to witness one of the darkest hours in the Blues history with visiting custodian Petar Borata never quite the same after.

Moores time in charge of the club produced similarly beguiling stories at Millmoor, which proved no respecter of reputation during its last hurrah.

A kerfuffle famously arose in August, 2003 when Championship newcomers West Ham refused to change in the away dressing rooms because they felt they were too cramped.

The press box was also packed that day, but no-one moaned. The old facility used to be at the opposite end of the Main Stand and was on stilts and that was far more precarious.

Unsurprisingly, no home team-talk was required that day against the Londoners and the Hammers returned south with no points and a flea in their ear from the Millers faithful.

It was a time when I covered the club for the Rotherham Advertiser. The pleasure of seeing well-heeled clubs and big-names given a reality check was something you never tired of.

Former Chelsea and Italy striker and Watford manager Gianluca Viallis unique food for thought involved a meat pie being thrown in his direction. Benvenuto to Rotherham, Luca.

Much earlier, Millmoor had proved fateful for another well-known forward of his day in Malcolm MacDonald.

Supermac, then in the colours of Arsenal, suffered a career-ending knee injury in a League Cup tie at the start of the 1978-79 season the Gunners lost 3-1.

Millmoor staged many other memorable cup occasions of note, although its perhaps better not to mention one particularly controversial FA Cup fourth-round replay with Manchester United in 1966 to any Millers old-timers.

The Millers, who drew 0-0 at Old Trafford, cruelly lost out 1-0 after extra-time to a line-up including Best, Charlton and Law with the hosts left incensed at referee Jack Taylors non-award of a goal from John Galley. If anyone asks, it was a goal...

The Sixties saw the likes of Peter Madden and Dave Watson stride around with authority, while high-quality forwards Albert Bennett, Barry Lyons, Frank Casper, Ken Houghton and Ian Butler struck fear into the heart of many a visiting backline.

Fast-forward to the early Eighties in the era of those much-missed figures of Ian Porterfield and Emlyn Hughes and it was the turn of Moore and Fern to impose their will upon defenders, with the trickery provided by Tony Tiger Towner.

Millmoors contribution to football history is also significant.

It is where the first penalty shoot-out in the FA Cup took place, with Ally Pickering bestowed with the honour of converting the winner for the Millers in a 7-6 victory over Scunthorpe in November, 1991.

The first League Cup final, when it was a two-legged format, was staged there in August, 1961, with Barry Webster and Alan Kirkham netting in a 2-0 first-leg win over Aston Villa.

Millmoor. Abandoned, but still adored.

Editors note: First and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Posts journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdogs Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshires National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing subscriptions@jpimedia.co.uk. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting http://www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

If you want to help right now, download our tablet app from the App / Play Stores. Every contribution you make helps to provide this county with the best regional journalism in the country.

Sincerely. Thank you. James Mitchinson, Editor

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Abandoned but never forgotten Millmoor the spiritual home of the Millers - Yorkshire Post

Yogi (noun), a practitioner of yoga, a person who is an authority on yoga, has practised yoga and attained a higher level of consciousness.

Usage: The Beatles became devotees of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who had translated his knowledge of yogic practices into a new science of Transcendental Meditation.

The English word yogi comes, of course, from the Hindi (yog), which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit (yogin),which descends from the verbal root yuj (coming from (yunakti), to connect. In Hinduism, the god Lord Shiva and his consort, the goddess Parvati, are often depicted as an emblematic yogiyogini pair. It must be admitted, however, that in the West, the word yogi became popular from the cartoon character, Yogi Bear, who was known for conning tourists out of their picnics a far cry from the Indian yogis meditative practices based on profound religious and spiritual training.

Though the earliest evidence of yogis and their spiritual tradition is found in the Kein hymn 10.136 of the Rig Veda, which is as old a Hindu tradition as it is possible to get, the term yogin also appears in the Katyayana Shrauta-sutra and in chapter 6 of the Maitri Upanishad, where it means a follower of the Yoga system , a contemplative saint. The term also sometimes refers to a person who belongs to the Natha tradition.

While the term yogi clearly has a very specific meaning, it can, by extension, be applied to people who demonstrate the qualities of yogis without necessarily being trained in yoga or meditative practices. I remember describing my old boss, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, as someone who was anchored in himself like a yogi, immune to either pleasure or pressure, able to focus on the challenges before him with serene detachment. To the best of my knowledge he had never practised yoga, but was rather a Wise Man in the African tradition, someone who practised these virtues as hallmarks of personal character rather than as the fruits of a spiritual or religious system.

Yogi Bear is a totally different phenomenon, and I remain at a loss at to why his creators dreamt up his first name, since the avaricious bear in question displays not a single yogic quality. Nor does the other famous American Yogi, the baseball player Yogi Berra, who no doubt acquired his monicker only because of the similarity of his Italian-derived surname to that of the eponymous Bear. Still, this has led many Americans to be bemused by the term, precisely because they associate it with a cartoon bear and a baseballer rather than with any other-worldly spiritual wisdom.

On the other hand, we in India have the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Ajay Bisht, who chooses to go by the name Yogi Adityanath. From his sponsorship of a thuggish Hindu Vahini to his propensity for proposing changes to the names of towns across the country, there seems nothing remotely Yogi-like about Mr Bisht. Still, it is one of the anomalies of the Hindu faith that there is no single recognized spiritual body to award official certificates of Yogi-hood. Various bodies award the title of Yogi, for people of varying qualifications and spiritual merit. At the end of the day, all that matters, if you want to be a Yogi, is the number of people who are prepared to take you at your word, and accept you as one.

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Word of the Week: Yogi, a word for the spiritually wise - Hindustan Times

A

About eighteen months ago*, I attended the 80th birthday celebration for the jazz legend, Wayne Shorter at the Antibes Jazz Festival on the French Riviera. Apart from a slight paunch, he looked not a day older than 60. His face was unlined, his posture ramrod straight, a full head of hair without a speck of grey. He opened the set with Orbits, stroking the tenor saxophone like a painter at work, laying out the palettes which would later transmogrify into a resonant mosaic.

He was followed on stage by Wynton Marsalis playing with a sizzling 40-piece Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra, but I must confess, I could no longer hear anything else that evening. Shorters mellifluous tones on Orbits and Joyride lay on my mind and inner recesses like drying paint on a canvass. I was rendered tone deaf after that, totally subsumed and submerged into his artistic and improvisational aura. It was a quasi-religious experience.

In this regard he was no different from another saxophone colossus, the great Sonny Rollins, who had played the same festival a year before, at 82. Rollins had strode on to the stage, like well, a colossus, and proceeded to hold court for an entire two hours, and had everyone on their feet with his orgiastic rendition of his timeless Dont Stop the Carnival.

In New York City, in the early 1990s, we used to wait with much anticipation for a Sonny Rollins sighting. He had made a ritual of playing every two years in one of New Yorks premier concert venues such as Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall and the Beacon Theatre. This was a major event in the jazz calendar. He would invite any of the dominant saxophonists of the day, be it Branford Marsalis or Joshua Redman on stage to jam with him, and proceed to give them a masterclass on the art of the tenor saxophone. I remember a concert in 1995, where he jammed with the bebop great Jackie McLean, a childhood amigo of his from the same Sugar Hill neighbourhood in Harlem. They went toe to toe, note for note, riff for riff, in a mesmerising jamming jamboree. For once, Rollins did not land his usual knockout punch. On that evening, in McLean, Sonny Rollins had met his match. The contest ended in a deuce. Seventeen years later he had lost none of his groove and swagger.

What both Shorter and Rollins had in common is a deep spirituality. Shorter is a Nicherin Buddhist, a spiritual practice credited for turning his difficult and painful life around. Rollins is a yoga practitioner who has dabbled in Zen Buddhism. Shorter had a particularly sad life. His first wife, Irene, left him and would later date and marry the actor, Billy Dee Williams, of Lady Sings the Blues fame, who had been a neighbour of theirs (go figure). His father had died in a car accident while driving from his concert in the midst of this marital meltdown. His daughter with his second wife, Anna Maria, was born with severe brain damage, a pain that would lead both of them to alcohol abuse. She would later die at the age of 12. And, as if that was not enough pain for one individual, Anna Maria would perish on that fateful TWA plane crash on July 18 1996, off the coast of Long Island, New York.

By any measure, this has been a challenging life. But encouraged by his friend, the pianist Herbie Hancock and his wife Gigi, longtime practitioners of Buddhism, he began to find solace and equanimity with this spiritual practice, a wellspring for the resplendent glow that has been his hallmark lately. It also enhanced the breathtaking creativity that prompted The New York Times to salute him as jazzs all-round genius, matchless in his field as a composer, utterly original as an improviser.

His music with his longterm quartet of Danilo Perez on piano, John Patitucci on bass and Brian Blades has begun to rival his fabled musicianship as the music director of Miles Davis iconic quintet in the 60s, when he penned some of jazzs most iconic compositions such as Footprints and Nefertiti. Many had thought his work with Joe Zawinul as cofounder of the group Weather Report, following the Miles era, would be the swansong of his compositional and artistic valence. But he seems to be getting better like the proverbial vintage wine.

This brings me to another wondrous phenomenon; that of Hugh Masekela who, at 75, seems to be scaling the heights of his artistic prowess. Hes hipper, stronger and nicer. I recently had a chat with him about Tai Chi, which he has been practicing for the past 10 years. He waxed rapturously about this practice, and its imprimatur was palpably evident in his wholesome disposition and exuberance, after years of self-confessed nihilism and hedonism.

Ditto with Abdullah Ibrahim, an 8th Dan martial arts expert and devotee of Islam, who turned 80 last October, but can kick anyones ass, literally and figuratively. Watch him walk on stage, regal in bearing, serene in demeanour, looking too cool for school in his customary all black regalia and then the music seems to ooze seamlessly from his fingertips.

But the one who would surprisingly elude wellnesss grip was Zim Ngqawana. I had known Ngqawana since my return to these shores in the late 1990s.We were a group of cats who were part of the Bassline jazz scene and local food joints in Melville, Johannesburg. He was into yoga, meditation and vegetarianism. He combined a deep spiritual sensibility, an amalgam of Sufi mysticism and New Age syncretism and an artistry that exploded from his entire being. But by all accounts, after his farm in the south of Johannesburg was ransacked and his half-a-million-rand-worth Steinway grand piano desecrated, his mood towards life would darken insuperably, a prelude to the stroke that would take his life at just 51 years of age. It seems all his spiritual and emotional resources would prove supine against the silent seductions of the Grim Reaper.

The Ngqawana riddle notwithstanding, Shorter and Rollins example and Bro Hughs personal and artistic renaissance seem instructive for an artistic community under siege. From Kippie Moeketsi to Pat Matshikiza; Victor Ntoni to Moses Molelekwa its been an avalanche of blues for this community. One does not want to downplay the socio-economic factors at the heart of these blues, and privilege a spiritualist reductionist logic. But there is ample proof to suggest that the spiritual bliss that devotional practice, wellness and meditation fosters would be a critical resource for jazzs fightback against the demons of alcohol and substance abuse, poverty and the marginalisation of a society in transition, preoccupied with other concerns.

* This piece was originally published in 2015, as a look at spirituality and jazz. It has been republished for International Jazz Day, which is celebrated annually on April 30

Excerpt from:

Spirituality at the core of sax greats sound - Mail and Guardian

In the days before the UK population began to WFH or get furloughed, there was only one thing on everyones minds: hand sanitiser. On a COVID-19 mission, I scoured the high street for the rare item. I ended up empty-handed in Planet Organic, in front of an enormous display of organic natural hand-sanitisers. A few spirituality-slash-wellness brands and small business owners followed suit that week, and soon spiritual Instagram accounts were sharing "how to make your own hand sanitiser" at-home videos and tips.

It's unsurprising that modern spirituality and wellness have risen to the challenge of coronavirus. Day-to-day life has been stripped back to basics; we've been left with a lack of control over our situation and a deafening silence. Spiritual practitioners of all kinds have stepped into that space. From reduced rate psychic readings to Instagram live meditations, the spiritual industry of self-made business owners and part-time influencers may come out of the pandemic doing well. Whether its female lifestyle brands like Free People and Daisy London or media organisations like Dazed Beauty, companies have enlisted practitioners to do Instagram lives and takeovers about various spiritual practices. Even Vogue recommended reiki, sound healing, breathwork, expensive essential oils and Ayurvedic medicine to stave off anxiety around coronavirus.

None of it has been flogged into a void. In February, people around the world began Googling "astrology coronavirus", making it a breakout trend and the most popular astrology-related search term between 22nd and 28th of March. Indeed, astrology held something in the way of answers to the pandemic: according to most popular astrologers, like the infamous Susan Miller and millennial favourite Jessica Lanyadoo, certain transits of planets appeared to point towards this global virus happening. They've even predicted when it will end (dying out during the summer and returning with a vengeance in November for the Christmas period, by the way).

Analysts have suggested that many of us have been drawn to buying cheap luxuries during lockdown. But this doesn't just mean fast fashion tracksuits and face masks: it can also look like plant medicines, aromatherapy oils and candles even crystals, astrology and psychology books and tarot cards.

The ease with which spiritual businesses have managed to retain visibility online is clear. The vast majority of spiritual practitioners reiki healers, past life regression facilitators, astrologers, to name a few do much of their work online anyway. Although many do house visits or rent space at a wellness centre, this usually accounts for a portion of income. Workshops that were planned for April and beyond have moved online to Instagram lives or Zoom, and continue to be scheduled successfully. Tamara Driessen, a crystal healer and the author of The Crystal Code, tells me that her work has easily shifted from in-person to online, and that shes impressed with how her community has responded to the pandemic.

Theres such a big focus in the spirituality community on looking after yourself and other people so this comes naturally when theres a crisis. Its like weve got the tools, Tamara says. Healers are people who have gone through crises in their own lives and found these tools and have cultivated practices that make us feel more stable and connected and clear-headed. During this period, she says she's pleased with the ways healers have wanted to reach out to people and share those tools in easy ways.

People are able to engage with spirituality in ways they otherwise wouldn't do because our lives look and feel so uniquely different at the moment. A lot of people have been saying to me in DMs that this is all stuff theyve been interested in for a while but now theyve got time and space and can buy the books, read them, and buy the crystals, Tamara says. This lockdown has allowed people to tune into a different side of themselves as well, she adds.

Ive been tuning in by watching bi-weekly live tarot readings on Polyester magazine's Instagram. Its comforting to watch as an artist and tarot reader draws cards for individuals on the chat the Tower, Ace of Wands, the Lovers and everyone interacts with each other and the reader herself. I've seen people on there ask about their problems or share things theyve learnt about themselves recently.

Ione Gamble, the founder of the magazine, is about to launch a series of IGTVs teaching Polyester followers the ins and outs of reading tarot, after a huge surge of interest. Tarot definitely offers power to marginalised and femme communities in particular; it's comforting, helps bring people together and also helps us all open up a bit, I think, she says. So often proper supportive infrastructure doesnt exist for these communities and tarot is just a really nice way to offer a bit of comfort, hope and distraction.

With many young people in lockdown for the purpose of protecting others from the virus, our focus has shifted to the our wider communities. As Ione argues, spirituality generally provides a sense of community, and much of this is now being given away for free online where it might have been otherwise paid for in real life. London-based "conscious lifestyle brand" and wellness centre, Shes Lost Control, for example, is running sessions under the hashtag #communityculture providing pay-what-you-can meditation, crystal healing, spells, emotional management and herb magic.

This might seem like a fairly niche topic to those not acquainted with crystals and tarot cards, but the desire for some sort of spiritual connection is growing for many people. The number of people searching for the word "prayer" on Google skyrocketed last month, doubling with every 80,000 new registered cases of coronavirus, according to a University of Copenhagen working paper. A new poll for Pew even found that 55 per cent of Americans have prayed for an end to the pandemic.

Once the immediate danger of the pandemic is over a shifting period of time that first seemed like a month and now may be a year there may be positive and personally beneficial elements of lockdown life that individuals will adopt long-term. People will argue for working from home hours; they might keep baking bread and cooking three home-cooked meals a day. They also might keep one out of ten of their quarantine hobbies and one of those forever hobbies might be keeping a woo-woo wellness practice in their lives.

It might be a small thing you do now that doesn't feel "spiritual" per se: mindfulness while walking, praying at night for loved ones, writing gratitude lists or in a journal in the morning. Certainly, the worlds of wellness and spirituality correctly criticised for many things, including its cost will have gone much further to legitimise themselves.

@hannahrosewens

Read the rest here:

Coronavirus Is Good News for the Wellness Industry - VICE UK

International Life Coach Gaur Gopal Das answers questions related to spirituality during these turbulent times.

At a time when most people are feeling anxious and disturbed by the Covid-19 outbreak around the world, can spiritual consciousness help attain peace of mind?

How does an urban monk who takes over 200 flights every year deal with a lockdown?

Can enterprises have a spiritual quotient that can help them face the VUCA world better?

How will Covid-19 change people and businesses in the long run?

International Life Coach Gaur Gopal Das answers these questions and even plays a rapid fire question round with Network18's Mridu Bhandari in this exclusive conversation.

Moneycontrol Ready Reckoner

Now that payment deadlines have been relaxed due to COVID-19, the Moneycontrol Ready Reckoner will help keep your date with insurance premiums, tax-saving investments and EMIs, among others.

First Anniversary Offer: Subscribe to Moneycontrol PROs annual plan for 1/- per day for the first year and claim exclusive benefits worth 20,000. Coupon code: PRO365

First Published on May 1, 2020 06:21 pm

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Hello! This is... | Spirituality in times of a global pandemic - Moneycontrol.com

Being spiritually blind doesnt mean that you cant see, says Sophia, 10. It means that you dont believe in God.

When Jesus gave sight to a man born blind, it started a debate among Jerusalems religious establishment. After cross-examining the healed man and his parents, religious leaders couldnt deny the miracle. Because Jesus healed the man on the Sabbath, he broke one of their most sacred rules (John 9:24-41).

Jesus kept Gods law perfectly, but he intentionally broke the oral tradition that the religious establishment built around the 613 commandments (called Torah) that God gave to Moses. Yes, God told the Israelites to rest on the Sabbath (Saturday), but Torah didnt go into great detail on how to rest.

In their oral tradition, Jewish rabbis created 39 categories of prohibited Sabbath work. Making clay was one of them. When Jesus spit into dirt to make a paste to put on the blind mans eyes, the rabbis could say that he made clay, and therefore he worked on the Sabbath.

Jesus purposely and often healed on the Sabbath. Rabbi Jesus said, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath, (Mark 2:27-28).

Jesus taught that God created the Sabbath to help people rather than burden them. Instead of being refreshed by truly resting on the Sabbath, rabbinic oral tradition turned it into a worrisome burden of rules upon rules. Jesus went beyond rest by healing on the Sabbath.

In another confrontation with Jerusalems religious elite, Jesus had probably shouted in righteous anger: Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! (Matthew 23:24).

Dont major on the minor! Religious leaders carefully strained a gnat from their drink (Jesus healing on the Sabbath), but failed to see the camel they were about to devour when they rejected Jesus as the prophet of whom Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 18:18. They missed the big picture, but theyre not the only ones.

Swallowing camels while straining at gnats is a favorite pastime for those who try to earn Gods favor through observing religious rules and traditions. Trying to earn Gods favor by observing religious rituals doesnt make you a Christian.

After religious leaders questioned the ex-blind man several times, they got frustrated when he disrespected them by asking them if they wanted to become Jesus disciples (John 9:27). After throwing the ex-blind man out from their midst, Jesus found him and asked, Do you believe in the Son of God? (John 9:35).

When Jesus told him that he was the Son of God, he said, Lord I believe.

Next Jesus said, For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind, (John 9:39).

Think about this: Its a paradox. Those who are straining at the gnats of keeping their religious rules to earn favor with God are spiritually blind. Those who are desperate like the ex-blind man will readily trust the Son of God as their savior.

Visit http://www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org.

Originally posted here:

What does it mean to be spiritually blind? - Journal Review

International Life Coach Gaur Gopal Das shares insights on the benefits of following a spiritual consciousness practice to attain peace of mind in these times of a global pandemic. As an urban monk who takes over 200 flights every year, coaches several well-known CEOs and preaches spiritual practices, he shares experiences about his shift to the virtual world during the lockdown. Das also talks about the need for building a spiritual quotient in enterprises, the long term changes that Covid-19 will bring in people and enterprises and sportingly plays a rapid-fire question round with Network18s Mridu Bhandari in this exclusive podcast.

Moneycontrol Ready Reckoner

Now that payment deadlines have been relaxed due to COVID-19, the Moneycontrol Ready Reckoner will help keep your date with insurance premiums, tax-saving investments and EMIs, among others.

First Anniversary Offer: Subscribe to Moneycontrol PROs annual plan for 1/- per day for the first year and claim exclusive benefits worth 20,000. Coupon code: PRO365

First Published on May 1, 2020 05:27 pm

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Hello, this is... podcast | Gaur Gopal Das on spirituality in times of a global pandemic - Moneycontrol.com

I am moved to action by the words of spiritual care provider Tom Craighead, a retired Episcopal Priest/Social Worker:

I think of countless souls who simply need someone to be with and hear them. Facing an uncertain future or the threat of loss, many people instinctively want to talk. They may not know what they need. They might need to vent, to feel their anger, fear, or grief by speaking it. Talking helps them find their emotional footing. It often helps ground and calms them. Talking can also reconnect a person with themselves, with their lifes still-unfolding story. In this new challenge, they may begin to rediscover meaning, purpose, maybe even hope.

In talking to each other, we can help ourselves and each other, even at a distance.

The Community Care Team (CCT) is the voluntary counseling and behavioral health unit of the Vashon Public Health Medical Reserve Corps (MRC), which responds to medical and mental health needs during a disaster like the Covid-19 pandemic. Started in 2008, the care team provides resources for mental health needs, assessments and triage, individual and family support, and disaster-related emotional assistance. The care team collaborates with Vashons Medical Reserve Corps, agency providers and VashonBePrepared.

Care team membership has grown since the start of the pandemic. The team branches support mental and spiritual health and include mental health counselors, social workers, nurse practitioners, psychologists, psychiatrists, priests, ministers, and other island professionals.

We know firsthand the pandemic is causing anxiety, depression, and stress from feelings of isolation and uncertainty. Anyone can call the Vashon Community Care Team Help Line at (206) 701-0694 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. We are here for emotional, psychological, or spiritual support. Leave a message if we are unable to answer, we will return all calls.

Our dedicated team offers:

The Spiritual Resources Group (SRG) is a new arm of the Community Care Team. The group works with faith organizations, poets, and others to support the spiritual health of our community. Spiritual health is not limited to and does not assume belief or religion. Care providers respect and are guided by the perspectives, values, goals and experiences of the person seeking support. There will be no proselytizing or promoting of particular religious, spiritual, philosophical, moral, lifestyle, or other frameworks.

SRG recognizes there are many spiritual communities on the island. Some are located in buildings. Others are less formal communities of belonging, meaning, care and celebration that may not consider themselves spiritual or religious, but do, in fact, feed the spirit.

We on Vashon Island live in a beautiful and peaceful place surrounded by nature and the Puget Sound with a view of the mountains. It is an island paradise.

That does not exclude us from the feelings of anxiety and uncertainty due to social distancing and isolation. Calls to practitioners in the Seattle area, including Vashon, have increased in recent weeks. People are starting to feel the effects of prolonged isolation and social distancing. They are worried about economic losses, both personally and nationally. Relationship issues have surfaced now that couples and families are in close proximity daily.

We, as a country and community, have been through events together that challenged our foundations, our connections, our livelihoods. These have rocked our world, even here on the rock. The pandemic is a challenge that has touched almost all communities, and Vashon Island, so close to the epicenter, has been part of the earliest actions to control the spread of COVID-19.

Connecting, practicing kindness, being active, helping, or asking for help all help strengthen ourselves, our families, and our community.

Jinna Risdal is a therapist, educator, and administrator.

See more here:

Health and compassion for the mind and spirit - Vashon-Maury Island Beachcomber

Some people go on runs to cope with stress. Some tackle home projects. And others pray or meditate.

That got us thinking. What does spirituality mean to people right now? Some research suggests that religion and spirituality have positive effects on mental health and sense of well-being.

But we wanted to hear from real people. In this episode, we talk to guests in three different spiritual practices: Orthodox Christianity, Astrology and Islam.

They discuss the role of religion in social justice, the power of positive thinking and how learning a new language can forge a deeper connection with faith.

We have three guests in this episode. Joshua Loller is a lecturer in the religious studies department at the University of Kansas, as well as a priest of an Orthodox Christian church in Lawrence, Kansas. Cindy McKean is an astrologist and tarot card reader. And Mahnaz Shabbir is an entrepreneur and practicing Muslim.

Enjoy this episode of The Filter. Feedback is always welcome.

Discover more unheard stories about Kansas City, every Thursday.

Check your inbox, you should see something from us.

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In this episode, The Filter taps into the spiritual - Flatland

The Hopkinton Hangout Hour takes place on Wednesday, April 29th at 2pm. In the episode we catch up with Laurel Coolbaugh of the Sanctuary of Hopkinton and Anne Thie of the Hopkinton Public Library joins us in the 2nd half of the show.

Send your pictures, comments or questions on our Facebook page , in the comments section of the YouTube live stream of the program or by emailing [emailprotected]!

You want to come on the show for discussion? Reach out to us by emailing [emailprotected].

Tune in on HCAM TV (Comcast: Channel 8, Verizon Channel 30) or at our YouTube page page at 2pm!

While we are practice social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, you can watch us live on HCAM TV as well as our YouTube page with "Hopkinton Hangout" every weekday from 2 until 3pm.

This show has been created to connect our community during this difficult time, so come share your interests or tune in for some fun conversation!

Continued here:

Spirituality and Reading.. On The Hangout Hour - hcam.tv

Persona is a mental construct. You yourself first create it carefully, then fall in love with what you have created, and slave away your whole life trying to support it. You think that you are rich, powerful, skilled, intelligent ,knowledgeable, a great acharya! How pathetic then, that you constantly demand validation! All your actions seek applause to uphold your idea of your persona. You even die supporting your persona. Like the Greek myth of Narcissus in Ovids Metamorphoses, Book 3. Young Narcissus was so obsessed with his beauty that he spurned all lovers but fell in love with his own hypnotically beautiful reflection in a pond! Unable to detach himself from his fascination he sat gazing at his reflection, pining away and wasting himself to death. So do we, pine away for what is not..and waste ourselves away. We ourselves hook onto the rings of sense objects and then complain I am hooked!

Once you realise the truth of your being, then no slogging on the treadmill of Sadhana is needed. It is a cognitive shift, a soft detachment from the clinging unreal to the liberating real. You loosen your grasp on the world and the world loosens its grasp on you. No effort is needed to convince a teenager to give up baby toys! It is urvarukamiva bandhanaat, easily detachable. The persona is the centre one is holding onto. When the centre is gone, there can be no limiting radius and no circumference and vice versa! We ourselves create the monstrous persona, a Frankenstein, which grows stronger than its creator. It commands us and threatens to destroy us if we dont listen! It is now the owner and we are the owned. Then all Sadhana becomes a mere treadmill. One slogs and sweats daily but reaches nowhere.

Prarthna Saran President Chinmaya Mission Delhi.

Email: prarthnasaran@gmail.com

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The Spiritual Treadmill - The Sunday Guardian

Since the emergence of COVID-19, a number of media commentators and academics have reflected on the spiritualisation of the pandemic among responses in different African settings.

Theres been particular interest in the influence of prominent Pentecostal pastors on public health messaging. Some have expressed concern about the possible consequences of their invocations of spiritual warfare.

Weve examined how idioms of (spiritual) warfare have been deployed in response to the coronavirus pandemic and wish to bring a broader perspective to recent debates about these dynamics. We consider examples from Tanzania and Zimbabwe, drawing on our ongoing research in these settings.

Many Pentecostal Christians, in Africa as well as other continents, portray the coronavirus as a spiritual force of evil rather than as a biomedical disease.

Through this lens, the world is presented as a battleground between God and the agents of Satan. For those who enlist to fight for Jesus, the most effective weapon is prayer.

Spiritual warfare provides a framework for explaining and responding to both mundane and extraordinary events from a cancelled flight to a global pandemic. But despite their close association with Pentecostals, these militarised idioms may also resonate with other groups.

In Zimbabwe, Prophet Emmanuel Makandiwa has been criticised for reassuring his congregants that they will be spared from the virus. This will happen through prayer and the divine protection he mediates. You will not die, because the Son is involved in what we are doing, he says, calling it

the freedom that no medication can offer.

This declaration epitomises a sense of Pentecostal exceptionalism, embodied in the claim to be in this world but not of this world. It clearly risks instilling a level of complacency among his followers about the threat of the virus. It amplifies the possibility of noncompliance with government safety measures.

Prophet Makandiwa has also been accused of perpetuating conspiracy theories. Drawing Biblical allusions to the mark of the beast, he has warned followers about microchip implants. These, he predicts, will accompany future vaccination campaigns. This claim has also been made by pastors elsewhere in the African continent.

In Uganda, steps have already been taken to prosecute pastors spreading misinformation.

Efforts to spiritualise the virus have also been pursued by some African leaders. For example, Tanzanian President John Pombe Magufuli described COVID-19 as a demon (shetani). Through it Satan seeks to destroy Tanzanian citizens.

Despite the government promoting physical distancing, he declared that churches or mosques would not be closed because this is where God and true healing (uponyaji wa kweli) are found.

Invoking the idiom of spiritual warfare, Magufuli explained that COVID-19

cannot survive in the Body of Jesus (and) will be burned away.

Commentators have observed that Magufuli is himself a Roman Catholic (albeit with Pentecostal ties). Yet few have acknowledged his implication that God can also be found in mosques, nor his recommendation that Tanzanians also embrace indigenous medicinal practices for protection.

In a country where Christians dont constitute a clear religious majority, Magufuli invokes the rhetoric of spiritual warfare to articulate a sense of national religious identity.

These invocations mostly adopt a rhetorical style reminiscent of Pentecostal pastors but maintain a broad, inclusive focus on God (Mungu).

Tanzanians responded enthusiastically to Magufulis call for citizens of every faith to participate in three days of national prayer. Many took to social media to circulate photos and videos featuring the Tanzanian flag and words of prayer.

Yet a growing number of commentators have criticised Magufuli. As with Makandiwa, they argue that his use of spiritual warfare rhetoric generates a dangerous expectation of viral immunity.

Some commentators have taken Magufulis emphasis on prayer to be emblematic of the governments perceived failure to adequately address the pandemic.

The government, say critics, has fallen prey to superstitious thinking. Some draw allusions to the use of water-based medicine in the Maji Maji rebellion against German colonial rule.

As others have observed, the act of giving spiritual agency to the virus as a personal demon can also serve to downplay structural failures which have contributed to its spread. It divests responsibility to both COVID-19 as a sentient enemy and citizens.

There is a risk, however, that exaggerating the idiosyncrasy of the Tanzanian governments response to COVID-19 and indeed that of Prophet Makandiwa may perpetuate another myth of exceptionalism. One which echoes colonial depictions of African populations as singularly superstitious and incurably religious.

In truth, spiritual warfare idioms have been diversely invoked and unevenly received across the continent. They have prompted lively religion and science debates.

Moreover, the plausibility of spiritual warfare idioms should not be exclusively attributed to peoples religious sensibilities. After all, warfare is the signature trope with which global political figures, health experts, and media commentators have framed COVID-19.

Like Magufuli, world leaders like the UKs Boris Johnson, Frances Emmanuel Macron and the USs Donald Trump have all invoked warfare motifs against the single, identifiable enemy.

European governments have also been accused of using this framing to shift responsibility onto citizens as combatants, whether for failing to adhere to physical distancing or for their biomedical frailty. Narratives of individuals heroically winning their war against a decidedly personal demon are no less persuasive to some in Europe than to some in Africa.

None of this is intended to take away from the ambivalent and sometimes plainly harmful effects of attempts to spiritualise the pandemic. Nor is it to imply that religiously informed strategies of communication and implementation are incompatible with more temporal methods.

Religious groups like Pentecostal congregations may indeed constitute an important public health resource when it comes to delivering services and messaging. And they can cultivate a sense of hope and mutual care in the face of uncertainty.

Rather, we suggest as anthropologists and scholars of religion, this warfaring rhetoric might stem from a shared discomfort among Africans and Europeans alike at the prospect of an adversary without discernible self-will or conscience. An impersonal demon.

As literary critic Anders Engberg-Pederson articulates it:

We declare war on the virus, because we want it to be something that it is not.

See the article here:

Pentecostals and the spiritual war against coronavirus in Africa - The Conversation Africa

The pandemic is not over yet, but many are already looking forward to the life after COVID-19. Returning to work or to school, visiting family and friends but what is the place of faith in all of this? Will the fire and the ardor of prayer that have been supporting so many of us through the lockdown continue to burn as brightly? Once the decision to maintain this flame has been made, you need to think ahead on how you plan to achieve this goal.Thank you for being with me, Jesus.

The desire to cultivate your relationship with the Lord and to persevere in the Christian way of life will inevitably result in some form of spiritual conflict.But, as St. Teresa of Avila once observed, Our Lord walks among pots and pans helping you both interiorly and exteriorly! And you can be certain that, No temptationhas overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful;he will not let you be temptedbeyond what you can bear.But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1 Cor. 10:13). This sounds hopeful, but you must be vigilant: correct your thoughts in the light of faith and let your emotions be ruled by charity.

There are numerous means to achieve your goal: you may seek inspiration in the Gospels or in the lives of saints, in prayer and in fasting as well as in theology, the knowledge of divine mysteries that will help nourish your relationship with God. These means must be both fervent and realistic (that is adapted to your lifestyle).And to make all this more than just a pious resolution, you must include it in your daily schedule. Its a choice made from love that will subordinate your whole existence to the primacy of God and prayer.

A Christian who is alone is a Christian in danger. So you must share the ardor of your faith with other Christians. One last suggestion, dont ever hesitate to call on the Lord in your heart to say: Jesus, thank you for loving me! It is up to you to find your own way to celebrate his Presence in your life. One businessman has acquired a habit of saying Thank you for being with me, Jesus. After you, every time he walks into a room.

Father Nicolas Buttet

See the article here:

Plan ahead for how you will continue working on your spiritual life once the lockdown is lifted - Aleteia EN

Since the start of the pandemic, this newspaper has reported on ways different religions are responding. One group that has not been featured is Indigenous people. This isnt because nobody wants to. Its just its not easy to do.

For one thing, there are no Indigenous spirituality offices you can call for official comment. And even if you could, there are thousands of Indigenous nations, which makes any generalization impossible.

For another, there is no sense of a division between spirituality and the rest of life for Indigenous Peoples. Even asking the question seems foreign to how they live.

As for COVID-19, its a very real threat to Indigenous people. How are they integrating their traditional practices and beliefs with social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands and modern medical technology? With help from Niigaan Sinclair, who teaches native studies at the University of Manitoba and writes about Indigenous issues for the Free Press, I decided to find out.

First off, its important to note COVID-19 is not the first pandemic faced by Indigenous people.

Since their first contact with Europeans, Indigenous populations encountered new and devastating diseases. Most notably, smallpox wiped out entire communities, leading Indigenous Peoples to develop practices and medicines to battle the sickness.

Indigenous people were also hit hard by the deadly 1918 Spanish flu. In northern Manitoba, communities like Norway House experienced the sickness nearly six months after the south had finished with their first wave. They lost a fifth of their population.

Meanwhile, tuberculosis and other outbreaks were common at residential schools. Children were regularly quarantined and many died.

Indigenous nations know about sickness and pandemics, in other words, and developed practices to deal with them.

For example, when sicknesses historically entered communities, medicine people incorporated quarantine practices and social-distancing practices. These could involve creating controlled movement zones in communities, signified by hanging an individuals or familys possessions in a tree.

Communities would often work together to combat the sickness, sometimes putting aside centuries of conflict. The dead would be buried together in burial mounds, and medicines would be shared.

Indigenous Peoples also included European medicines in their practices. Treaty Six, signed by Crown representatives and Cree, Assiniboine and Ojibwa leaders in 1876 in Saskatchewan, included requirements for a "medicine chest" to be provided to help Indigenous communities combat sickness.

As for COVID-19 today, Terry Nelson, former chief of the Roseau River reserve, is talking to people in his community about ways to address the virus.

In addition to following practices such as social distancing, he suggests using traditional medicines such as bark from fir trees, yarrow and sage, which treat various ailments such as coughs and colds.

In addition, he is talking to younger people about the science behind traditional medicines, how to find and collect them, and their connection to spiritual practices.

"Its part of the revival of traditional knowledge," he says, pointing out that traditional societies like the Midwiwin are specialists in medicinal practices, incorporating dance, song and story into a sense of health.

This is important, he notes, since knowledge of traditional medicines have been lost in communities due to the Indian Act and residential schools.

"Because of the persecution of our people, this knowledge went underground," Nelson says, adding now it is being shared widely.

Terrys brother Charlie, a Midwiwin elder, is also speaking to young people about how ceremonies and traditional teachings can give them a framework for dealing with COVID-19.

This includes gathering and using natural medicines to promote "wellness" and address various ailments.

One of the biggest challenges Indigenous peoples will experience during this pandemic is an inability to feast and attend large gatherings, such as funerals and sundances, he says.

"These will have to be greatly restricted," he explains, "but when this is over we can look forward to gathering again."

For Wanda Levasseur, a member of Ebb and Flow First Nation and elder in residence at the University of Manitoba, this is the time for staying home and "burning our medicine, sage and cedar" anti-bacterial and cleansing agents for the air.

She also advocates drinking boiled pine and cedar bark and needles, which are high in vitamin C. While drinking them, people should also "pray to the Creator for protection" from the virus. This not only creates a sense of connectedness but mental well-being, she notes.

For Indigenous people, Levasseur points out, the plant world "is sacred," helping Indigenous communities build their relationships with the universe and each other.

"When people go out into the woods and forests to find these medicines, they reconnect themselves with the Creator," she adds.

For Sinclair, all of this adds up to a "sense of community that bridges space, time, and the worst of conflict, something that brings light and hope during the darkest of times. That is the best medicine of all."

faith@freepress.mb.ca

John LonghurstFaith reporter

John Longhurst has been writing for Winnipeg's faith pages since 2003. He also writes for Religion News Service in the U.S., and blogs about the media, marketing and communications at Making the News.

Read full biography

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With knowledge from past outbreaks, many Indigenous people return to traditional medicines - Winnipeg Free Press

In 2005, a documentary called Into Great Silence was released, which portrayed life in a monastery in the French Alps. The director Philip Groening spent months living with the monks, where after a few weeks of silence and solitude, he developed a new sense of awareness.

The quietness and inactivity of the monastic way of life had an awakening effect on him. He began to live wholly in the present, and seemingly mundane objects became intensely real and beautiful.

At the moment, during lockdown, we may not be living like monks, but we are certainly living restricted lives. Some of us may find the lack of hustle and bustle unsettling. Were so accustomed to background white noise that when it ceases we may feel uneasy.

Quietness and solitude can also expose us to discord in our minds, which start to chatter away, creating a sense of disturbance. Negative thoughts and feelings emerge especially during uncertain times, when there are urgent and real concerns about job security, family members and financial stability.

But as I show in my book Back To Sanity, once we get used to living more slowly, quietness can sometimes be strangely therapeutic, and help us cope with difficult moments.

And while many of us are understandably finding our present predicament extremely challenging, I believe we can learn something from retreat techniques which might help.

Of course, this may not be possible for everyone. People who live in isolated or crowded conditions or who are in turbulent relationships may find it much harder. Its partly a question of temperament too. People who are naturally introverted and reclusive will find the lockdown easier to deal with than people who are more extroverted.

But there are certain practices we can try to follow which will help us to learn from retreats how to better deal with the changed lives we are leading. Here are five tips:

Acceptance. If you keep thinking about how great your life was before the lockdown, and about how awful it is now, then you will feel frustrated and unhappy. One of the best pieces of advice I have heard is: If you cant change a situation, stop resisting it. Just accept it. So tell yourself that this is the way things are, that this is your life for the time being. Dont fight the situation embrace and accept it.

Live in the present. Dont think too much about the past or the future. Just live from moment to moment, taking each day as it comes. Pay attention to your experience on a moment to moment basis. Be mindful. Look out of your window or go into your garden (if you have one) and look around slowly, paying attention to everything which comes into your range of vision. Do the same when you go out shopping or for exercise, and when you eat.

Appreciate the small things. This is the time to appreciate the things in our lives which we are normally too busy to notice. Its the time to appreciate food and drink, the natural world around us, the sky, the stars and the people who are close to us. Above all, we should feel gratitude for life itself.

Trust yourself. One thing my psychology research has taught me is that human beings are much stronger than we think. There are reserves of resilience inside us which we only become aware of when we are challenged or face difficulties. Even if you think you cant cope with a situation, you will be surprised to find that you can.

Reframe the situation. Its not going to last forever, and it may be a long time before anything like it happens again. Dont think of the lockdown as imprisonment think of it as a spiritual retreat. Some people go on meditation retreats or yoga holidays to feel rejuvenated. Now many of us are on an enforced retreat from our normal hectic, stressful lives.

In my role as a psychologist, I have become aware of the therapeutic power of these practices. At the end of this period of retreat, we may return to our normal lives feeling more human. We may become more centred in the present, and less focused on the future. We may become more aware of the beauty of our surroundings, rather than giving all our attention to tasks and activities.

Instead of losing ourselves in our roles and responsibilities, we may become attuned to our authentic selves. And rather than looking for happiness outside us, by buying and doing things, we may find a simple contentment emerges naturally just from being.

Link:

What spiritual retreats can teach us about the challenges of lockdown - The Conversation UK