Hello all. here is a new article about scientology, this couple, featured in the New York Times left scientology recently.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/us/07scientology.html?scp=2&sq=scientology&st=cse
Mrs. Collbran was on the Today show talking about it this morning.

Tommy Davis, the current spokesperson, said that she and her husband were banned from the church and are bitter while the Collbrans said they went through an extensive process to leave, Mrs. Collbran needed to get pregnant to get out of their 'Elite organization' the SEA org.

Katie Holmes and Scientology

While looking through articles in PEOPLE (my Mom's subscription---really), I was drawn to an article about the actress Katie Holmes and the speculation that she was thinking of having another child because she had been spending a lot of time at the Scientology center "auditing," to see whether she was indeed worthy to have another child. The article went on to give a quick explanation of "auditing." It said it was somewhat like therapy, but a person is hooked up to a weird machine called an e-meter. The article said Katie had been getting "reprogrammed," to be the perfect Scientology wife. The whole process intrigued me and I spent time researching more about auditing and its role in a woman's decision to have another child.
According to a website run by the Church of Scientology, followers believe the "health and the sanity of the child begin long before birth." Scientology auditing is "used to restore confidence, happiness and spiritual freedom and involves answering questions or following directions with the aim of being freed from unwanted barriers that inhibit natural ability." (www.auditing.org)
The definition of auditing from the site is: auditing: Scientology counseling, taken from the Latin word audire which means “to hear or listen.” Auditing is a very unique form of personal counseling which helps an individual look at his own existence and improves his ability to confront what he is and where he is.
An auditor is: a minister or minister-in-training of the Church of Scientology. Auditor means one who listens, from the Latin audire meaning “to hear or listen.” An auditor is a person trained and qualified in applying auditing to individuals for their betterment. An auditor does not do anything to a preclear, he works together with the preclear to help the preclear defeat his reactive mind.
A testimony from an audited person claims, "“Scientology auditing cleared away the cobwebs that were standing in my way. In other words, my intelligence had always been there, but it was dormant. Auditing totally expanded my viewpoint in terms of what I want for my life and the people around me.”— S. R.
Whew.
This is not the first time Katie has undergone a special treatment at the Scientology Center.
Last year, it was written that she had had a Scientology Sparkle Makeover. (PEOPLE, June 19, 2009). Katie followed the Purification Rundown. It involves a heavy-duty detox. High doses of vitamins are taken and a person spends many hours in a sauna. One person on the Church's website said of the Purification process: "After the Purification Process, I was more aware of my environment around me and I felt more alive, with much more energy. "
As I read and learned more about the auditing and the sparkle makeover process, I wondered what "state of mind," auditing and the makeover left Katie in and what controlling influences they had on her and her existence and her life decisions. It's intriguing to me.

Pooh and the Tao

I sat down to read THE TAO OF POOH by Benjamin Hoff on a Saturday evening after a long day at work. I would rather have been out with friends, but.....

I found I enjoyed reading the book and found it introduced me to and helped me understand the general tenets of Tao through the five main characters and their experiences. It helped me understand that Taoism can be applied to our daily lives and give insights into modern society and reflections on real live journeys. It can guide a person to prioritize life goals and give perspective when life seems to get too complicated.It can help a person appreciate what is really important in life.
The book is charming and funny. I understand Taoism Philosophy better and understand Pooh and Piglet better, too. Pooh guides to understand that life is not as hard or confusing as we sometimes let it seem. All the religious teachings and rituals in the world can at times, confuse the simple idea of what the meaning of a person's life really is and should be. It teaches us appreciation for the creation of the world, for nature, for friendships and family, for being.
The book offers simple ideas about Taoism and the balance of the universe. It is imaginative and the symbolism used in the book by Benjamin Hoff made it easy to understand and enjoyable to read. I plan to read it again and recommend it to others.

Religion Panel

Here is the link to the audio from the religion panel:

http://www.shelbymehl.com/2010/02/panel/

There is a password on it, but everyone should be able to figure it out (if you can't send me an email - shelby at shelbymehl.com)

Music and Zen Masters

I enjoy music and its impact on a person's life. Recently I read an interesting article on the website, www.squido.com/rocksprituality. It was entitled: SHRED MASTER-ZEN MASTER. It pointed out that usually musicians and Zen masters are known in two very different categories, but the article's author believed that they are really one in the same. When a person first is learning about music it might seem rigid and unnatural. After a time, it appears simple and natural, something "that flows like water." He believed that music is a gate way to the soul. Music is a universal language, uniting people, giving them peace. A person's soul responds to music, "it dances with the music." It can relax you or inspire you to dance wildly, letting your emotions whirl. Like Zen Masters and the teachings of Zen, music lets you give your life over to a power greater than self. It is a uniter and lets you live your life with purpose.
Music can help as a person seeks fulfillment or purpose. Help create "quantum moments," in a person's life and gives a person the ability to share purposeful, creative moments of discovery and peace with others. Music helps a person to turn his/her talents over to a greater power and seek avenues for creativity and sharing as Zen spirituality instructs. Music helps a person shift music from just notes to a powerful action, a life filled with happiness, serenity and purpose given to use and share by our creator.

An Odd Way To Get Youth To Believe

I found this article on CNN.com

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/01/21/japan.monks.rap.religion/index.html#cnnSTCText

You get the full affect of what these Buddhists are doing from the video.

They call it Buddhism 2010. A Buddhist monk, Kansho Tagai, believes that religion needs to change for the future. They achieve this through rap, though it's the same chants. He even has a street name, Mr. Happiness.

Another idea is to make religion more fun. Zenshin Fujioka has set up what he calls a Monk Bar. Apparently other Monks are even asking for advice.

Eastern Religion/Philosophy journal archive

This is a link to an archive of selected [not sure how they were selected] articles on various topics in Asian religion/philosophy from a couple of journals, mostly published by University of Hawaii press, which has a strong Eastern religion/philosophy focus. Chronologically it starts in the 50s and runs through about 2000, though the older stuff is as good or better than the more recent.