So I've read three books on water in the last week: two are by Masaru Emoto (The Hidden Messages in Water and The True Power of Water), and one by F. Batmanghelidj, M.D. (Water: for Health, for Healing, for Life). And I've got some interesting things to share (I'll get back to soteriology later!).
First off, Mr. Emoto's work
Masaru Emoto (He was one of the people interviewed for the movie What The Bleep Do We Know - which was quite interesting and not really a movie . . . sort of a movi-mentary) takes pictures of water crystals that form when Petri dishes full of water are frozen. The pictures are taken with/through an electron microscope. In a nutshell, Masaru shows that when water is talked to nicely, shown beautiful pictures, immersed in beautiful music, or surrounded by written kind words, the crystals form beautifully and well. When water is talked badly too, immersed in very loud, obnoxious music, shown pictures of devastated land, or surrounded by written unkind words, the crystals do not form, or if they form they are deformed, incomplete, or very non-symmetrical. Furthermore, he thinks that it's not so much the words and music, but the thoughts and feelings that are projected onto the water that make the difference. He also shows that modern ubiquitous electronic devices (TV's, cell phone, microwaves, computers, etc.) have the same effect on water as negative thoughts/emotions: they render it incapable of producing crystals. Finally, he shows that chemicals added to water to clean it (such as in cities) also drastically reduce water's ability to form the beautiful ice crystals, but that water from natural sources (waterfalls, rivers, lakes, etc.) that have not been inundated with chemicals or sewage readily forms ice crystals.
He postulates that our thoughts & emotions resonate on particular frequencies, and that those frequencies can be transmitted to water - the water then responds to what we are projecting. I thought it was interesting that quantum string theory postulates that the basic building blocks of all matter are not atoms, but submicroscopic "strings" that are constantly vibrating - these strings form the backdrop of reality. If Masaru's research is correct, this may be an interesting way that quantum theory and metaphysics/spirituality will blend together.
It's interesting to note that one of the case studies he talks about is where a Buddhist priest said a cleansing prayer over a reservoir. Water samples were taken both before and after the prayer: before the prayer water crystals would not form, but after the prayer some of the most beautiful crystals he'd ever seen had formed.
In short, I've begun praying over the water that I drink. :-) And I'd like to think that when I pray for another person, either physically present or far away, I am influencing them both on a spiritual plane and a physical one.
Then onto F. Barmanghelidj
He postulates that many diseases and disorders suffered by people come from a lack of water - a condition of chronic dehydration that most people live with. He traces many common ailments (heartburn, fatigue, stress, headaches, lower back pain, constipation, etc.) and even major diseases (cancer, autoimmune cases, diabetes, osteoporosis, etc.) back to a lack of water flowing through the body and retained by the body. I've searched around on the internet and found sites that are both pro and against his approach to medicine . . .I think he may have something to say.
First off, he states that by the time we "feel" thirsty our bodies have already entered a mild stage of dehydration - I had heard this before: if we wait until thirst settles in to drink a glass of water our bodies already need that water there. He further states that as we age we start to lose the ability to distinguish water thirst - and that many people mistake water thirst for hunger pains and then eat more to try and quench their thirst.
He recommends drinking at least 8 ounces of water upon rising (I would add: after brushing your teeth!), 8 ounces about 30 minutes before you eat, and at least 8 ounces about an hour and a half after you eat. That works out to at least seven 8-ounce servings of water a day. He recommends cutting out all drinks with caffeine (because it is a diuretic which causes the body to lose more water then is put in), and increasing the intake of salt as the intake of water is increased (to help promote healthy water retention where needed in the body).
I like his ideas, and they're well-presented - a lay reader like me can follow along pretty well. :-)
Finally, my results
My family and I have increased our water intake. My son was taking medicine for allergies and activity-induced asthma. He's since begun drinking at least three 8-ounce servings of purified water a day. He has not taken his singular, and he has not had the sniffles or dry cough at all since we began the regimen (he had these even when taking his medication).
My wife (who had been diagnosed with asthma, allergies and chronic fatigue syndrome) has not had to use either of her inhalers at all since we started drinking more water, and she shows increased energy and vigor (though she's also doing yoga & Pilates). I've noticed that I am far less hungry then I've been and am eating less (he asserts that most people overeat because they mistake thirst for hunger), and that the irritations in my throat & nose (I've also been diagnosed with allergies) have gone away. I have also taken the habit of praying for and blessing my water (which will probably elicit strange looks if I'm ever caught doing it in public!)
Does it work for everything? I'm not sure. Has it worked for the minor (and not-so-minor) ailments my family is experiencing? Pretty darn well. Would I recommend any of the books? Undoubtedly - read them for yourselves and make up your own minds. :-)
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
8.21.2005
8.16.2005
Double Post Cause I was Tagged :-)
So the more important post is below this one - read it first then come back up here - I'll wait . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ok, so you're back - Iggy tagged me, so here I go:
List ten songs that you are currently digging. It does not matter what genre they are from, whether they have words, or even if they are no good, but they must be songs you are really enjoying right now. Post these instructions, the artists, and the ten songs in your blog. Then tag five other people to see what they are listening to.
So here's my list:
1. Matchbox 20 - 3 Am (acoustic version)
2. 3 Doors Down - Kryptonite
3. Puddle of Mudd - Control
4. Smash Mouth - I'm a Believer
5. Linkin Park - Faint
6. Counting Crows - Mr. Jones
7. Randy Garibay - Barbacoa Blues
8. Wynton Marsalis - J Mood
9. Casting Crowns - Here I Go Again
10. The Killers - Mr. Brightside
11. Thousand Foot Krutch - Every Single Song from both CD's I own :-)
As for tagging other people . . . let's see . . . I'll tag Neal, KC, Pecheur, JadedCM, and Justin, and Gabe, and Matt and Adam and Corry and Pat and Jody and I think that'll do because I went tagging crazy - it's the first full weeek of school with kids (us teachers started last week) and I need to destress :-) so please look kindly away as I spiral out of control with my tagging :-)
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
Ok, so you're back - Iggy tagged me, so here I go:
List ten songs that you are currently digging. It does not matter what genre they are from, whether they have words, or even if they are no good, but they must be songs you are really enjoying right now. Post these instructions, the artists, and the ten songs in your blog. Then tag five other people to see what they are listening to.
So here's my list:
1. Matchbox 20 - 3 Am (acoustic version)
2. 3 Doors Down - Kryptonite
3. Puddle of Mudd - Control
4. Smash Mouth - I'm a Believer
5. Linkin Park - Faint
6. Counting Crows - Mr. Jones
7. Randy Garibay - Barbacoa Blues
8. Wynton Marsalis - J Mood
9. Casting Crowns - Here I Go Again
10. The Killers - Mr. Brightside
11. Thousand Foot Krutch - Every Single Song from both CD's I own :-)
As for tagging other people . . . let's see . . . I'll tag Neal, KC, Pecheur, JadedCM, and Justin, and Gabe, and Matt and Adam and Corry and Pat and Jody and I think that'll do because I went tagging crazy - it's the first full weeek of school with kids (us teachers started last week) and I need to destress :-) so please look kindly away as I spiral out of control with my tagging :-)
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
Salvation Part III
More of a question then a post, this is what started me thinking about salvation outside of Jesus.
Think back to the time when Jesus walked the earth. He never traveled a significant distance from where he was born and grew up. Once he started his earthly ministry he touched the lives of hundreds of people, but certainly not the whole world. Once he resurrected and ascended his apostles started to preach the good news, but they certainly didn't make it out to the whole world.
This means that while Jesus was alive there were people who never met him and never talked to him. When his apostles started preaching there were hundreds of thousands of people who never heard them preach, never had a chance to encounter Jesus as way, truth and life. Through no fault of their own countless millions died before Jesus was born, many more died while he was alive, and many more died in the time after his death. Currently we have the gospel being preached in many corners of the world, but we haven't reached every single living human being, so there are still some people who have never heard of the holy man from Nazareth.
What about them?
Is heaven / salvation / life in the world to come / entry into the great feast /etc. closed to them forever?
I'd like to hear how this dilemma has been resolved in the lives of individuals who read my blog - this is the crux of where my exploration of salvation began, and it is still the crucible where my thoughts are being refined.
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
Think back to the time when Jesus walked the earth. He never traveled a significant distance from where he was born and grew up. Once he started his earthly ministry he touched the lives of hundreds of people, but certainly not the whole world. Once he resurrected and ascended his apostles started to preach the good news, but they certainly didn't make it out to the whole world.
This means that while Jesus was alive there were people who never met him and never talked to him. When his apostles started preaching there were hundreds of thousands of people who never heard them preach, never had a chance to encounter Jesus as way, truth and life. Through no fault of their own countless millions died before Jesus was born, many more died while he was alive, and many more died in the time after his death. Currently we have the gospel being preached in many corners of the world, but we haven't reached every single living human being, so there are still some people who have never heard of the holy man from Nazareth.
What about them?
Is heaven / salvation / life in the world to come / entry into the great feast /etc. closed to them forever?
I'd like to hear how this dilemma has been resolved in the lives of individuals who read my blog - this is the crux of where my exploration of salvation began, and it is still the crucible where my thoughts are being refined.
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
8.07.2005
I will die . . .
On Saturday, November 9, 2058. This according to the Death Clock. I expect to see everyone at my funeral, and I expect for you to say nice things about me. (Just some random silliness as I sat down to blog and realized I wasn't in the mood because I was tired from painting and cleaning our house this weekend!) :-)
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
8.01.2005
Salvation Remixed
Further thoughts on salvation (you may also want to read KC's postings on the subject) based on ruminations on two (2) Scripture passages:
1. Mark 2:1-12
Here we've got a story about a paralyzed man, someone who couldn't move at all . . . Jesus is teaching/preaching out of a house, and it's so packed that there's hardly room to breathe, let alone move. Some friends of the paralyzed man have brought him to Jesus, fully believing that they can be healed. But they can't get it. No matter what they try to do, they are denied entrance. The people in and around the house tell them that there is no more room, that they should've gotten there earlier, that they can come back when Jesus is done, etc., etc., and etc.
The paralyzed man and his friends could've left . . . but they didn't. The normal way to enter the house was through the front door . . . they thought of a different way.
I can almost imagine the indignation and criticism they would have received, both from the owners of the house and from the gathered crowd, as they joyfully commenced to tear open a hole in the roof of the house. But they didn't care - they kept going, until the hole was large enough for them to lower their paralyzed friend through the roof.
And Jesus? He didn't yell at them, he didn't chastise them, he didn't order them to act like everyone else was acting . . . he healed the paralyzed man. I can imagine he lost quite a few followers that day, and for good reason - he had acted in a way contrary to how everyone else thought a good, religious, pious Jewish messiah should act.
I think, like I mentioned before, that Jesus will get some of that same response at the end of time - some people will look at other people and start to tell them why they shouldn't be there, why they should be at the back of the line, or why they should be in another line altogether (one moving toward a place with no air conditioning, if you know what I mean! [yes, I stole that phrase from Whose Line Is It Anyway? - I love the show!]). Jesus will watch as the lines shift, those who are sure of their entrance into heaven moving to the front, those not so sure anymore moving to the back . . . and then Jesus will smile, call to those in the back, and have them come forward, entering heaven not in the usual way, but through an entrance large enough to accommodate the love of our Lord and Savior who redeemed all people.
Those that lived lives not-quite-measuring-up-to what a respectable Christian life will enter heaven first . . . . . . . I think Jesus said a few things about the first being last somewhere in the gospels. :-)
2) Luke 15
Three of my favorite parables, all having to do with something lost turning into something found: a shepherd finding a lost sheep, a woman finding a lost coin, and a father finding a lost son. All three of them speak to me of salvation, of the way that God endlessly pursues us and tries to seduce us into a living & loving relationship with the Divine.
In the first two stories, the sheep and the coin have only one action: to get lost. Simple. Direct. To the Point. No way they can mess that up! The people, on the other hand, have the much harder part: finding the lost thing (they're always in the last place you look!).
The last story, however, has more action . . . more drama. We've got two sons and a father . . . the younger sons wants his share of the inheritance . . . tantamount to going up to his dad and saying: "why aren't you dead yet? I want the money, the stuff I'm supposed to get when you die . . . hurry up already!"
The father hands it over, the son liquidates it all, takes the money, and head for Las Vegas, intent on having fun forever. Forever turns out to be shorter then he expected, and he has to take odd jobs, jobs that no respectable Jewish boy would ever take . . . til one day he decides that working for his dad might be a bit better then his current living conditions. He goes back, and this is where the story gets interesting.
His dad, we're told, has been on the lookout for him every single day. When he spots his son, he runs (something no self-respecting Jewish father of the time would ever do in public) to his son, stops him in mid-confession, and commences to throw the wildest party since God created the universe.
I'm sure he got criticized: what are you trying to do . . . spoil him? You mean you didn't even lecture him? Didn't gloat? You didn't reprimand him? You aren't going to make him pay back the money he wasted? You approve of what he did and how he lived? And on and on and on.
Even his own other son didn't want to be part of the celebration . . . to quote the NAB, he said: "Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf."
Again, I sometimes think that Christians will give God the same response: we followed the commandments, we lived out the beatitudes, we attended Church, we confessed Jesus as Lord, we read Hugo's blog daily, we did all the works of mercy, we prayed daily, we read the Bible and they didn't!
And I think God will answer the same way one Jewish dad answered his son in a story: "My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found." In other words, we were already blessed our whole lives long to live and move and have our being in God's presence - to fully acknowledge the wonderful and terrible presence of God's own Spirit in our lives, transforming us - moment by moment - into the image of his Son. We've already been given a foretaste of heaven . . . who are we to deny it to others just because they were not fortunate enough to experience that foretaste here on earth?
Would that we always remember that each and every one of us has been and is currently the lost son . . . and that God is continually looking out for us, whether we make our confession at 1, 10, 100 years of age . . . or .00000001 seconds before we die.
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
1. Mark 2:1-12
Here we've got a story about a paralyzed man, someone who couldn't move at all . . . Jesus is teaching/preaching out of a house, and it's so packed that there's hardly room to breathe, let alone move. Some friends of the paralyzed man have brought him to Jesus, fully believing that they can be healed. But they can't get it. No matter what they try to do, they are denied entrance. The people in and around the house tell them that there is no more room, that they should've gotten there earlier, that they can come back when Jesus is done, etc., etc., and etc.
The paralyzed man and his friends could've left . . . but they didn't. The normal way to enter the house was through the front door . . . they thought of a different way.
I can almost imagine the indignation and criticism they would have received, both from the owners of the house and from the gathered crowd, as they joyfully commenced to tear open a hole in the roof of the house. But they didn't care - they kept going, until the hole was large enough for them to lower their paralyzed friend through the roof.
And Jesus? He didn't yell at them, he didn't chastise them, he didn't order them to act like everyone else was acting . . . he healed the paralyzed man. I can imagine he lost quite a few followers that day, and for good reason - he had acted in a way contrary to how everyone else thought a good, religious, pious Jewish messiah should act.
I think, like I mentioned before, that Jesus will get some of that same response at the end of time - some people will look at other people and start to tell them why they shouldn't be there, why they should be at the back of the line, or why they should be in another line altogether (one moving toward a place with no air conditioning, if you know what I mean! [yes, I stole that phrase from Whose Line Is It Anyway? - I love the show!]). Jesus will watch as the lines shift, those who are sure of their entrance into heaven moving to the front, those not so sure anymore moving to the back . . . and then Jesus will smile, call to those in the back, and have them come forward, entering heaven not in the usual way, but through an entrance large enough to accommodate the love of our Lord and Savior who redeemed all people.
Those that lived lives not-quite-measuring-up-to what a respectable Christian life will enter heaven first . . . . . . . I think Jesus said a few things about the first being last somewhere in the gospels. :-)
2) Luke 15
Three of my favorite parables, all having to do with something lost turning into something found: a shepherd finding a lost sheep, a woman finding a lost coin, and a father finding a lost son. All three of them speak to me of salvation, of the way that God endlessly pursues us and tries to seduce us into a living & loving relationship with the Divine.
In the first two stories, the sheep and the coin have only one action: to get lost. Simple. Direct. To the Point. No way they can mess that up! The people, on the other hand, have the much harder part: finding the lost thing (they're always in the last place you look!).
The last story, however, has more action . . . more drama. We've got two sons and a father . . . the younger sons wants his share of the inheritance . . . tantamount to going up to his dad and saying: "why aren't you dead yet? I want the money, the stuff I'm supposed to get when you die . . . hurry up already!"
The father hands it over, the son liquidates it all, takes the money, and head for Las Vegas, intent on having fun forever. Forever turns out to be shorter then he expected, and he has to take odd jobs, jobs that no respectable Jewish boy would ever take . . . til one day he decides that working for his dad might be a bit better then his current living conditions. He goes back, and this is where the story gets interesting.
His dad, we're told, has been on the lookout for him every single day. When he spots his son, he runs (something no self-respecting Jewish father of the time would ever do in public) to his son, stops him in mid-confession, and commences to throw the wildest party since God created the universe.
I'm sure he got criticized: what are you trying to do . . . spoil him? You mean you didn't even lecture him? Didn't gloat? You didn't reprimand him? You aren't going to make him pay back the money he wasted? You approve of what he did and how he lived? And on and on and on.
Even his own other son didn't want to be part of the celebration . . . to quote the NAB, he said: "Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf."
Again, I sometimes think that Christians will give God the same response: we followed the commandments, we lived out the beatitudes, we attended Church, we confessed Jesus as Lord, we read Hugo's blog daily, we did all the works of mercy, we prayed daily, we read the Bible and they didn't!
And I think God will answer the same way one Jewish dad answered his son in a story: "My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found." In other words, we were already blessed our whole lives long to live and move and have our being in God's presence - to fully acknowledge the wonderful and terrible presence of God's own Spirit in our lives, transforming us - moment by moment - into the image of his Son. We've already been given a foretaste of heaven . . . who are we to deny it to others just because they were not fortunate enough to experience that foretaste here on earth?
Would that we always remember that each and every one of us has been and is currently the lost son . . . and that God is continually looking out for us, whether we make our confession at 1, 10, 100 years of age . . . or .00000001 seconds before we die.
Blessings & Peace,
Hugo
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