D.Chen

So i got a little side tracked and came to this section to aska question.

My job tends to have me running around the country - and as i have been doing so i've been picking up a rather odd...vibe regarding one issue...namely the one above.

Now i know in America, you folks like to talk about race - you know "Whites, Blacks, Asians, etc." Well, i'm from Asia so its less about race and more about ethnic group - and i can tell you behind closed doors we don't have too many good things to say about the Chinese, Koreans, Japanese, Vietnamese, etc. 1,000 years of strained relations will do that to you i guess.

But what i've noticed amongst both colleagues, customers, and acquaintances from say Kenya or South Africa or even Guayana. etc.

They seem to have a _very_ negative impression about African Americans. I mean, some of the things i've heard are rather bewildering - everything from "my daughter will never marry one of them" to well..

anyway, thoughts or insights?

A rather straightforward question, but one of great interest to me as a Buddhist, who sees a little similarity in Sufism and perhaps a chance start bridging some gaps...

Greetings all. A simple question from an Asian Buddhist learning a bit more about Islam.

My knowledge of your faith is limited, mostly since the area of "kinship" i see between the two starts with Sufism.

What i wanted to address is a question regarding Polytheistic faiths and Islam. under the political rubric of Liberalism, the state makes no efforts to interfere with the doings of a religion.

But it is to my understanding that your Prophet either forced those not of your faith to either convert or depart from his lands.

The law is the law, and varies from place to place. But i guess what i'm asking is whether it is thought of what he did was correct and just.

And if it so deemed, than if another country were to become an Islamic state, would imposing a tax/conversion/or exile(please clarify because i do not know) on non-Muslims also be deemed correct and just?

Greetings all, i'm a foreign born Buddhist so i'm rather like a strange man in a strange land when i go about asking questions like these but:

What kind of relationship did Calvin and Luther have? I'm not asking how their theology or work effected each other per say, but wanted to know if both of these important historic protestant figures had any sort of personal connection?

Hi everybody.

I'm trying to shop for a co-worker whose really into historical/mystery/occult fiction. Things that he's enjoyed in the past are:

Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose and Foucault's Pendalum

Arturo Perez-Riverte's The Club Dumas

Things he did not enjoy: Dan Brown.

He also likes historical "in-period" fiction, so i've been looking around for fictional works that deal directly with the Renaissance and weird/mysterious matters.

Suggestions are always welcome, if you've got an idea i'm all ears.

and why are they counted as one of the "People of the Book?" Sorry, i'm just a really confused Buddhist trying to figure out a few things.

A question on R&S about something small or even trivial regarding a clarification for a small question or a bit of historical data why do people feel compelled to answer in either the following format:

"Jesus is the one true God" or "There are no Gods we make them up." or some other derivation...

.....without actually answering the question?

I mean, logically, I can't see people "converting" to either viewpoint in a line/paragraph diatribe.

The questioner will probably ignore the answer and move on to someone willing to give a more robust and contextualized response.

If so why is the action undertaken? Who is this supposed to be "helping?"

Your comments are always welcomed to those who wish to contemplate. So what do you think?

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Two monks were arguing about a flag. One said: `The flag is moving.'

The other said: `The wind is moving.'

The sixth patriach happened to be passing by. He told them: `Not the wind, not the flag; mind is moving.'

Well, we've had a pretty busy week huh, in terms of teddys and other things. And to the observant person, i freely admit, my choice of Koans have been to address these things in my own way.

To those still reading and amused - i do not ask you to turn a blind eye to the waves of the world....just be sure not to step too far into the water.

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Joshu went to a place where a monk had retired to meditate and asked him: "What is, is what?"

The monk raised his fist.

Joshu replied: "Ships cannot remain where the water is too shallow." And he left.

A few days later Joshu went again to visit the monk and asked the same question.

The monk answered the same way.

Joshu said: "Well given, well taken, well killed, well saved." And he bowed to the monk.

[Caveat: Please people - it says to the Muslims. Ergo, I would like to hear their internal perspectives - not what others have to say about them.]

A lot of blood and ink has been spilled over the status of your beliefs. I believe the major contention is over the claim that Islam is a religion of peace. Unfortuantely the questions are worded in a way to create a rather nasty atmosphere a la an interrogation - and the answers given usually point out the flaws of the "interrogators" beliefs much less than answering the question.

So here i am, a simple Buddhist, come to ask about Islam. I carry no Abrahamic baggage nor the disdain of an aggressive atheist. My knowledge of Islam is tiny, as the only folks i've had sustained contact with are Sufis - who definatly not your average Muslim (or person for that matter - i do genuinely love them).

My question is simple - there are certain disturbing passages of violence in your holy book. How are we non-muslims to understand them?

I am not stating that they should change their idea about God.

I am asking why they believe in an Unchanging God. It seems more like a Greek Philosophical proposition that Eternal/Perfect means Unchanging and Static.

It was suggested to me once long ago that I should pick up the verses of the poet Rumi if i wanted to undrestand a little bit about Sufism.

Has anyone else read Rumi? Could anyone suggest any other authors?

I've heard of the organization on many many occasions.

But i'm confused, bear with i'm Buddhist i don't have the background in this.

What are their beliefs? (Aside from the obvious).

In my foolish attempt to lighten the mood:

Which R&S commentator would you choose to spend the whole day with at (Location of your choice)?

[The question of course assumes you would like to spend a whole day with someone on the board. If not, then this question isn't for yo.]

[Caveat: Yes, i know not all - this question is pointed at a very specific section of R&S]

When did the acceptance of a belief or disbelief constitute a universal judgment on an individual's intelligence or morality?

Isn't that a little too reductionist?

Its that time again everybody - Care to comment?

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Nansen saw the monks of the eastern and western halls fighting over a cat. He seized the cat and told the monks: `If any of you say a good word, you can save the cat.'

No one answered. So Nansen boldly cut the cat in two pieces.

That evening Joshu returned and Nansen told him about this. Joshu removed his sandals and, placing them on his head, walked out.

Nansen said: `If you had been there, you could have saved the cat.'

Can anyone suggest a good Ramen noodle restaraunt in NYC? I'm tired of eating all the pseudo/instant ramen whose noodles are already fried.

I'm looking to treat my palate to some fresh non-fried ramen!

Ok, i'm having the absolute hardest time trying to find a Ramen brand of noodles that doesn't fry or use Palm oil to package the noodle.

Now i know they exist in freeze dried or some other format, but if anyone can suggest a brand available in the US, i would be much obliged!

It seems to me, in America at least, there's always someone who feels oppressed or that the threat of such oppression is looming on the horizon.

Take for example the "impending secularization/theocracy" fear. In the 1990s, many bible-belt Christians felt that certain "negative trends" were eating up their faith. They cowered before conspiracy theories involving large poweful government/multinational organizations controlled by (fill in blank). So they got organized to head-off this threat...

..which leads us into the reversal today. America is becoming a Theocracy, or so i've been warned on many occasions. The same types of fear have been expressed but with different actors/agents.

I have to ask now - what is there really to fear? Is every shift in opinion that contradicts a person's views cause for the declaration for the End? Do we overstate our own fears? Why always the sense of urgency?

Or has it become simply yet another intellectual fad - popular in the 1990s, but now restricted to only a diehard core of theorists (like every other quasi-popular theory?)