Entries from February 2008

29 February 2008

Kosovo UDI — Forward Rhodesia!

Steph’s blog reports:

The Kosovan provincial government expected international recognition, it didn’t get it. Only 19 “nations” (including Afghanistan and Costa Rico!) have been prepared to recognised Kosovan independence, and despite expectations of joining the EU, only 10 EU members States were prepared to recognise Kosovo: the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, Denmark, Latvia, Estonia, [...]

29 February 2008

New monasticism meets old

This morning I went to hear Roger Saner speaking about the new monasticism at the Seattle Coffee Shop in Brooklyn Mall.
Roger and I have been reading each other’s blogs for about a year now, and when I heard he would be speaking less than 8 km from where I live, it seemed a good opportunity [...]

28 February 2008

Modernity, premodernity and traditional medicine

In a comment on an earlier post of mine, on Religion, spirituality and politics, Nic Paton said “Thats an interesting distinction between the post/modern “neopagan” and the premodern “paleopagan”… Do you see a role for the paleopagan in contemporary culture / spirituality?”
I referred to the recent comments of the Minister of Health on the possibility [...]

27 February 2008

Mad, bad Bob’s $3 billion birthday bash

A billion here, a billion there, soon it adds up to real money, even if it’s the Mickey Mouse currency of Zimbabwe, where a loaf of bread costs $1 million. But $3 billion (nearly R8 million) for a birthday bash when so many people in the country are starving and inflation is running at 100000% [...]

26 February 2008

Why US backs Kosovo, why Russia opposes? A US military base

“US has forced an action” … “in clear violation of the most fundamental principles of international law” according to U of Pittsburgh expert. But the US gets to keep a base, formerly in Serbia, in exchange for support of Kosovo independence. No wonder Russia is alarmed!

clipped from www.counterpunch.org

a massive US military base, Camp
Bondsteel, [...]

24 February 2008

Kosovo Molieben in Johannesburg

A special prayer service (Molieben) for Orthodox Christians in Kosovo was held at St Thomas;’s Serbian Orthodox Church in Johannesburg, and those present signed a petition requesting the South African government not to recognise the unilateral declaration of independence made in Kosovo last weekend.
The service was led by Fr Pentelejmon Jovanovic, Rector of the St [...]

24 February 2008

Kosovo and Metohija — why should we care?

On Sunday 17 February 2008 the ruling political party in Kosovo made a unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia. The Republic of Serbia did not agree to Kosovo becoming independent.
Why should South Africans, and South African Orthodox Christians in particular, care about this? Kosovo is far away in Europe, and many of us would find [...]

23 February 2008

Religion, spirituality and politics

Recently a blogging friend, Nemeton wrote:
I am strongly opposed to ID cards and consider that introducing them is a form of oppression that I would strongly resist - and I think all people of conscience (religious or secular) have the right to resist such tyranny. But my ideas on this come from my political [...]

21 February 2008

The Archbishop and the Media

Archbishop Rowan Firestorm was Started by the BBC before Interview was even Broadcast
At least so says Matt Wardman:
There’s been a huge media firestorm after the Archbishop of Canterbury’s lecture to lawyers in London, as we all know - and it’s all been blamed on “Rowan’s naivity” or “Rowan’s bad press team” or “what did [...]

20 February 2008

Blighter’s rock

I wanted to write something today, but found I was suffering from writer’s block. I couldn’t think of anything to write about — well I could, actually, but it probably wouldn’t be politic to do so. So I’m writing one of those free association things that is probably horribly boring to anyone else reading it, [...]