For my websites of poetry, articles, and fiction

http://www.psalmsyawpshowls.com/

https://shimmeringpebblesinthelightstream.blogspot.com/

http://lastthings.weebly.com/

http://lightwaveseeker.weebly.com/

http://planktonpelican.weebly.com/

http://infiniteoceanoflightandlove.blogspot.com/

In the LIGHT of the GOOD, the TRUE, the JUST,

Daniel Wilcox

FROM Ramallah Friends School

FROM https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/visualart
https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=ramallah%20friends%20school

"#Visualart #Developingskills #creativethinkingskills #Compositioninartunitplan
In their MYP 4 visual art classes, ninth-grade students embarked on a journey of creating abstract artwork. Prior to completing their final pieces, they underwent a process that involved researching and designing their compositions. To gather inspiration, they delved into the works of abstract artists from around the world. They meticulously crafted sketches to plan their art compositions, applying various elements and principles of art as their tools for bringing their creative visions to life."

HISTORY of the Quaker School:

"In 1869, a fifteen-year-old Palestinian girl named Miriam Karam mustered up the courage to ask two Quaker visitors to Ramallah, Eli and Sybil Jones, to start a girl’s school in the area. At that time, no education program existed for girls in this region.
Before long, Friends had established a medical mission and boarding school for girls. By 1902, a similar boarding school for boys was created by Friends.

"It is doubtful that Miriam, Sybil, or Eli could ever have imagined what Ramallah Friends School would look like in the twenty-first century. As the only accredited International Baccalaureate World School in Palestine, RFS offers an innovative and multi-disciplinary education that prepares Palestinian young people to be outstanding scholars, leaders, and change-makers in their community and around the world.

"Nurtured in an academic and community life guided by Christian Quaker values and spirituality, the School aims to impact both Christian and Muslim students in a wholistic and life-changing way.

"Despite being in one of the most politically and spiritually challenging locations on the planet, RFS continues to thrive. Through a terrific partnership with USAid/American Hospitals and Schools Abroad, the School has been able to build a world-class facility. Even with the constant pressure of living under occupation and the regular threat of violence, RFS consistently prepares students who are ready to thrive in college or university, work, and service.
Please pray:
• for Rania Maayeh, Head of School, that God may guide her in her decisions.
• for the safety of everyone who must cross military checkpoints while coming to school amidst the current political upheaval. • for success for the IB students who will be starting their official exams soon.
• that suitable staff is found to replace those who are retiring; and for all the best for the staff who are leaving the school. • for economic sustainability, so that RFS can continue to meet the needs of its students despite challenges.
• for necessary resources and funding to continue to be granted through ASHA (American Schools and Hospitals Abroad) to support the ongoing educational initiatives and programs at Ramallah Friends School.
• for RFS student Shadi Khoury, who will be facing four court sessions in May"
--RAMALLAH FRIENDS SCHOOL



How inspiring!

These pictures from Ramallah take me back to when I lived and worked in Palestine-Israel years ago. I only vaguely remember seeing the great Quaker school back then. But for all those years ago, since 1869, the school has taken a stand for peace, justice, and caring.


In the LIGHT,

Dan Wilcox

A Husband and Pregnant Spouse Outside of Jerusalem in the Present

WHY DO millions of dedicated Christians accept obscene cursings and unjust actions by their Christian leaders?

Tragic, absurd times--when famous Christian leaders, supported by millions of Christians, CURSE at others:

Look at a few of these statements from famous Christian leaders in the U.S., many of whom have strong support from millions of Christians:

--“Mother [F obscenity], I'm aloof with you because I don't want to talk to you.”
--“That’s a great asset, more inflation...What a stupid son of a [B obscenity].
--Calling another government leader, “a [F obscenity] idiot”!
--“They’ll be hit so goddamn hard. If you don’t support me, you’re going to be so goddam poor.”
--Calling another Christian leader, “That [F obscenity] and a “corrupt [MF obscenity].
ETC.

And some Christian leaders also lie, bully, demean, are cruel, proud, etc.
VERSUS

...Put on hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience-endurance.
Colossians 3:12
altruism, joy, peace, goodness, generosity, modesty, self-control, fidelity...
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Galatians and I Corinthians 13



In the LIGHT, the GOOD, the TRUE, the JUST,

Dan Wilcox

Part 2: The Teacher Who Drew Microsoft Word

The Strange Anomoly of Christian Doctrine Versus Most Christian Moral Affirmations

Strange how the theology and doctrine of the Christian religion and the Bible have been shown to be delusional, not based in reality, and have often led to persecution, oppression, slaughter, hate, rivalry, division, prejudice, theft, lying, and other immoral and unjust actions YET

many of the moral affirmations and prohibitions of the Christian religion and the New Testament have been shown to be true and trustworthy—exactly how all humans ought to think and act.

I wonder why that is?

Galatians 5:19-25

19 Now immoral ways are evident:
sexual immorality,
moral impurity,
lasciviousness,
idolatry,
sorcery,
enmity,
strife,
jealousy,
fits of anger,
rivalries,
dissensions,
divisions,
envy,
drunkenness,
orgies,
and things like these.

I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love,
joy,
peace,
patience,
kindness,
goodness,
faithfulness,
gentleness,
self-control;
against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

In the Light of what is True, Good, Kind, and Just,

Dan Wilcox

"So many gods, so many creeds..."

Mary, Joseph, and Baby Yeshua at U.S. Border

Thankfulness in the Midst of So Much Torrential Darkness

Of late, with so many destructive, intolerant, oppressive movements, leaders, events--and the lying nature of it all--humans are reacting (understandably, but wrongly).

We as humans need to stand up in the torrential storm of now--and ACT, not react.

BEGIN WITH THANKFULNESS

1. Begin this new journey through hell, in the midst of torrential hurricanes, by starting with choosing despite all that is horrific.

Choose to find the little positives even in the midst of so much bad.

Choose thankfulness, not negativity.

Various others ways of rising up, include:

2. Act in nonviolence in thought and speech, as well as behavior.

3. Care by active, compassionate listening to others, especially our enemies, trying to see and understand their views and feelings.

4. Be meticulously honest in all that we say and do.

5. Give to those who suffer, who are oppressed, who feel hopeless.

6.

BUT HOW IN THE WORLD CAN ONE BECOME THANKFUL WHEN SUFFERING SO?!

By remembering what the famous psychologist Victor Frankyl (neurologist and psychiatrist, a Holocaust survivor) said:

“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
― Viktor E. Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

Focus on CHOOSING in the midst of trauma.

And by seeking to help others who are suffering even worse.

To paraphrase the famous poet, Maya Angelou:
Act as a caring rainbow--a guiding light--in the midst of others' torrential storms.

Create through hope. Start by sharing thankfulness.

In the Light,

Daniel Wilcox

Guest Post: Illegal Aliens--What is this "Crime"?

GUEST POST: from-- What Is This "Crime," Really?
BY Orson Scott Card

10-year-old ill girl, who has lived in the U.S. since an infant, arrested by ICE at a hospital where she just had surgery. She was taken to a detention center:-(


"Since the only crime most of these people are committing is simply being here without permission, we would give them a reasonable way to get that permission without losing everything else in order to get it."
--

"A fifteen-year-old boy...has been yearning for his driver's license for a long time.

But today all thoughts of waiting for his license are out the window, because his little sister cut herself and he can't stop the bleeding. His parents aren't home.

So David puts his sister in the car and, holding a towel on the wound to apply pressure, he drives the car one-handed out onto the road and goes as fast as the car can go, heading for the nearest medical emergency center.

...a state trooper sees him driving too fast and pulls him over. David tries to explain that he's only driving illegally in order to save his sister's life, but the trooper doesn't listen.

He drags David out of the car and handcuffs him and yells at him...

David..."My sister is bleeding to death! Let me get her to the hospital!"

But it's as if the trooper is deaf to anything David has to say."
--

"I'm sick at heart about the number of Americans, including friends of mine who should know better, who are proud of being exactly like that state trooper, when it comes to the question of illegal immigrants.

"They have no right to be here in the first place. If we give these people amnesty and let them stay and apply for citizenship, we only encourage more illegal immigration in the future. Besides, they use up our welfare and add to our school costs without paying taxes!"

In vain do the immigrants try to explain that their families were desperately poor, doomed to continue to live on the edge of starvation, and the only hope was America ... which wouldn't let them in.

Why can't we look at what these people are actually doing? Why can't we see the bleeding child in the passenger seat, and realize that most of these illegal immigrants are doing precisely what you or I would do in the same circumstances?
--
So what is this vile crime of "illegal immigration" that requires us to throw out hard-working people...?

It consists of crossing over an arbitrary line that somebody drew in the dirt a century and a half ago. On one side of the line, poverty, hopelessness, a social system that keeps you living as a peasant, keeps your children uneducated and doomed to the same miserable life you have -- or worse.

On the other side of the line, plenty of jobs that are going begging because nobody who lives on that side is desperate enough to work all day for a wage so low. But the wage is enormous to you. It would save your family's lives, give you hope for your children...

Wouldn't you take any risk to get across that line?

*
We Americans, what exactly did we do to earn our prosperity, our freedom? Well, for most of us, what we did was: be born.

Yeah, we work for our living and pay our taxes and all that, but you know what? I haven't seen many native-born American citizens who work as hard as the Mexican-born people I see working in minimum-wage jobs in laundries and yard services and intermittent subcontracting projects and other semi-skilled and unskilled positions.

I have no idea which (if any) of the people I see doing this work are legals and which are illegals -- but that's my point. Latin American immigrants, as a group, are hard-working, family-centered, God-fearing people who contribute mightily to our economy.
--

"But they come here and commit crimes and live off of our welfare system!"

Wait a minute. Who is "they"? All of the illegal immigrants?

Only a certain percentage of them. But when we round up illegal immigrants, do we make the slightest effort to distinguish between those who commit crimes here, those who scam the system to get welfare, and those who are working hard and living by all the rules?

No. We send them all home. There is, under present law, no special treatment for illegal immigrants who, during their time in the U.S., work hard and don't take anything from anybody without paying for it.
--

And yet most of the illegal immigrants commit no crimes, but instead live frugally and work hard. In fact, I dare say that many illegal immigrants work harder and obey our social rules more faithfully than a good many citizens whose right to live within our borders is unquestioned.

And if all you can say to that is, "It doesn't matter, send them all home, give them no hope of citizenship because we don't want to reward people for breaking the law to enter our country," then here's my answer to you:

Let's apply that standard across the board. No mercy. No extenuating circumstances. No sense of punishment that is proportionate to the crime. Let's handle traffic court that way.

The penalty for breaking any traffic law, from now on, is: revocation of your license and confiscation of your car. Period...Driving 70 in a 65 zone on the freeway? No license, no car.
--

No mercy, no exceptions, no consideration for the differences between traffic offenders.
--

"But it wouldn't be fair!" you reply.

That's right. It wouldn't be fair. Yet that's exactly the same level of fairness that I hear an awful lot of Americans demanding in order to curtail the problem of illegal immigration.
--

The only thing that makes illegal immigration a problem is that it's illegal. If we simply opened our southern border the way all our borders were open in the 1800s, then would there be any continuing burden?

Most of these immigrants would still work hard, only now they would have their families with them and the money would not drain away to Mexico. Those who prospered would pay income taxes. So economically, there would be an improvement.

Some would freeload off the system...There is no major immigrant group that has not spawned its criminals. Irish, Germans, Italians, Chinese, Russian Jews...

And yet we would have regarded it as a great injustice to throw out all the immigrants from each of these groups, just because some of them committed crimes. In this country, we have a long tradition of punishing only the individual who does wrong, not his entire ethnic group.
--

So what, exactly, would be the cost to us of an open-door immigration policy? What evidence do we have that the immigrants who would flood across our boundaries would be any worse than the waves of Irish, German, Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian, Russian, Polish, Japanese, or British immigrants?
--

By one perfectly rational reading of history, the whole southwestern quarter of the United States actually consists of unjustly conquered territory in which the native inhabitants -- the legal citizens -- were torn apart from their fellow citizens to the south, and our immigration policy consists of denying Mexicans the right to access lands that were historically theirs, and where former Mexican citizens who were involuntarily annexed to the U.S. were long oppressed and discriminated against.
--

There is no historical basis for any American to claim the moral high ground when talking about Mexican immigration to the United States.
--
Since the only crime most of these people are committing is simply being here without permission, we would give them a reasonable way to get that permission without losing everything else in order to get it.
--

Why in the world do we regard that as a crime?"

by Orson Scott Card
Go to his website to read the rest of his important essay:
http://www.ornery.org/essays/warwatch/2006-06-25-1.html
--

Especially, we need to give the Dreamers--little kids and infants brought here many years ago--the chance to stay here and become citizens.

There ought to be NO MORE tragic debacles of justice such as ICE, recently, arresting a 10-year-old ill girl after her surgery and taking her to a deportation center, even though she has lived in the U.S. since being brought here as an infant!

NO MORE splitting up of hard-working families as uncompassionately happened this last month in Michigan and Illinois. In the one case a hard-working professor who has lived in the U.S. for over 30 years, was arrested after dropping his kids off at school:-(

Consider Card's wise words of wisdom which strongly counter all the other narrow, self-centered Christian nationalism of 'U.S. First, First...'






In the Light,

Daniel Wilcox

Beautiful Song: Steve Bell "Kindness"

Here's a beautiful song of KINDNESS,
one based in a Good News sort of spirituality
totally contrary
to the current nationalistic self-centered, name-calling,
anti-immigrants, pro-nuclear-arms
bad unethical Christianity:-(












In the Light of Kindness,

Daniel Wilcox

"Shine Bright Stories"...brighten one needy child at a time

https://www.worldvision.org/

In the Light,

Daniel Wilcox

The Perseverance and Hope of "How Much is a Person Worth?" by E. A. Kersnovskaya

http://www.gulag.su/album/index.php?eng=1&page=1&list=1

How did this book come to be written and painted?

Euphrosinia Kersnovskaya, spent many years in Soviet prison camps, exiled to Siberia.

Don't miss this powerful, illustrated autobiography of one individual's experience in the Russian Gulag, her perseverance, and continual hope.

For more extensive background, read the powerful histories, Young Stalin and Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar by the historian, Simon Sebag Montefiore.

And visit Quaker Johan Mauer's thoughtful, reflective blog at http://johanpdx.blogspot.com/

Live for the Light,
despite the abyss'd ocean of political and religious darkness
that George Fox wrote about,

Daniel Wilcox

Become Empathy, Generosity, Compassion, Justice, Peace...

Getting Conched: Friendly Dining

We recently returned from our vacation along the Florida coast, from Jacksonville to Pensacola. We traveled there to discover lighthouses and historical sites

BUT...

One of the best parts was very delicious, scrumptious food.
Yes, I know those two words mean about the same, but the connotative “feel” of delicious versus scrumptious is so different. Besides, those amazing meals deserve a bit of hyperbole.
(Also wouldn’t you rather hear a few detailed descriptions of fine cuisine
rather than a long-winded account of my various discussions with park
rangers over historical events in the 1800’s?)

So--for all of you Quakers headed down South for the winter—all you aging snow birds, aching your way into the land of orange sunshine;-) Or maybe you’re young and have been supremely blessed (except during hurricanes) to live as a flatlander down on that psalmed, palmed peninsula. :-)

Here’s a Friendly Dining Guide:

Number #1, numero uno in Cuban, a real kicker of an Oscar award for fine dining goes to—
The Conch House! in Saint Augustine, Florida.

While she had amazing
Cancun Chicken,




I started with--
Seafood Chowder–

fried potatoes,
shrimp, crab in a mouthwatering
chowder with a strong ‘wake-up’
your mouth black pepper sauce;
The Conch House’s own special
creation.

Forget about New England
Clam Chowder (as great as
that is). I swear this is
the best I’ve dug a spoon
into in my life.

Then, since we were down South,
I ordered Shrimp & Grits.

While not equal to the chowder, this was yummy, with lots of shrimp, another amazing sauce, and a huge serving which lasted me two meals. Very economical!

Note that I already had gobbled up the Conch Chowder even before we could get a picture.

Also, note the Saint Augustine lighthouse in the background of our Conch Chickee hut on stilts. (The Chickee hut refers to a type of small house construction on stilts by the Florida Seminole Indians in the 1800's when they were attacked and hid out in the Florida Everglades. See below.)

And the Conch House's ambiance, great service, and setting near the marina in elevated individual huts made this the sort of place I would like to eat at weekly (only there’s a slight problem of travel;-)

But how does dining out fit with Quaker Testimonies such as Simplicity?

When we can dine out as cheaply (sometimes more cheaply) than eating at home, and we have the pleasant opportunity of interacting with waiters and supporting their hard work with generous tips, plus letting the cooks know how much we loved their cooking, etc., I think dining out--in moderation--fits well with simplicity.

Simplicity isn't meant to be a hair-shirt (try eating that;-) an ascetic practice emphasizing denial, as if there is something wrong with the enjoyment of taste. On the contrary, the testimony's central point is to live joyfully and equally with other humans in all that we do. To NOT focus on personal accumulation, the misuse of natural resources, or the unfair and unjust treatment of others, especially in service careers such as cooks, food workers, farmers, and so forth.


Be sure to check out Friend and culinary editor Shaun Chavis' article, "Applying Quaker Thought to Food" on the web at
http://www.friendsjournal.org/applying-quaker-thought-food/

And the "mini book review: in defense of food" by Quaker Cherice Bock
http://quakeroatslive.blogspot.com/2015/10/mini-book-review-in-defense-of-food.html

From the website:
“The Conch House Marina Resort is owned and operated by the Ponce Family. With a history as rich and intriguing as the Oldest City itself, the Ponces have lived here over 400 years making the family a landmark in the St. Augustine area. Jimmy Sr. and Jackie Ponce first opened the resort, back in 1946 as a 4-unit motel…The lounge, fashioned after the Capo Bath House was built 300 feet out over the water with fine crafted woods and nautical antiques.

The Conch House quickly became a favorite spot for locals and visitors alike serving a multitude of tropical drinks…in 1980 they opened a small restaurant specializing in fresh steamed seafood. So, once again the brothers were designing and building. The restaurant roof was built from palm fronds and cypress logs by Seminole Indians from the Everglades.”


In the deLightful Cuisine;-)

Daniel Wilcox

Go to http://lightwaveseeker.blogspot.com/ for next post.

Because the InfiniteOcean site is not working correctly, I'm moving my blog, at least for the next few days, to lightwaveseeker.blogspot.com.

Ruth: A Love Story?

When I first heard sermons on Ruth as a teenager, the book was called a love story. But I didn't get it. I would re-read the few pages looking for romance, passion, even a little affection--and find little to speak of (speaking of Cupid). Where were the passionate verses like in the Song of Songs?

And what was this? Ruth obeys her mother-in-law to go see an old man named Boaz rather than meet a young guy? Lastly, near the end of the story instead of a marriage celebration, the verses focus on Boaz being involved in a complicated legal land deal related to Ruth. Where's the details of their relationship after the meeting night and their wedding?

So why am I, then, writing this blog on Valentine's Day weekend?

Because, later when I studied the story academically, I discovered the nuances and euphemisms, and the transcendent themes in the book. Consider the pivotal scene of the story: Ruth 3:3-7 Ruth washes herself, anoints her body, puts on her best clothes and then goes down to a dusty farm workplace in the middle of the night to secretly sleep next to Boaz, a rich man. Sounds rather suggestive does it not?

But the literal Hebrew is even stranger, more provocative. After Ruth sneaks into the workplace, she is to "uncover his feet and lie down" next to where Boaz is sleeping. In Hebrew, "the feet" often refer to human private parts. For instance, angels are said to cover their feet with their wings; the text isn't talking about their toes.

Furthermore, the words "lie down" are often a euphemism in Hebrew for sexual intercourse. Notice in verse 4, that "lies down" is referred to three times and then again in verses 7, 8,13, 14. Also, Boaz who was eating and drinking until merry is sleeping near a heap of grain. And he later gives Ruth much grain. These images "eating and drinking" and "grain" are images used for sexual lovemaking in the Song of Songs--probably so here too. And there are more such implications in the verses, but this probably suffices for the plot line.

By now, you probably, also, are beginning to notice some intriguing comparisons and contrasts between the books of Esther and Ruth. In both a foreign young woman marries an old leader; in both people are eating and drinking. But in the former the leader is lazy, superficial, and selfish while in the latter, he is hard working, deep, and generous. In the former, Jewish separate identity is the focus, in the latter individual choice is emphasized, not ethnic background, nationality, or bloodline. In the former, it ends with a slaughter of one's enemies (probably including women and children); in the latter the story ends with love of opposites, the marital joining of two opposing human groups in the conceiving of a baby. Sound familiar? Hold on.

One of the central themes of this love story is openness to others, even enemies and an ethical polemic against ethnocentrism and religious exclusivism seen elsewhere in the Jewish Bible. For example, Deuteronomy 23:3-6 says "No...Moabite shall enter the assembly of Yahweh; none of their descendents...you shall never seek their peace or their prosperity..." and Ezra 9: 1-2, 10:2 ..."The people of Israel...have not separated themselves from the...Moabites,,,for they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves...And Shecaniah..said to Ezra, We have been unfaithful to our God, and have married foreign women...so now let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives and their children..."

Instead, at the end of Ruth, the text says "Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And Yahweh gave her conception, and she gave birth to a son...Blessed is Yahweh who has not left you without a redeemer."

Without necessarily arguing that the story of Ruth was originally intended as a messianic promise, one can see how followers of Jesus the Redeemer saw in all of this an allegory. Jesus was a descendent of Ruth, a Moabitess, a hated enemy of the Jews, and allegedly the Moabites were a despised result of incest. Yet from this union of Moabitess and Jewish leader came a child. And so in the case of Jesus, Ruth's descendent, another child born of a foreign woman under questionable circumstances which would reconcile enemies, and bring love to all humankind.

What if instead of emphasizing ethnic identity, nationality, religious differences, and bloodline, Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs would fall in love at the "threshing floor"? What if they would join together, not separate or battle one another? What if they would marry, become one in love?

There is truly good news--the true meaning of Valentine's Day, not heart-shaped cards, but open hearts of love for others.

Don't be ruthless;-) like most humans, playing to divisive religious texts or nature's lowest denominator. Instead, become like Ruth and Boaz--be passionate and generous and loyal, live for others, and love your enemy.

To be continued

In the Light,

Daniel Wilcox