Pilots of planes in Russia’s Aeroflot were given verbal instructions not to use the plane’s brakes when stopping, so as not to waste the pads. Crews at S7 Airlines, Ural Airlines, Rossiya, Pobeda also received similar instructions, reported the Russian site Newz.ru. The problem is that the wheel covers of the aircraft are imported and cannot be delivered under the conditions of sanctions against Russia.
The wear of the pads would result in a long-term grounding of the Russian civil aviation. When landing and taxiing on the runway, the “pilots” will have to use the engines to stop and slow down.
“If the pilots are more relaxed to stop with the help of the engines, this is not prohibited because it does not affect the safety of the flight,” Viktor Gorbachev, general director of the Association of Civil Aviation “Airport” stated in a conversation with the Telegram channel Radiotochka NSN ” and a member of the Public Council at Rostransnadzor.
“Perhaps the pilots will reduce the speed with the help of reverse, although it is used for landing, otherwise they will blow the pads at a landing speed of 250-300 kilometers per hour. It is impossible to slow down such a colossus with the pads – they will be blown off. If with the help of the engine they are more relaxed in this regard, it is not prohibited. It does not affect safety, they are on Earth. The same is in road transport. When you leave, you can reduce with the foot brake or with the engine – take away the gas. This is something absolutely normal,” said Gorbachev.
The aviation expert also explained that using the engine during landing can actually help reduce wear and tear on aircraft parts. “When the engine stops, there will be additional fuel consumption, but it is ours, and the pads are not ours,” noted Gorbachev.
Obesity is associated with a decrease in blood flow, which reduces the amount of oxygen and energy sources
People who suffer from obesity are less productive at work and more prone to injury, research shows.
Obese people may need longer breaks to recover from the work process, scientists believe.
The research focuses on how people of different weights perform given tasks in the workplace.
The study, conducted at the University of Buffalo, USA, followed the endurance of 32 people divided into 4 categories: non-obese youth, obese youth, non-obese adults and obese adults.
Each participant completed 3 tasks in which different abilities were used: hand grasping, shoulder lifting, assembly. Each task contains work and rest periods.
Task activity level is similar to production rates. During the tasks, obese women performed significantly worse.
“Our findings show that the obese group reported an average of 40% shorter endurance.
There are big differences in hand grip and assembly,” said Dr. Laura Cavuoto, one of the study’s experts.
Obesity is associated with a decrease in blood flow, which reduces the amount of oxygen and energy sources. When performing the set tasks, the muscle fibers tire faster.
“Employees who are obese probably need longer breaks to recover to their original state of muscle function. This makes them less productive,” says Dr. Cavuoto.
“For life is more than food, and the body than clothing”
Gospel according to Luke chapter 12, verse 23
“Wellness” is an active process through which people understand and choose a better way of life; as a concept, it combines in itself the idea of a healthy lifestyle (such as food and movement culture) with the idea of the physical, mental and emotional development of the personality, to build internal harmony and harmony with others. This implies knowledge and insight (or at least the desire to learn) into the richness of the inner world – emotional, spiritual – of the individual and of the social environment and above all the development of self-awareness, maturity of perceptions and emotions.
Wellness is:
a conscious, organized and stimulating process for the personality to reveal its potential, to achieve intellectual and mental balance;
a multi-layered, comprehensive lifestyle that is positive and affirming;
harmonious interaction with the environment (biological and social).
Bill Hettler, co-founder and president of the Board of Directors of the National Wellness Institute (USA) developed the model of the six dimensions of wellness, one of which is spiritual wellness.
This dimension is related to the search for meaning and purpose of human existence. It develops a sense and appreciation of the depth and comprehensiveness of life and natural forces that exist in the universe. As you walk the path, you may experience feelings of doubt, despair, fear, disappointment and loss, as well as pleasure, joy, happiness, discovery – these are important experiences and elements of the quest. They will span the poles of your value system, which will constantly adapt and change to give meaning to existence. You will know that you are achieving mental balance when your actions become closer to your beliefs and values and you begin to build a new worldview.
In an interview with the Interfax-Religia agency (October 17, 2006), the following criticism was made regarding the unfair attacks of some officials from the European Union regarding traditional Christian denominations. “Over the past ten years, the European Parliament has condemned the Orthodox and Catholic Churches more than thirty times for human rights violations and never once brought similar accusations against such countries as, for example, China and Cuba,” said the Vice-President of the European Parliament Mario Mauro during the international conference “Europe at a turning point: a clash of two civilizations or a new dialogue?”.
According to him, the main reason for such accusations and similar decisions of the European authorities is in fact “the conviction of many that it is necessary to build Europe without the participation of religion, that we must adhere to such a strategy in order to resist fundamentalism”. “They confuse fundamentalism and religion. We stand against fundamentalism, but we must support religion, because religion is the dimension of man”, – noted the vice-president of the European Parliament. Opponents of the Church’s participation in European public life, in his words, thanks to their positions, can become “sources of destruction of the project for a united Europe”. During his speech at the conference, Mario Mauro also stated that one of the great threats of modern Europe is moral relativism, when “in some countries there is an attempt to build a society without God, but this provokes serious problems”. “The non-believing Europe will sooner or later disappear, it will dissolve,” the European MP expressed confidence. In modern society, human life and honor are devalued, the seven deadly sins are everywhere accepted as welcome guests. The material poverty of the masses is undoubtedly a grave evil in life. There is, however, a much more dire poverty. It is the mental poverty of a large part of people, their spiritual poverty, the poverty of conscience, the emptiness of the heart.
The commandment of Christ is not only an ethical norm, but it is in itself eternal divine life. The natural man does not have this life in his created (material) being, and therefore fulfills the will of God, that is, to live according to the commandment of God, man cannot by his own strength; but it is his nature to aspire to God, to the blessed eternal life. The aspirations of the natural man would remain only aspirations without the possibility of real realization, if the Divine power was not there – grace, which in itself is precisely what is sought, that is, the eternal divine life. The only thing that is necessary is to listen to the voice of conscience and duty – to the voice of the command of God, and to go on the path that leads to piety and charity, in order to resurrect humanity in man.
“Through the Holy Spirit we know the Lord, and the Holy Spirit resides in every person: both in the mind, and in the soul, and in the body. This is how we know God both in heaven and on earth” – with these words of Venerable Silouan of Atonsky, we can begin the study of the question of the relationship between a healthy spirit and a healthy body, which is also the main task of the wellness philosophy. Even the Old Testament writer Tobias clearly reveals that disease is associated with disease-causing spirits – demons in people’s bodies.
Human nature, through the energies peculiar to it, reveals to us the personality of the individual and makes it accessible to others and to God, which means the uniqueness of personal experience either through the revelation of mystical experience or through union in love. Through this contact with God’s energy, the image of Christ is imprinted on the human person, which leads us to the knowledge of God and makes us partakers of the “divine nature” (2 Pet. 1:4), manifesting our hypostasis through union with Christ. Experts from the scientific center in Colorado, who for the first time restored the volumetric figure of Christ from the image printed on the Shroud of Turin, describe to us the earthly appearance of Jesus Christ: height 182 cm, weight 79.4 kg. Based on the print and with the help of the latest computer technology, American scientists calculated all the parameters of Christ’s body and made a plaster model of it. It can be considered the most accurate recreation of the figure and face of Jesus. Christ was a tall and large man. According to the calculations of specialists, His height was 182 centimeters, and the weight did not exceed 79.4 kilograms. He was a full head taller than his contemporaries. When Jesus walked among His disciples, people could see Him from afar. And even the seated Christ was taller than the rest (quoted from Svetlana Makunina, “The scientists restored the image of the Savior”, Life). It behooves the Spirit of God to dwell in a healthy body, or rather, a healthy spirit in man presupposes bodily health. There are not a few cases when we observe a symbiosis between a healthy spirit in a weak body, when the spirit helps bear the physical infirmities. In The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky states: “wide, infinitely wide is a man: he can fall to the abyss of Sodom and Gomorrah. And it can rise to the heights of the Sistine Madonna.” When one lives with evil for evil’s sake, a person is a moral zero, a source of moral poison, a great spiritual minus, a spiritual invalid. Jesus Christ does not consider a single soul lost, because he knows how difficult it is to fully heal spiritually, so that a person can become a living spark of the Divine plan, an aroma of the best colors of humanity. So there are also people with a high moral temperature, with selfless idealism and well-deserved comfort in life. To weed the weeds is necessary, but it is much more necessary to sow good seed. We are personal beings created by God Himself, and what He has given us should not be seen as static gifts. We have the true freedom to be different. Our behavior can change. Our character can be further developed. Our beliefs may mature. Our gifts can be cultivated.
“God fills the person completely – mind, heart and body. The knower, man, and the Knowable, God, merge into one. Neither the One nor the Other becomes an “object” as a result of their merger”. The nature of the relationship between God and man excludes objectification and is existential in its essence, denoting the personal presence of God in man and man in God. A person is horrified by his impurity and corruption, but the thirst he experiences for forgiveness-reconciliation with God is “something difficult to explain to the uninitiated” and no matter how intense the suffering, it is also characterized by the joy of God’s call and the glow of the new life. His experience in other spheres – artistic inspiration, philosophical contemplation, scientific knowledge “always and inevitably of a relative nature”, and also the experience of the deceptive light of the “spirits of malice” allow him to say that his return to the true Light is the return of the “prodigal son”, who received new knowledge about man and being in a distant country, but did not find the Truth there.
The term “Orthodox psychotherapy” was introduced by Bishop Hierotei Vlahos. In his book “Illness and Healing of the Soul” he examines Orthodoxy as a therapeutic method in detail. This term does not refer to individual cases of people who suffer from psychological problems or neurosis. According to Orthodox tradition, after the fall of Adam, man is sick, his reason (nous) is darkened and he has lost his relationship with God. Death enters human existence and causes numerous anthropological, social, even ecological problems. In this tragedy, fallen man retains God’s image within himself, but completely loses his likeness to Him, as his relationship with God is severed. This movement from a state of fall to a state of deification is called healing because it is related to her return from a state of dwelling against nature to a state of living in and above nature. By adhering to Orthodox treatment and practice, as revealed to us by the Holy Fathers, man can successfully deal with his thoughts and passions. While psychiatry and neurology are called upon to treat pathological abnormalities, Orthodox theology treats the deeper cases that cause them. Orthodox psychotherapy will be more useful for those who want to solve their existential problems; for those who have realized that their reason is darkened, and to this end they must free themselves from the tyranny of their passions and thoughts, in order to attain the enlightenment of their minds in communion with God.
All this treatment and healing or psychotherapy is closely related to the contemplative tradition of the Church and to its hesychastic life and is preserved in the texts of “Kindness”, in the writings of the holy fathers of the Church and primarily in the teaching of St. Gregory Palamas. Certainly no one can ignore the fact that the contemplative and hesychastic life is the same life that can be seen in the lives of the prophets and the apostles, as accurately described in the texts of Holy Scripture. From this it is clear that the contemplative life is actually the evangelical life that existed in the Western world before it was replaced by scholastic theology. Even modern scientists in the West note this fact. The human spirit seeks completeness and wholeness, inner peace and tranquility. In the chaos and pain of the modern world, we must find this healing way and live as the holy fathers of the Church recommend us. Certainly the Holy Fathers predate modern psychologists and psychiatrists. One sees one’s physical flaws in the mirror, and one’s own spiritual vices in one’s neighbor. If a person sees a vice in his neighbor, then this vice is also in himself. We look at ourselves in it as in a mirror. If the face of the beholder is clean, the mirror is also clean. The mirror in itself will neither stain us nor cleanse us, but only provides us with the opportunity to look at ourselves through the eyes of others.
Modern man, tired and discouraged by the multitude of problems that torment him, seeks rest and harbor. Most importantly, he seeks a cure for his soul from the permanent “mental depression” in which he lives. To explain the reason, many explanations given by psychiatrists can be found in circulation nowadays. Psychotherapy in particular is widespread. While before all these things were almost unknown, now they are a common occurrence and many people turn to psychotherapists to find solace and comfort, which again shows us that modern man feels he needs healing for various mental and physical ailments. The Orthodox Church is the hospital where every sick and depressed person can be healed.
According to Henri Bergson in The Two Sources of Morality and Religion, the world is God’s enterprise of creating creators so that they may be assimilated to His being, worthy of His love. Besides blessing and glorifying God for the world, man is also capable of reshaping and changing the world, as well as giving it new meaning. In the words of Father Dimitru Staniloe, “Man puts the stamp of his understanding and intelligent work on creation… The world is not only a gift, but also a task for man.” Our calling is to cooperate with God. According to the expression of app. Paul, we are God’s fellow workers (1 Cor. 3:9). Man is not only a thinking and Eucharistic (grateful) animal, he is also a creative animal. The fact that man is created in God’s image means that he is also a creator in God’s image. Man fulfills this creative role not through brute force, but through the purity of his spiritual vision; his vocation is not to dominate nature by brute force, but to transform and sanctify it. Blessed Augustine and Thomas Aquinas also advocated that every soul possesses the natural ability to receive grace. Precisely because she is created in the image of God, she is able to receive God through grace. As Albert Einstein rightly observed, “The real problem lies in the hearts and minds of men. This is not a problem of physics, but of ethics. It is easier to purify plutonium than the evil spirit of man.”
In various ways – through the processing of the cast, through his master’s skills, through the writing of books, through the painting of icons – man gives voice to material things and makes creation capable of speaking for the glory of God. It is significant that the first task of the newly created Adam was to name the animals (Gen. 2:18-20). Naming itself is a creative act: until we have found a name for a known object or experience—an indispensable word indicating its essential character—we cannot begin to understand and use it. It is also significant that when we offer the fruits of the earth back to God in the liturgy, we do not offer them in their original form, but transformed by human hands: we offer to the altar not ears of wheat, but pieces of bread, and not grapes, but wine.
Thus, by his power to give thanks and offer creation back to God, man is the priest of creation; and by his power to form and give form, to connect and separate, is the king of creation. This hierarchical and sovereign role of man is beautifully expressed by St. Leontius of Cyprus: “Through the heavens, the earth and the sea, through the wood and the stone, through all creation, visible and invisible, I offer homage, I worship the Creator, the Lord and the Creator of all ; for the creation does not worship its Creator directly and through itself, but through me the heavens proclaim the glory of God and through me the moon honors God, through me the stars glorify Him, through me the waters, the raindrops, the dew and all created things honor God and His bestows glory.
Source: “Wellness for all”, comp. Gramatikov, Petar, Petar Neychev. Ed. Business Agency (ISBN 978-954-9392-27-7), Plovdiv, 2009, pp. 71-82 (in Bulgarian).
Of Fairies, Witches, Gypsies, My nourrice sang to me , Sua Gypsies, Fairies, Witches, I alsua synge to thee.” (“Denham Tract.”)
DR. KRAUSS has in his work, “Sreca, Gluck und Schicksal im Volksglauben der Südslaven,” collected a number of sayings in reference to his subject, from which I have taken some, and added more from other sources.
Of an evil woman one says, as in all languages, “To ie vila“—that is, “a witch”; or it is uttered or muttered as, “To je vila ljutica“—that is, “a biting (or bitter) witch”; or to a woman whom one dislikes, “Idi vilo!“—”Begone, witch!” as in gypsy, “Jasa tu chovihani!”
Also, as in German, “Ako i je baba, nje vjestica“—”Though she is an old woman she is no witch”; while, on the other hand, we have, “Svake baba viestica, a djed vjestac“—”Every old woman is a witch, and every old man a wizard.”
The proverb, “Bizi ko vistica od biloga luka“—”she runs from it like a witch from white garlic”—will be found fully explained in the chapter on “The Cure of Children,” in which it is shown that from early times garlic has been a well-known witch-antidote.
Another saying is, “Uzkostrsila se ko vistica“—”Her hair is as tangled, or twisted, as that of a witch”; English gypsy, “Lâkis balia shan risserdi sâr i chovihanis.” But this has a slightly different meaning, since in the Slavonian it refers to matted, wild-looking locks, while the Romany is according to a belief that the hair of a witch is curled at the ends only.
Allied to this is the proverb, “Izgleda kao aa su ga coprnice doniele sa Ivanjscica“—”He looks as if the witches had done for him (or brought him away, ‘fetched’ him) on Saint John’s Eve”; English Romany, “Yuv dikela sá soved a lay sar a chovihani“—”He looks as if he had lain with a witch.”
“Svaka vracara s vrazje strane“—”Every witch belongs to the devil’s gang”—that is, she has, sold her soul to him and is in his interests. This is allied to the saying, “Kud ce vjestica do u svoj rod?“—”Where should a witch go if not to her kin or, “Birds of a feather flock together.”
“Jasa ga vjestice“—”The witches ride him”—refers to the ancient and world-wide belief that witches turn men into animals and ride them in sleep.
The hazel tree and nut are allied to the supernatural or witchly in
many lands. For the divining rod, which—is, according to “La Grande Bacchetta Divinatoria O Verga rivelatrice” of the Abbate Valmont, the great instrument for all magic and marvels, must be made of “un ramo forcuto di nocciuòlo“—a forked branch of hazel-nut”—whence a proverb, “Vracarice, coprnjice, kuko ljeskova!”—”Sorceress, witch, hazel-stick.” This is a reproach or taunt to a woman who pays great attention to magic and witchcraft. “This reveals a very ancient belief of the witch as a wood-spirit or fairy who dwells in the nut itself.” More generally it is the bush which, in old German ballads, is often addressed as Lady Hazel. In this, as in Lady Nightingale, we have a relic of addressing certain animals or plants as if they were intelligences or spirits. In one very old song in “Des Knaben Wunderhorn,” a girl, angry at the hazel, who has reproached her for having loved too lightly or been too frail, says that her brother will come and cut the bush down. To which Lady Hazel replies:—
“Although he comes and cuts me down, I’ll grow next spring, ’tis plain, But if a virgin wreath should fade, ‘Twill never bloom again.”
To keep children from picking unripe hazel-nuts in the Canton of Saint Gall they cry to them, “S’ Haselnussfràuli chumt“—”The hazel-nut lady is coming!” Hence a rosary of hazel-nuts or a hazel rod brings luck, and they may be safely hung up in a house. The hazel-nut necklaces found in prehistoric tombs were probably amulets as well as ornaments.
Among popular sayings we may include the following from the Gorski Vijenac:—
“A eto si udrijo vladiko, U nekakve smućene vjetrove, Ko u marču što udre yještice.”
But behold, O Vladika, Thou hast thrown thyself into every storm, As witches throw or change themselves to cattle.”
And with these we may include the curse, “Izjele te viestice“—”May the witches eat you!” which has its exact parallel in Romany. Also the Scottish saying, “Witches, warlocks, and gypsies soon ken ae the ither”:—
“Witches and warlocks without any bother, Like gypsies on meeting well know one another.”
I may appropriately add to these certain proverbs which are given in an extremely rare “Denham Tract,” of which only fifty copies were printed by JOHN BELL RICHMOND, “in. Com. Ebor.” This quaint little work of only six pages is entitled, “A Few Popular Rhymes, Proverbs, and Sayings relating to Fairies, Witches, and Gypsies,” and bears the dedication, “To every individual Fairy, Witch, and Gypsy from the day of the Witch of Endor down to that of Billy Dawson, the Wise Man of Stokesley, lately defunct, this tract is inscribed.”
WITCHES.
Vervain and Dill Hinder witches from their will.
The following refers to rowan or mountain-ash wood, which is supposed to be a charm against witchcraft:—
If your whipstick’s made of rowan You can ride your nag thro’ any town.
Much about a pitch, Quoth the devil to the witch.
A hairy man’s a geary man, But a hairy wife’s a witch.
Woe to the lad Without a rowan-tree god.
A witch-wife and an evil Is three-halfpence worse than the devil.
Hey-how for Hallow-e’en! When all the witches are to be seen, Some in black and some in green, Hey-how for Hallow-e’en! Thout! tout! a tout, tout! Throughout and about.
Cummer goe ye before, cummer goe ye, Gif ye will not goe before, cummer let me!
“These lines are said to have been sung by witches at North Berwick in Lothian, accompanied by the music of a Jew’s harp or trump, which was played by Geilles Duncan, a servant girl, before two hundred witches, who joined hands in a short daunce or reel, singing (also) these lines with one voice:—
“‘Witchy, witchy, I defy thee, Four fingers round my thumb, Let me go quietly by thee.’
“It will be seen that this is a phallic sign, and as such dreaded by witches. It is difficult to understand why these verses with the sign should have been given by witches.”
The anti-witch rhyme used in Tweedesdale some sixty or seventy years ago was:—
“‘Black-luggie, lammer bead, Rowan-tree and reed thread, Put the witches to their speed.’
The meaning of ‘black-luggie’ I know not. ‘Lammer bead’ is a corruption of ‘amber-bead.’ They are still worn by a few old people in Scotland as a preservative against a variety of diseases, especially asthma, dropsy, and toothache. They also preserve the wearer from, the effects of witchcraft, as stated in the text. I have seen a twig of rowan-tree, witch-wood, quick-bane, wild ash, wicken-tree, wicky, wiggy, witchen, witch-bane, royne-tree, mountain-ash, whitty, wiggin, witch-hazel, roden-quicken, roden-quicken-royan, roun, or ran-tree, which had been gathered
on the second of May (observe this), wound round with some dozens of yards of red thread, placed visible in the window to act as a charm in keeping witches and Boggle-boes from the house. So also we have—
“‘Rowan-ash and reed thread Keep the devils from their speed,”‘
Ye brade o’ witches, ye can do no good to yourself.
Fair they came, Fair they go, And always their heels behind them.
Neither so sinful as to sink, nor so godly as to swim.
Falser than Waghorn, and he was nineteen times falser than the devil.
Ingratitude is worse than witchcraft.
Ye’re as mitch As half a witch.
To milk the tether (i.e., the cow-tie).
This refers to a belief that witches can carry off the milk from any one’s cow by milking at the end of the tether.
Go in God’s name—so you ride no witches.
“Rynt, you witch” quoth Bess Lockit to her mother.
Rynt, according to Skeat, is the original Cumberland word for aroint,” i.e., “aroint thee, get thee gone.” Icelandic ryma—”to make room, to clear the way”—given, however, only as a guess. It seems to have been specially applied to witches.
“‘Aroint thee, witch!’ the rump-fed ronyon cried.” (“Macbeth”)
Halliwell gives the word as rynt, and devotes a column to it, without coming to any satisfactory conclusion. I think it is simply the old word rynt or wrynt, another form of writhe, meaning to twist or strangle, as if one should say, “Be thou strangled!” which was indeed a frequent malediction. Halliwell himself gives “wreint” as meaning “awry,” and
“wreith destordre“—”to wring or wreith” (“Hollyband’s Dictionarie,” 1593). The commonest curse of English gypsies at the present day is, “Beng tasser tute!” “May the devil strangle you”—literally twist, which is an exact translation of wrinthe or rynt.
“The gode man to hys cage can goo And wrythed the pye’s neck yn to.” (“MS. Cantab.” ap. H.)
Rynt may mean twist away, i.e., begone, as they say in America, “he wriggled away.”
They that burn you for a witch lose all their coals.
Never talk of witches on a Friday.
Ye’re ower aude ffarand to be fraid o’ witches.
Witches are most apt to confess on a Friday.
Friday is the witches’ Sabbath.
To hug one as the devil hugs a witch.
As black
}
as a witch.
As cross
As ugly
As sinful
Four fingers and a thumb—witch, I defy thee.
In Italy the signs are made differently. In Naples the gettatura consists of throwing out the fore and middle fingers, so as to imitate horns, with the thumb and fingers closed. Some say the thumb should be within the middle and third fingers. In Florence the anti-witch gesture is to fare la fica, or stick the thumb out between the fore and middle fingers.
You’re like a witch, you say your prayers backward.
Witch-wood (ie., the mountain ash).
You’re half a witch-i.e., very cunning.
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
In the middle of the sixteenth century if a person waved his hat or
bonnet in the air and cried ‘Buzz!’ three times, under the belief that by this act he could take the life of another, the old law and law-makers considered the person so saying and acting to be worthy of death, he being a murderer in intent, and having dealings with witches” (“Denham Tract”). Very doubtful, and probably founded on a well known old story.
“I wish I was as far from God as my nails are free from dirt!”
Said to have been a witch’s prayer whilst she was in the act of cleaning her nails. In logical accuracy this recalls the black boy in America, who on being asked if he knew the way to a certain place, replied, “I only wish I had as many dollars as I know my way there.”
A witch is afraid of her own blood.
A Pendle forest witch.
A Lancashire witch.
A witch cannot greet (ie., weep).
To be hog, or witch-ridden.
GYPSIES.
So many gypsies, so many smiths.
The gypsies are all akin.
One of the Faw gang, Worse than the Faw gang.
The Faws or Faas are a gypsy family whose head-quarters are at Yetholme. I have been among them and knew the queen of the gypsies and her son Robert, who were of this clan or name.
“It is supposed the Faws acquired this appellation from Johnnie Faw, lord and earl of Little Egypt; with whom James the Fourth and Queen Mary, sovereigns of Scotland, saw not only the propriety, but also the necessity of entering into special treaty” (“Denham Tract”)
“Francis Heron, king of the Faws, bur. (Yarrow) xiii. Jan., 1756 (SHARP’S “Chron. Mir”).
Source: In the “Materials for the Study of the Gypsies,” by M. I. KOUNAVINE, which I have not yet seen, there are, according to A. B. Elysseeff (Gypsy-Lore Journal, July, 1890), three or four score of gypsy proverbial sayings and maxims. These refer to Slavonian or far Eastern Russian Romanis. I may here state in this connection that all who are interested in this subject, or aught relating to it, will find much to interest them in this journal of the Gypsy-Lore Society, printed by T. & A. Constable, Edinburgh. The price of subscription, including membership of the society, is £1 a year—Address: David Mac Ritchie, 4, Archibald Place, Edinburgh.
Illustration source: The Project Gutenberg EBook of Gypsy Sorcery and Fortune Telling, by Charles Godfrey Leland. Release Date: December 13, 2018 [EBook #58465]
Christianity exerts a political influence over a considerable part of humanity, affecting in a special way more than a quarter of the population of the earth. The history of the relationship between Christianity and politics is rather unusual. On the one hand, Christianity seems to undermine the authority of earthly rulers. In the prayer My soul magnifies the Lord it is said: “He showed strength with His arms; scatter them that are proud in the thoughts of their heart; He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted the lowly” (Luke 1:51-52). And it really is. Some time passes[1] and the imp. Constantine the Great straight from the throne falls to his knees before God. Throughout the ages, emperors and kings have knelt before God, while popes, patriarchs, and archbishops have crowned them to reign. Some of them, against their will, were forced to leave the throne: in the 17th century, the God-fearing English beheaded their king during the first revolution in modern history. Around the same time, Christian Pilgrim Fathers left England in search of a better “kingdom” where they did not need a king and laid the foundations of American democracy. Not long ago, the leaders of the communist empire of the USSR were opposed by a Christian – Alexander Solzhenitsyn, which caused great dissatisfaction and irritation among those in power. And then the opposition of one person could be compared to a mosquito that bites an elephant, but it turns out that after a while the elephant dies.[2] There is something about Christianity that is hard to define that constantly disturbs the peace of any political system, whether it is an empire, a dictatorship, a communist regime, or a pagan kingdom.
At the same time, Christianity does not seek confrontation with authority. The Roman Empire becomes “holy”. Christians pray for their rulers. The patriarch or archbishop is a full-fledged part of the political machine. Temples and monasteries are located immediately next to the parliament; in Russia, four temples are inside the Kremlin. Most Christians can serve as exemplary citizens – they vote in elections, pay their taxes, and do their best to maintain law and order. What then is the truth? What does this indeterminacy mean, and which prevails, humility or resistance? Or neither?
Christians themselves do not answer unequivocally. The liturgies call Christ the King of kings. Concerned about the course of events in the world, believers pray to God, ruling over His creation. In a certain sense, Christianity offers answers to a wide range of political questions. In some countries, Christian political parties have become a normal phenomenon in political life and have even gained considerable influence. Elsewhere, the political activism of Christians manifests itself behind the walls of the temple. Participation in political life for them is reduced only to polemics on the problems of family life, abortion and relations between the sexes. In the 21st century, the political vacuum in the Christian environment becomes particularly noticeable in comparison with Islam, whose political activity, despite its ambiguity, is impossible to ignore. So how do Christians feel about politics? This issue is not limited to culture and the choice of political party. It brings us back to the source of the relationship between politics and Christian faith.
The answer to this question is most closely related to the personality of Jesus Christ, whose life and teachings lie at the foundation of Christianity. Every Sunday, over a million churches around the world understand and preach His ideas. His influence has shaped the lives of hundreds of millions, from presidents and ministers to ordinary workers. Christ made an important contribution to political history, but whatever he may have been he has subsequently been seriously distorted, and in order to form an accurate picture of him we must endeavor to study as fully as possible this part of Christ’s life and teaching , which affected politics.
The Political Position of Christ
This concept is much more complicated than it might seem at first glance. From the point of view of modern theological scholarship, it is not difficult to see the errors of the past that deserve attention. A major mistake has been the effort of political leaders for almost two thousand years to subjugate Christianity to themselves, in which these attempts have often been successful. Christians have been offered ready-made versions of the model for the relationship of their faith to politics. As a rule, everything came down to the requirement of unquestioning obedience to the authorities. By quoting the statement of Ap. Paul in Rome. 13:1-7, politicians convince Christians of the need to obey and fully support the actions of governments, which should also be a final solution to the question of Christianity’s relationship to political power. Many Christians have opposed it, but in general this policy has achieved largely successful results.
According to the deep conviction of many politicians, the life and teachings of Christ have nothing to do with politics. They paint Him either as a mysterious person “not of this world” or simply as a great friend of children. And although the latter is very true, the truth is that this very apolitical image of Christ was imposed under the influence of those who wanted to subjugate Christianity to themselves, removing it as much as possible from the political arena. Quotations from the Bible lay at the foundation of monarchies and empires, became the basis for Christians leaving the world and consecrating monasticism. As a result, many Christians automatically obeyed the existing regimes, believing in the apolitical nature of Christ. Their last word is often, “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s” (Mark 12:17).
Wide spread of the opinion about the incompatibility of religion and politics appeared relatively recently. In England it becomes ok. 1600, when the authorities – disturbed by the radical views of some Christian associations – decided not to allow them to participate in political life because of their dissent.[3] Gradually, political thought and ideology were completely separated from theology. Thomas Hobbes, in his major political guide, Leviathan, has separated much of the Christian reasoning into a separate, concluding section. Later, political philosophy came to be seen as secular in nature, with Christianity completely and unconditionally excluded from it. Leading thinkers such as Montesquieu, Rousseau, Hegel, Comte, Marx, Mill, etc. they think exclusively in a secular context, thus in a large part of society the thought of separation of religion from politics is finally formed. In order to participate in political debate, Christians are required to leave their beliefs out of the discussion. In the US, this leads to their approval in a legislative order. In the First Amendment to the US Constitution, Church is separated from State (which is probably rightly so) and anything religiously defining and constitutive is completely excluded from politics. The step can hardly be called logical, but its influence turns out to be decisive. The belief is formed that politics cannot be mixed with religion – just like oil and water. As a result, there is no need to think about Christ’s political views. Because they could not have anything to do with the issues of state management. This way of thinking is also adopted by many Christians, whose political views immediately take on a secular character.
On the other hand, there are also people who found in Christ a reflection of their own ideology. At different times, Christ has been portrayed as a revolutionary, as a fighter for political independence, as a socialist and a conservative – in attempts to fill the Gospel with modern political content, at that very selectively. In the 19th century, God was represented by many as a force able to keep the worker in subjection. The Nazis later claimed that Christ was not a Jew but an Aryan. Some ideologues count him among the Marxists, the hippie culture and even as a supporter of M. Thatcher.[4] From a modern perspective, the ideologically corrupted perception of Christ by many generations of people is visible to us – from which we are also in danger, because our understanding of the Gospel is invariably influenced by our own beliefs and cultural values.
However, many theologians and simple readers of the Bible refuse to study the life and ministry of Christ only from the position of their own interests, but humbly pay attention to the messages that sound from the pages of the Gospel. What do they discover? Early biblical studies focused directly on the text of Scripture. They were written by people who knew Jewish history, who said much of what will be discussed here. A good example can be the work of A. Edersheim[5] Life and times of the Messiah Jesus.[6] Without making politics the central theme of his research, the author has managed to clearly show the political content of the Gospel. Later, about 30 years ago, Yoder’s book The Political Convictions of Christ was published.[7] The main theme of this book is indicated in its title. In Wright’s relatively recent work Christ and the victory of God, [8] regardless of his theological orientation, the political aspects in the teaching of Christ are clearly traced. The same can be said for other new works.[9] In recent years, authors have focused their attention on the political and socio-economic context of the Gospel, bringing to the fore certain questions of a political nature. This book was also written as a continuation of that effort. At the same time, we must admit that many modern researchers completely ignore this aspect.
At this stage, it is important to clarify what exactly should be understood by the word “policy”. Many deny their involvement in politics, referring to their reluctance to join the ranks of one party or another or to take part in political elections. However, this is not about “narrow party politics”, although the actions of political parties are almost never limited within narrow party frameworks, but about St. A scripture abounding in accounts of inter-party struggles for the minds of men. In our understanding, politics includes everything related to the state structure: government, laws, national self-awareness, power, justice and taxes, statehood, international relations, wars and economic policy – everything that, over the centuries, has been an inalienable part of human existence. At first sight it may seem that such a definition has nothing to do with Christ. He had no army, collected no taxes, and, apart from the judgment meted out to him, wore no royal robes. In this sense, Christ stands before us as an apolitical figure.
However, if we delve more carefully into the content of the Gospel, we can reach completely different conclusions. The representatives of the major political parties of the time were afraid of Christ and His pronouncements on various political issues. We will begin to understand that the most notable politicians were far from always in power. No one can deny the influence of Gandhi or Marx on the course of world history, and that influence is only a faint reflection of the impact made by the humble Galilean. So if we look at politics in a broader sense, such as legal government and legislation, power and party system, conflict, popularity, social security and tax collection, we will find more than enough material to write a work on the political views of Christ.
It is important to mention one more thing. It often seems to us that we understand “politics” well. Presidents, palaces, taxes, elections and political parties have become our daily reality. Political scientists study law-making, management, foreign policy and other phenomena that have received a very clear definition in our time. Yet we must keep in mind that these concepts have changed over the centuries and continue to change today. These changes have become the subject of study in the history of political thought.
We are about to look upon a time when the multitude expressed its opinion, not by ballots, but by loud shouts; when the Prime Minister did not make statements on radio and television. Understanding such cultural differences should not cause great difficulty. It can be much more complicated to meet a person who in many ways has changed the very understanding of politics as such. In our time, we usually perceive politics as a way to gain and hold power, but in the first centuries they thought in a similar way. The words and actions of Christ indicate a completely different view of politics, and it is possible that He will change our ideas about it as well, as He did more than once with His contemporaries. And that is why we will have to reconsider the very fundamental questions related to this topic.
In this broader sense, politics played an important role in the life of Christ. Political leaders saw His teaching as a threat to the system of government. The clash with the religious leaders and the trial in Jerusalem are above all political in nature. Crucifixion serves to punish political criminals. Christ’s teaching and parables concerning laws, levies and party politics, litigation and dealings with foreigners challenged the influential politicians of His day. In the Gospel, He is repeatedly called the King of the Jews. All this will become the subject of our research. We will deliberately bypass other topics of His teaching. This book should not be defined as exhaustive, since its subject of study is limited to an analysis of the political content of the Gospel. I hope we can avoid political bias and undue attention to certain political agendas. This requires a detailed analysis of the Gospel texts. Sending his Twelve into the world, Christ says to them: “Beware of men; for they will hand you over to judgments and scourge you in their synagogues, and bring you before rulers and kings for my sake, that you may testify before them and before the Gentiles”. (Matt. 10: 17-18). Obviously something political is going on, but what exactly? Politics is only one side of the Gospel – and not the most important one. We should always be guided by the fact that only a topic that is obviously political can be considered political. It is possible that this is not a deeply scientific principle, but it makes it possible to correctly evaluate one or another interpretation. The analysis of the political views of Christ – Himself the greatest person in the history of the world – is more than enough subject matter for this book.
Ruler by God’s grace?
Religion and politics are dangerous subjects. They can spoil even the most pleasant interview, but nevertheless we have chosen these questions. The teaching of Christ has become the main thing in the lives of billions, and politicians decide the destinies of no fewer people. Essentially, here we will only retell parts of the Gospel, revealing the political color of ideas and events, but at the same time we will also draw much more distant conclusions. In a historical context, these events amaze and delight us. Christ’s words and actions have nothing to do with the established and vicious political practice that dominates world history. They open before us new horizons and point to new paths. The huge door of God’s world opens before our eyes, where goodness and beauty rule, and the very nature of politics changes. Many have tried to oppose this change both in the time of Christ and in our day, but nevertheless the most magnificent change in political history has already taken place. To explore this as fully as possible is a goal worthy of serious study. That is exactly what we have tried to do. To get an idea of the political situation at the time of Christ, we will look at one of the main political figures of the era – King Herod the Great.
* Storkey, A. Jesus and Politics: confronting the powers, Michigan 2005, p. 7-21.
[1] From the moment of the Incarnation (note).
[2] For more on this see: Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Oak and the Calf, London; New York, 1980.
[3] In the 1600s, the leaders of the British Restoration, in their demands for orthodoxy, tried to deprive Christians of the opportunity to participate actively in the political life of the country. And in many ways they have succeeded in achieving their demands.
[4] In a speech in Edinburgh, Mrs Thatcher referred to the parable of the Good Samaritan as a call to increase wealth. This idea can be traced even more clearly in a sermon delivered on March 4, 1981, in the London Jewish Church of St. Lawrence” and printed in the magazine Third Way in May 1981, where the influence that certain “Christian postulates” had on her in the management of state affairs is presented even more comprehensively.
[5] One of the leading biblical scholars of the 19th century, in many ways still relevant today; converted to Christianity, he sought to help other Jews to see Jesus Christ as the true Messiah (note).
[6] Edersheim, A. The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1883, 3d. ed., 2 vols. in 1, London 1906.
[7] Yoder, J. H. The politics of Jesus: Vicit Agnus Noster, Eerdmans 1972.
[8] Wright, N.J. Jesus and the Victory of God, London 1996.
[9] For example: Kealy, S. P. Jesus and Politics, Collegeville 1990.
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By Prof. George Mantzaridis, Prof. Emeritus, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
Christians have a general awareness of the need for the Church’s participation in examining and solving social problems. This is natural, because the goal of the Church is not to remain on the periphery, but to turn to man in all aspects and manifestations of his life. Only in this way does the Church serve people according to the example of Christ, who did not come to be served, but to serve and to offer His life “a ransom for many” (cf. Matt. 20:28; Mark. 10:45).
The position of the Orthodox Church. At the same time, however, there are significant differences between the Orthodox Church and the Christian denominations in the West in the consideration of social problems. The Orthodox Church does not approve of the creation of a special attitude to social life, as it is in Roman Catholicism and to some extent in Protestantism. On the other hand, this is in complete agreement with the New Testament teaching and with the Tradition of the Council Church. Protestant social ethics, as well as Roman Catholic social teaching, have no analogue in the Orthodox theological tradition. This is not due to any external reasons, but to the very nature of the Church. The Orthodox Church does not consider the moral or social life of man by means of a special attitude, because this inevitably leads to his relative or absolute alienation and autonomization. It uses a system of relating only to God, Who is the absolute truth. This system is symbolic in nature and is maintained by denying itself and reconstituting itself in the experience of the saints.
Denial and acceptance. Approaching the truth of things is possible not through concepts and theories, but through killing and destroying the delusion that the senses and reflections create: “Everything that appears to the senses needs the Cross (…) and everything that can be achieved by the mind wants the Grave” [1]. Total renunciation and total acceptance of the world are summed up here. Social problems are also considered in a similar way. The position of the Church towards them can be defined as both cataphatic and apophatic. It is cataphatic, because the Church examines social problems in the spirit of service to people, but at the same time it is also apophatic, because it does not stop believing that only “one thing is needed”. Even the pursuit of some ultimate goal does not justify indifference to the everyday, just as caring about the everyday does not justify the neglect of some ultimate goal. Delineating the golden mean in each individual case is a prudent work that must be done “through knowledge and understanding of all things” (Phil. 1:9).
Transforming the world. Christ does not give the world new ways of organizing social life, but gives His renewing grace. The church is not a social organization, but a place for the manifestation of God’s grace. The purpose of the Church is not to perfect the world, but to offer God’s renewing grace, but by offering this grace, it does not improve the world externally, but transforms its very essence. Finally, this transformation must be found above all in the communities of believers themselves, i.e. in the local churches. When these communities are not transformed, when the problems that plague the world do not find their solution in them – at least partially, or even more so when the problems manifest themselves more strongly in them than in the world, then naturally they cannot have a positive impact on the world. At the same time, however, it must not be forgotten that the goal of the Church as a God-human community is not to restore paradise to the world. The search for paradise in a fallen world speaks of an affirmation of original sin and always leads to defeat.
Personalities and Structures. The evil that afflicts people and causes social problems is created not by things but by persons. Persons create evil not only when they directly commit it, but also when they are indifferent to good. Therefore, evil can only be truly overcome on a personal, i.e., spiritual level. Moreover, social problems are always related to the moral and spiritual problems of man.
In the New Testament and in the Orthodox Tradition, the priority of the person in relation to things and impersonal institutions dominates. The main social principle of the Church – charity, also has a strongly personal character and is based on the love of humanity that God shows to man [2]. At the same time, however, evil, as well as good, is objectified in the structures of social life, which help to confirm and perpetuate it. The initiators of social reforms emphasized the importance of these structures, coming to identify evil with them. Thus the notion that the problem of social evil was a problem of structures was confirmed. Through this understanding, movements were created that had as their exclusive goal the reversal and change of social structures.
The cause of evil. However, experience proves that the structures and systems of social life cannot be approached and opposed to the cause of evil, which has metaphysical dimensions. On the other hand, evil can be perpetrated in the most just structures, just as good can be manifested in the most unjust structures. Finally, evil is not infrequently committed under the pretext of enforcing justice or restoring just situations. In politics, social justice is often maintained at the cost of human freedom, or human freedom is upheld at the cost of social injustice and arbitrariness. The intervention of the impersonal institutional factor is unable to eliminate evil. Evil springs from the abuse of freedom and appears in the body of good. Therefore, evil is not limited to specific states of the present reality, nor does it maintain stable forms, but constantly creates new situations and often presents itself as an “angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14). At the level of the present world, however, good also can never acquire a complete character. At the level of the present world, good appears sporadically, and therefore the search for it, as well as the attempt to realize it at this level, is associated with oppositions and conflicts.
The importance of structures. However, the importance of the structures of social life in promoting good and restraining evil should not be overlooked. The structures that manifest and dominate injustice oppress man and erode social life. Especially in our age, when pressure is exerted on the primary social bonds and they give way to impersonal social structures that seek to cover the whole spectrum of social relationships, the interest in these structures becomes obvious. This creates an additional problem that requires a special approach and a special attitude. Therefore, the believers’ indifference to the horizon of social structures with their constantly increasing importance testifies to a lack of “knowledge” and “understanding” (cf. Phil. 1:9). Christian love cannot be indifferent to the unjust structures and projects of social life that create and reproduce social problems. Of course, these problems are solved through politics, but in turn, it cannot function properly if it is devoid of spirit and ethos. Today, this truth is becoming clearer. On the other hand, the unitization of man and the mechanization of social life and social relationships lead to a strong need to revitalize impersonal institutions and ordinary relationships through respect for the individual and the feeling of love.
The priority of the individual. The Church does not personify institutions, nor does it turn individuals into machines, but seeks to affirm individuals within institutions and beyond them. However, the concern for changing unjust structures cannot leave the Christian, as a living member of society, indifferent. After all, the struggle against unjust structures is a spiritual struggle and is directed “against the principalities, against the powers, against the worldly rulers of the darkness of this age” (Eph. 6:12). Behind unjust institutions is the spirit of the wicked. Therefore, Christians are also obliged to take care of solving the problems created by the way of organization of social, economic and political life. Social injustice, tyranny, exploitation, war, etc., are important issues that believers naturally care about. However, the interest in them cannot be fully justified if it does not help the person to improve as a person “in the image of God”. When man limits himself to the social level without going to the level of ontology, he inevitably fails.
The space of the Church. Man becomes whole when he is perfected in the image of the triune God. This perfection is not postponed for the future life, but is already achieved in the present one, because entering the Kingdom of God does not take place in the future, but begins in the present. The church is the space in which man is mysteriously introduced into the Kingdom of God, but at the same time it is also the space in which his perfection is cultivated. The church is not some system, but a God-human community that mysteriously brings salvation and renewal to the world. But since church life in our age has acquired a too conventional character, it is necessary to form living church nuclei that function according to the evangelical spirit as “light of the world” and “salt of the earth” (cf. Matt. 5:13- 14) and to be centers for wider evangelization.
The problem of fair distribution. One-time-but with this the Church is called to deal with social problems. This cannot be done if it does not start from specific individuals who experience these problems as their own and feel their personal co-responsibility. The unfair distribution of material goods and development funds, which undermines normal coexistence and causes social contradictions, is a vital problem for the Church as well. However, the burden falls mainly on awakening a sense of social justice. When one knows that an insignificant minority of people have the largest part of the means of development and economic goods, while the majority are deprived of the basic benefits of civilization and suffer from malnutrition or die of hunger, one cannot remain indifferent. Thus, the richest 1/5 of the world’s population has 86% of the world’s gross product, while the poorest 1/5 has only 1% [3]. Awareness of this injustice is also the first step to overcoming it. The second step is taking measures to restore social justice. Of course, this cannot be done by individual efforts alone. More large-scale measures and institutional changes are needed, in which the Church is called to play a primary role.
The other problems. Apart from the problem related to the fair distribution of wealth, there are other serious or even more serious problems in modern society. As such, one can mention the problems related to wars, refugees, drug trade, unemployment, nationalism, philetism, minorities, violence, organized crime, mass disorientation, disinformation, political destabilization, etc. These problems are not always and not everywhere they have the same shape, nor do they appear with the same intensity. However, their timely identification and resolution by the Church is of great importance.
The latest theological currents. The new theological currents are particularly well-intentioned towards pointing out and addressing contemporary life problems of the so-called Third World. Western Christianity’s excessive focus on cataphatic theology and unstoppable secularization led to the theology of the death of God and dialectically challenged the theology of revolution and other contemporary theologies. Characteristically, the theology of revolution succeeded both chronologically and logically the theology of the death of God. After all, the theology of the revolution tries to resurrect the dead or impotent God in its view through the dynamic political mobilization of man. In other words, since man does not feel God’s presence in the world as he himself understands it, and since he does not see justice reigning, again as he understands it, he considers it his duty to intervene. This theology evolved into liberation theology as well as other modern secularized theological currents.
The founders of these theological currents tried to present the Christian faith in a way that corresponded to the mentality and expectations of modern people, as they were developed by the spirit of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. It is obvious that all these theological currents, which together can be defined as the theology of the general fall (theology of the death of God, of hope, of revolution, of liberation…), are categorically determined by the conceptions and aspirations of their founders. In almost the same perspective, the so-called contextual theology enters.
As much as these theological currents are a response to some specific needs, by removing rigid understandings of the past and by emphasizing Christian vital truths, they continue to have an eclectic character and a secular orientation. They do not consider the horizontal relationship based on the vertical relationship, but rather the vertical relationship based on the horizontal relationship. Moreover, they do not present the New Testament in its entirety, but selectively. Their common element is the neglect of the meaning of the Cross and the Resurrection and the absolutization of immediate social givens.
Consequences of globalization. Globalization favors the penetration of religious syncretism and the creation of new forms of social problems. The globalization of the economy in modern society is directly related to the globalization of the exploitation of the weak by the economically strong. In turn, the globalization of this exploitation leads to the globalization of the resistance of the weak. In this context, there is also the globalization of terrorism, which in turn causes the globalization of security measures and rules. In this way, the globalization of political power, which the world superpower is mastering and pushing, is confirmed. On the other hand, this superpower has already taken care to globalize political power and dictate directly or indirectly to other countries the policies they should follow.
Notes
1. St. Maxim the Confessor. Theological and homemaking chapters, 1, 67. – PG 90, 1108B.
3. For a more detailed presentation of the global economy in our era, see in: Human Development Report 1999, 2000. United Nations Development Programme, New York, Oxford.
Rome – On Saturday 23 July 2022, more than 50 volunteers from the Islamic Cultural Centre of Italy and Volunteer Ministers of the Church of Scientology cleaned up the stretch of Viale della Grande Moschea from the bus station “Campi sportivi” to the station “Monte Antenne” on the Rome-Viterbo regional line.
The Great Mosque of Rome (Italian: Moschea di Roma), is the largest mosque in the western world in terms of land area. It has an area of 30,000 m2 and can accommodate more than 12,000 people. The building is located in the Acqua Acetosa area, at the foot of the Monti Parioli, north of the city. It is also the seat of the Italian Islamic Cultural Centre (Italian: Centro Culturale Islamico d’Italia).
In addition to being a meeting place for religious activities, it provides cultural and social services variously connecting Muslims together, while also holding teachings, wedding ceremonies, funeral services, exegesis, exhibitions, conventions, and other events.
Its planning took more than ten years: the Roman City Council donated the land in 1974, but the first stone was laid only in 1984, in the presence of the then President of the Italian RepublicSandro Pertini, with its inauguration on 21 June 1995.
On July 23rd 2022, the day of the joint operation between followers of Islam as well as followers of Scientology, over 12 cubic meters of all kinds of trash were collected.
Brambles and shrubs that impeded pedestrian transit on the pedestrian walkway were removed, as well as weeds, brushwood and trash of various kinds. The material was collected and closed in plastic bags, which were collected at the end of the intervention by the operators of the Municipal Environment Agency (AMA).
The success of the project was made possible thanks to the support of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Waste Cycle of Roma Capitale and the cooperation of the AMA.
“It was a day that required great commitment from all the volunteers, also due to the overwhelming heat, but the final result richly rewards us in terms of the environment returned to the citizens,” said Elena Martini, spokesperson for the Church of Scientology in Rome.
Dr. Nader Akkad, Imam of the Grand Mosque of Rome, highlighted the importance of the initiative of the two faiths involved: “It is a collaboration that carries forward a common project, both of fraternity and friendship and with a common goal, that of caring for the environment.”
“Religions have a very important task, to create fraternity, to create a common space of friendship,” continued Dr. Akkad; “Nowadays, it is very important for religious faiths to cooperate together for the collective good, and certainly one of the best ways to do this is to take care of the environment, the people and the relationships of those people who co-inhabit this environment.”
Satisfaction with the result achieved with the project on Saturday 23rd in the area of the Great Mosque of Rome has further motivated the leaders of the Islamic Cultural Centre of Italy and the Church of Scientology to follow up the project with future initiatives to be decided also together with public authorities for a better service to the community.
“While religion, in general, puts the main focus on what could be called the ‘beyond’”, said Ivan Arjona, President of the European Office of the Church of Scientology for Public Affairs and Human Rights, “it is clear to all of us that is a good thing make Earth seem more like a paradise, while we work to achieve salvation, and the Italian Muslims and Scientologists, together, have done a good move setting an example”.
In accord with a precept in The Way to Happiness, the moral code written by L. Ron Hubbard and that Scientologists subscribe to, says the official site of Scientology, the churches and their parishioners are very active in local environmental campaigns. Chief amongst their activities are “recycling projects, public park cleanups, graffiti removal, mural projects to beautify inner-city streets and highways, Earth Day educational campaigns and community clean-up campaigns … Care for the environment further extends to the use of environmentally friendly materials in the construction of new Scientology Churches”.
As to Islam, Prof. Al-Jayyousi, says the website of the UN Environment Program, elaborated that the Islamic worldview defines a good life (Hayat Tayebah) living lightly on Earth (Zohd) and caring for both people and nature. Islamic discourse offers a sense of hope and optimism about the possibility of attaining harmony between humans and nature. Earth will find a balance if humans rethink their lifestyles and mindsets as stated in the Quran.
Scientologists around the world participate not only in forums to protect freedom of religion for all, always and everywhere, but also in many interfaith initiatives in which all diversity of religions cooperate for a common good.
Italy: 50 Muslim and Scientologists joined to clean up the main Street of the Great Mosque of Rome 4Italy: 50 Muslim and Scientologists joined to clean up the main Street of the Great Mosque of Rome 5Italy: 50 Muslim and Scientologists joined to clean up the main Street of the Great Mosque of Rome 6
Viktor Yanukovych (left) and his son Oleksandr (file photo)
The Council today decided to impose restrictive measures on two additional individuals in response to the ongoing unjustified and unprovoked Russian military aggression against Ukraine.
The Council added the pro-Russian former President of Ukraine Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr Viktorovych Yanukovych to the list of persons, entities and bodies subject to restrictive measures set out in the Annex to Decision 2014/145/CFSP for their role in undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine and the state’s stability and security, as well as – in the case of Oleksandr Viktorovych Yanukovych – for conducting transactions with the separatist groups in the Donbas region of Ukraine.
The relevant legal acts have been published in the Official Journal of the EU.
The EU firmly stands with Ukraine
The EU will continue to provide strong support for Ukraine’s overall economic, military, social and financial resilience, including humanitarian aid.
The EU resolutely condemns Russia’s indiscriminate attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, and urges Russia to immediately and unconditionally withdraw all its troops and military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders. International humanitarian law, including on the treatment of prisoners of war, must be respected. Ukrainians, notably children, who have been forcibly removed to Russia must be immediately allowed to return safely. Russia, Belarus and all those responsible for war crimes and the other most serious crimes will be held to account for their actions, in accordance with international law.
In its conclusions of 23-24 June 2022, the European Council stressed that the EU remained strongly committed to providing further military support to help Ukraine exercise its inherent right of self-defence against the Russian aggression and defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty.
At some point in their life, one in three people will develop some type of neurological disorder – the leading cause of disability and the second leading cause of death, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday, launching its first-ever position paper on optimizing brain health across the entire life span.
Roughly nine million people die each year from neurological disorders, which include stroke, migraines, dementia and meningitis.
Brain health is an evolving concept that is increasingly being discussed not only in health settings but in society at large, WHO said.
It is defined as the state of brain functioning across cognitive, sensory, social-emotional, behavioral and motor domains, allowing a person to realize their full potential over the course of their life.
“The brain is by far the most complex organ of the human body, allowing us to sense, feel, think, move and interact with the world around us,” said WHO’s Dr. Ren Minghui in the forward to the position paper.
“The brain also helps regulate and influence many of our body’s core functions including those of the cardiovascular, respiratory, endocrine and immune systems.”
Missed potential, future losses
A multitude of factors can affect brain health from as early as pre-conception, said Dr. Ren, who is WHO’s Assistant Director General for Universal Health Coverage/Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases.
“These factors can pose great threats to the brain, leading to immense missed developmental potential, global disease burden and disability,” he warned.
For example, WHO reported that 43 per cent of children under five in low- and middle-income countries – nearly 250 million boys and girls – are believed to miss their developmental potential due to extreme poverty and growth stunting, leading to financial losses and projected 26 per cent lower annual earnings in adulthood.
Five major factors
The position paper presents a framework for understanding brain health and is a complement to a global action plan on epilepsy and other neurological disorders, which was adopted in April.
The paper provides insight into the five major groups of determinants that impact brain health, namely physical health, healthy environments, safety and security, learning and social connection, as well as access to quality services.
WHO said addressing these determinants will result in multiple benefits, including lower rates of many chronic health conditions such as neurological, mental, and substance use issues.
It will also lead to improved quality of life, as well as multiple social and economic benefits, all of which contribute to greater well-being and help advance society.
