another photo of the weeping statue

When I read the accounts on the bleeding statue in Sri Lanka,I failed to look at jpg properly.It was only after I posted the blog entry that I clicked on the photo and saw the much larger version.Clicking on this one will allow you see it better. Better yet, go to my previous post.....go to the links and you can click on the photo there and get an even bigger jpg.

Statue sheds blood in Sri Lanka

It's been reported (asianews.it tamilnet.com) that in Jaffna,Sri Lanka a statue of Our Lady of Lourdes has been seen weeping tears of blood.The statue was originally in a private residence but has since been removed to a local church.
Not having witnessed this particular event, I'm not able to address the authenticity of this.But, I can speak to the idea of bleeding / weeping statues in general.
The non believers' arguments against bleeding or weeping statues follow one general line of thought......there are no supernatural forces so it must be fraudulent. They say it's impossible for a statue to bleed so it is impossible for a statue to bleed.
This idea isn't a logical assumption. We do not know, beyond all doubt, what is or isn't possible.Our understanding of science shows that the depths of our learning hasn't reached it's limit. Very real objects ( such as PCs or TVS to mention only two) were once unimaginable. We can't say that what we might deem possible two hundred from now isn't seen as impossible to us today.That's not to say that a particular statue is weeping,but there can be forces at work that we currently do not understand or appreciate.
Most of the skeptics arguments alleging fraud simply show how a hoax could have been perpetrated.They never show that a particular weeping statue is a hoax.Showing that "X" happened a certain way does not prove that situation "Y" happened the same way.
The-so called-skeptics' attitude towards the supernatural shows a closed-mindedness they claim the believers of having.
I can't say for certain that this or that statue is actually bleeding but I see no reason to believe that God isn't capable of producing such an event.

The next U.S. President

Being a political junkie, I'm already thinking of who will be the next U.S. President.I have no clue who the Republicans will nominate but I know that I'm none too happy with the choices coming from the Democrats.I can't possibly vote for anyone in that Party as long as the Democrats are essentially the Abortion Party.It's quite possible that an individual candidate might have an idea or two I could support but as long as the Democratic Party continues in their abortion stance, then voting for anyone of them is out of the question.Legalized abortion is similar to the legal slavery of 19th century America.Just because the law of the land allows something does not make it morally justified.Just as some could not see the humanity of the slaves during that period, there are some today that cannot see the humanity of the unborn child.Unfortunately, we're not likely to see a presidential candidate of Lincoln's stature viz a viz the abortion issue.I'm afraid that legalized abortion will be the downfall of this country. It's one more example of the basic selfishness of the typical American today.

Eyeless in Gaza

Years ago,before PC's were common and the Internet was for the Military only,I would spend hours at a time in my local public library "surfing" the bookshelves (as it were) in much the same way I surf the Internet today. Whenever I found an interesting subject, I would have several books laying open on the table in much the same way I might have several Windows or tabs open on my web browser today. It was during one of these visits -perhaps twenty years ago- that I came across a book, the title of which fascinated me ever since....Eyeless in Gaza by Aldous Huxley.I decided then and there that this book title was the greatest in English Literature.I remember taking the book home but never reading it. I know I started it but never finished, though,I'm not sure why.Looking back, I suspect that I may have been disappointed that the book itself did not live up to the wonderful title.Of course, at the time , I had no idea what the actual meaning of the title might be.A few days ago,the book came back to mind and would not leave.The only thing I could do was search the Internet for information about the work.It was then that I discovered that the title comes from a line in a poem by John Milton (of Paradise Lost fame) entitled Samson Agonistes.
"Ask for this great Deliverer now,and find him
Eyeless in Gaza at the Mill with slaves,
Himself in Bonds under Philistian yoke;"
The poem is based on the story of Samson as found in chapters 13 - 16 of the book of Judges.By now my curiosity was running full speed ahead.It was easy enough finding a copy of the poem online and I could read the biblical story in the Bible here at home.But, I'd have to check out the Huxley book from the library. I'd never thought a great deal about the story of Samson before and reading the three chapters in Judges yesterday did not fill me with any great insights.However,my reaction to Milton's poem was different.Reading it I begin to see the great tragedy of Samson's story.Written three hundred and fifty years ago, the early English can be difficult at times to follow, but I think it's well worth the effort.
I stated re-reading the Huxley book as well.It is not at all like I remember.Of course, that was twenty years ago.It's more interesting than I remember;I'm sure I'll finish it this time around.

Sweet Revenge

None of us can escape pain.No matter how charmed our lives are, we will experience heartache and disappointment.We will be betrayed by a friend or lover.Even the most enlightened of us will feel the need,at some point,to exact some form of revenge on the one who has wronged us.I've never been one prone to actual physical violence of any sort.On those rare occasions when I felt a need to avenge myself, I would use the pen rather the sword.In the past,when song writing was my forte,I would seek my revenge by including the miscreant in a song lyric or two.Now that I no longer write music,I must look for other avenues when the need arises.Perhaps now that I am writing more, the guilty party can expect to see his or her self transformed into a Manananggal or some other odd and bizarre creature like Gregor Samsa in Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis . They could be the prisoner convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in a short story or novel.
Ahhhh,sweet revenge.