Poetic Faith Discussion on “Sacred Tension”
Click here to listen to my recent discussion with Stephen Bradford Long on the Sacred Tension podcast, centered on the themes of mythmaking, poetic faith and nontheistic ritual/religion.
Duende
“Mourning and Remembrance Without an Afterlife Safety Net”
Columnist Lincoln Andrews writes for OnlySky on the secular memorial rituals he performs for his son, Josh: As a secularist, I don’t have the faux comfort of a heavenly reunion to fall back upon. As a realist, I accept that everybody, save the very famous, is forgotten within two generations. (Got a deep reservoir of … Read more“Mourning and Remembrance Without an Afterlife Safety Net”
“Will I Go Gentle?”
Dale McGowan writes for OnlySky, the new secular/Humanist multimedia platform, on the vexing question of “what is it like to die?”: There are ways to diminish the fear of death and dying. Epicurus may have been the first to formally note that our existence is bounded by symmetrical eternities. We fear the eternity of nonexistence … Read more“Will I Go Gentle?”
“What Does Dying Feel Like?”
Max Tobin reports for the BBC on recent scientific research into the state between clinical death and brain death, suggesting that the mind’s final minutes may be more active, interesting and even fun than might have been assumed.
Imaginology
Professor Stephen Asma writes for Aeon on the potentials of a science of the imagination: Philosophers like Ernst Cassirer and psychologists like Jung focused on the ritual or visual symbol (rather than literal language) as a way of enacting meaning. Images, objects and rituals of mythopoetic cognition are imperative rather than indicative. If we’re immersed, … Read moreImaginology
The Marketplace of Religions (“Franklyn”, 2008)
Masked vigilante/private investigator Jonathan Preest, the last atheist in Meanwhile City, prowls a literal Marketplace of Religions in this scene from the flawed but fascinating 2008 movie Franklyn.
‘Being the Smoke’: One Man’s Choice to Be Cremated Under the Open Sky
Ruth Graham writes for the New York Times on Dr. Philip Incao’s cremation at Crestone, Colorado, which is currently the site of the only outdoor funeral pyre in the USA: Dr. Incao’s ceremony began with family members and friends laying juniper branches and flowers on the body. Incense burned in a terra cotta pot tended … Read more‘Being the Smoke’: One Man’s Choice to Be Cremated Under the Open Sky
“Burying the Dead Monuments”
Professor Elizabeth Scarborough muses on potential futures for discarded monumental statues: Monuments are objects designed and created intentionally to remind us of something worth honoring. According to J.B. Jackson, “A traditional monument, as the origin of the word indicates, is an object which is supposed to remind us of something important. That is to say, … Read more“Burying the Dead Monuments”
Fire Damages the Rogers Park Black Lives Matter Shrine
Sad to note this fire damage to the local Black Lives Matter shrine. Possibly vandalism, but I suspect more likely accidental – candles are frequently lit on the shrine. I hope that the volunteers who maintain the shrine will be able to restore it.
“Inventing Farewell: Poetry as a Mortuary Practice”
I taught a course last semester, at Brandeis University, on elegy and contemporary death practices. This humanities practicum was entitled “Inventing Farewell” because every modern generation must re-invent its relations to the dead. It was a pedagogical experiment. The students in this workshop read contemporary poems to discover what they have to offer a modern … Read more“Inventing Farewell: Poetry as a Mortuary Practice”