April 1, 2015—Creating new religions is something of a tradition in the United States. The most famous examples are the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Church of Scientology. Then there’s the guy on the streets of Berkeley I met a few years ago who told me about a system of “alpha-numerics,” where zip codes and addresses take on divine meaning. Now The Washington Post reports there’s a new religion on the scene in Indiana. The First Church of Cannabis filed paperwork in response to Gov. Mike Pence signing… [Read More…]
MIndfulness is everywhere, Part I
March 10, 2015—Here in the Bay Area we may have a distorted picture of how much mindfulness meditation has penetrated the mainstream. It’s hard to imagine that another part of the country can out compete us for meditation centers per capita, or the number of people who seek out spirituality in this way. Instead of telling their kids to be careful, I hear parents asking them to be “mindful.” And it seems almost everyone knows that when you’re stressed, you should tune into your breath. But it turns out the West Coast isn’t… [Read More…]
TSE news roundup for 10.31.14
Oct. 31, 2014–It’s Halloween! Trick or treating, and parties are the usual ways to celebrate, but a group of Wiccans in San Jose have a different idea, according to the San Jose Mercury News. They’re honoring Samhain, “a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the “darker half” of the year.” It’s the end of the harvest season and perhaps also America’s honeymoon with meditation. While science still validates the benefits of mindfulness, cynicism is popping up. The cynicism is not necessarily about the tools… [Read More…]
