Winter is magical time. Whether the snow is falling or not, shorter days and longer nights invite us to snuggle up with a book or a good movie and spend
David Gardiner - Buddhist
David Gardiner is an associate professor in the Colorado College Religion department, specializing in Buddhism and religions of China and Japan, and is co-founder and director of BodhiMind Center.Â
âPoliticalâ refers to actions well beyond the activities of elected officials, to include all good work that members of a community do to enhance one anotherâs lives. Thus, âall politics is local.â I pray for more sincere, deep listening. What we hear is conditioned by the sources we choose for information, from electronic and print media to the people with whom we speak. We all have some power to impact our choice of sources to diversify what we can learn. Moreover, we have a responsibility to practice deep listening by temporarily suspending judgment so we can truly learn to understand how other people experience this vast world. I pray that our minds become more still, our ears listen more fully and our hearts expand in compassion
Shutterstock.com
My daughter just got involved in a very controlling religious community. What defines something as a cult, occult or a community of faith?
Alycia Erikson - Christian
Rev. Alycia Erickson, pastor of Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church, has a passion for working with the LGBTQ and straight communities.
I hear your concern for your daughter. Iâll focus my response on defining what a cult is. A cult can form from almost any type of group, not just religious. In her book
Cults in Our Midst, Margaret Thaler Sanger writes that the label âcultâ refers to three factors: the origin of the group and the role of the leader; the power structure or relationship between the leader (or leaders) and the followers; and the use of a coordinated program of persuasion (also called thought reform or brainwashing). It can be deeply painful when someone you love gets involved with a group you fear could be a cult. I encourage you to