#secularism in Cent

[aristi-achaion]

I’m a classical archaeology grad student, and in class we talked about ancient views of death/handling of the body, which of course made me think about the Iliad and Achilles’ treatment of the dead.

Firstly, funerals were a secular event, and religion was not involved in any funerary rites. But that’s not the main point I want to bring up, it’s this: that touching a dead body was a sort of taboo, and anyone who had handled a dead body needed to be cleansed before they could return to society. Also, burials happened quickly, they needed to get the body in the ground as soon as possible (most likely of for practical reasons of course).

We’re all familiar with how Achilles treats Patroclus’ body after he dies, and while that in and of itself is a good enough point to show what they meant to each other, it takes on another dimension when you take into account the traditions and practices of the time period.

Achilles refusing to bathe himself after touching Patroclus’ body, and the multiple instances of him holding, caressing, and general touching of the body are extreme measures, one of a man that has lost himself in his grief. It could also hint at other things, like Achilles’ own death, because in a sense he had become it. He would not bathe after battle, would not bathe, eat, or drink after touching and holding Patroclus, and prolonged his burial for so long that divine measures that to be taken so his body would not spoil. Achilles disregards tradition, disregards the norms of the Greeks, and as we see once he finally confronts Hector, disregards his own life now that Patroclus is gone.

I think it’s so interesting when you can analyze the actions of the characters in the Iliad against the cultural background of Ancient Greece, because there’s so many subtle things that you’d miss if you weren’t aware, but the audience of the time would’ve caught that added nuance. Anyway! That’s my two cents :)

[fictionadventurer]

I know you don't rely on religious arguments against abortion. But I thought I'd offer my two cents on when the body is "infused" with a soul. The term almost implies the soul exists before conception. If I'm not mistaken, Christianity doesn't teach the pre-existence of the soul. The soul begins to exist the moment the body begins to exist, e.g. conception.

On whether Numbers 5:11-31 describes an abortion, compare translations of Num. 5:21-22 on Biblehub. Out of dozens of translations the NIV is the only one that uses the term "miscarry." The rest mention the shriveling of a body part, but the Hebrew word for it is vague. The same word is used to describe where Ehud stabbed King Eglon, but also where God injured Jacob. Thus some versions translate it as womb/abdomen, but a majority translate it as thigh. Also important to note that pregnancy wasn't a requirement for the ritual. Pregnant or not, the faithful wife received no harm. Pregnant or not, the unfaithful wife was found out.

Again, I know we don't have to rely on scripture to be prolife. There are many secular prolife arguments from science. But I thought you might want this in your arsenal if someone wants to argue for abortion from scripture.

Excellent point about the body and soul not being separate. Consistent with Theology of the Body.

I also found this article that goes into extreme depth about the many, many reasons that the Numbers passage does not describe abortion/forced miscarriage and the many, many other much more likely possibilities.

As long as we're discussing Biblical arguments against abortion, let's look at two New Testament ones.

The Annunciation: Mary's conception is the beginning of God coming into the world. If she'd had an abortion at any point in her pregnancy, she would have been destroying Jesus.

The Visitation: Elizabeth's son leapt in her womb upon the arrival of the Lord. This proves that he was a separate person, and that Jesus was a person long before birth. Since Elizabeth was in her sixth month of pregnancy at the time of Mary's Annunciation, Jesus is no more than three months' gestation at this time.

And to expand it to other religious arguments against abortion, since I'm Catholic, anyone who wants to argue for abortion on religious grounds had better read Evangelium Vitae first. God gave His Church teaching authority, and His Church clearly teaches that abortion is a grave evil. (When this is written by a Pope who lived through Nazi-occupied Poland and Communist-occupied Poland, you had better believe he has first-hand experience with the horrors that result when you don't value all human life.)

[dragonflycap]

4 Trade Ideas for Caterpillar: Bonus Idea

Caterpillar, $CAT, comes into the week at short term resistance in a pullback and over the 20 day SMA for the first time in over a month. The Bollinger Bands® are squeezed in, often a precursor to a move and it has retraced 38.2% of the last leg higher. It has a RSI at the midline and rising, a positive divergence, with the MACD crossed up and rising but negative. There is resistance at 333.50 and 337.50 then 351.50 and 355.50 before 364 and 373 with the all-time high at 379.30 above that. Support lower is at 330 and 325 then 321. Short interest is low at 2.4%. 

The stock pays a dividend with an annual yield of 1.69% and will trade ex-dividend n July 24th. The company is expected to report earnings next on July 30th. The July options chain shows biggest open interest at the 330 strike on the put side and at the 350 call strike. The August chain shows open interest spread from 330 to 280, biggest at 290 then 310, on the put side. On the call side it is biggest at 330 then fades to 370. The September chain has biggest open interest at the 290 put and the 330 call strikes.

Caterpillar, Ticker: $CAT

Trade Idea 1: Buy the stock on a move over 333.50 with a stop at 321.

Trade Idea 2: Buy the stock on a move over 333.50 and add an August 320/310 Put Spread ($3.00) while selling the September 380 Call ($2.90).

Trade Idea 3: Buy the July/August 340 Call Calendar ($6.80) while selling the July 325 Puts ($2.70).

Trade Idea 4: Buy the September 320/340/370 Call Spread Risk Reversal (30 cents).

Start of Summer Annual Sale! Hi all the Start of Summer Annual Sale is entering its last day at Dragonfly Capital. Get an annual subscription for 38.2% off or pay quarterly for 15% off. Both auto-renew at that discounted rate until you decide to leave.

After reviewing over 1,000 charts, I have found some good setups for the week. These were selected and should be viewed in the context of the broad Market Macro picture reviewed Friday which with the 2nd Quarter of 2024 in the books and heading into the holiday shortened week, saw equity markets showing resilience with a rebound from a pullback and large caps and tech names holding at the highs.

Elsewhere look for Gold to continue its consolidation after the record move higher while Crude Oil consolidates in a broad range. The US Dollar Index continues the short term move to the upside while US Treasuries continue in their secular downtrend. The Shanghai Composite looks to continue the downtrend while Emerging Markets consolidate under long term resistance.

The Volatility Index looks to remain very low and stable making the path easier for equity markets to the upside. Their charts look strong, especially on the longer timeframe. On the shorter timeframe both the QQQ and SPY are showing signs of a possible reset on momentum measures as both are extended. The IWM continues to lag in a long term channel. Use this information as you prepare for the coming week and trad’em well.

[stonewall2023]

A Perspective on Noah Schnapp and Israel/Palestine from someone who studies the region

I don't really comment on this tag much. Over the last two years, it has just been a fun place for me to go because I've always seen so much of myself and my childhood in Will's character. It is a nice break from the stress that is my day job. However, it really hasn't been as much of a fun place to go in the last few months because of the posts on Noah Schnapp, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As someone who has spent half their life in the region, speaks Arabic, and studies Israel/Palestine, I thought I would throw my two cents in on Noah and this whole controversy. As a supporter of Palestinian rights, I do think that there was a lot of things wrong with Noah's initial statements that he posted a few months ago. I don't think he understands the root causes of why Hamas has engaged in violent behavior, the historical occupation of the West Bank/Gaza strip, land confiscations, settler violence, etc.. The conflict is not black and white obviously. However, I am as bothered by many of the responses to Noah Schnapp on this tag as I was with Noah's take on the conflict. There seems to be a complete lack of empathy for the Jewish plight or an understanding of where the Israeli state comes from. Zionism emerged in the late 19th century among Jewish intellectuals facing persecution in Europe who thought that the only way the Jewish community could survive was by establishing a state of their own, and not all of these intellectuals favored going to Palestine. It was the British at the end of WWI that conquered Palestine and started allowing Jewish emigration under the Belfour Declaration. Jews fled persecution and massacres from not only Europe but the Middle East and North Africa over the next two decades. Half of Noah's family fled persecution in Morocco and the other half from Eastern Europe. That is his family's experience and why he supports "zionism" and the existence of Israel. While Israel's far right interprets zionism as the right to conquer the entire holy land for religious reasons, Israel's center and left wing sees it merely as the right to exist as a state and a secular one at that. Palestinians, for their part, feel that their land was taken from them through colonization, but Israelis feel that they were driven from their homes throughout Europe and the greater Arab world due to persecution. At the end of the day, the United Nations established Israel and Palestine in 1947 by splitting the land for both peoples, and that is what I support as do millions of moderate Palestinians and Israelis. I don't support the tactics and rhetoric of the Likud Party and Israel's far right nor do I support Hamas and other far right Islamists--neither of these sides supports peace, democracy, multiculturalism, or the rights of the lgbtq community, issues that are all dear to me. Noah was right to criticize people justifying Hamas' use of violence against civilians just as the supporters of Palestine are right to condemn Israel's government for the indiscriminate violence. Based on Noah Schnapps previous statements, he seems to support a two state solution and isn't calling for people to be massacred, which quite frankly, makes him quite moderate. While I don't agree with everything he is said or how he has said it, he seems like a good kid who just needs to learn more about the conflict...and quite frankly, so do many of you as well...Anyway, that's my take.

[sethshead]

"Simon Schama in the Financial Times, Oct. 13, 2023:

"Confronted with enormity: murdered infants, abducted grandmothers, slaughtered villagers, lusty chants of 'gas the Jews' at the Free Palestine demonstration in Sydney, mere words feel like weak carriers of so much horror and sorrow. Journalistic bloviation on the cause of this and the effect of that seems an indecency, at least until the bodies are gathered and returned to families. So context me no contexts, analyse me no analyses, suspend your partially informed diagnoses; leave off your strenuous efforts at even-handedness. Let us be, to grieve, rage, weep; say the mourners’ kaddish.

"Perhaps images, then, not words? Of terrified young people who in a trice went from dancing to frantic running in a futile attempt to escape the spray of bullets; of a kibbutz dog shot as it emerged from a house (that must have helped Free Palestine); a young woman with bloody marks staining her sweatpants as she is bundled away by captors; a knife lying on a sofa in the kibbutz Be’eri, where 10 per cent of the population were killed; or visual evidence of 'resistance' like the video of Mor Bayder’s murdered grandmother uploaded by her killers to Mor’s Facebook page.

"Sympathy, for the moment, abounds, for as the writer Dara Horn pointed out in the title of her unsparing book of essays, People Love Dead Jews; living ones, especially should we have the temerity to defend ourselves, not so much. There is, rightly, sympathy too for the Palestinians of Gaza who are also victims and prisoners of Hamas and do not deserve to be punished for the wickedness perpetrated by their fanatical tyrants, nor for the delusion that the deaths of Jewish families will make Israel disappear.

"We do not disappear. But we do suffer. The great Columbia University historian Salo Wittmayer Baron spent his career inveighing against the fatalism of what he called 'the lachrymose conception' of Jewish history. I myself have made an effort to go with the positive: to celebrate the poetry, music, religious and secular literature of the diaspora; to think about Jewish history with the human smoke of Auschwitz blown away by time and education.

"But this now seems an idle hope. From reports all over the world in the days following the massacres last weekend, it is obvious that the spectacle of dead Jews can still excite, rather than restrain, antisemitism.

"Apparently it still needs saying that Zionism is not the cause, but the consequence, of perennial, dehumanising, antisemitism. The massacre of Jews not only long predates Zionism but is a constant fact of diaspora existence. Jews were attacked and exterminated in both the Muslim and Christian medieval worlds: six thousand butchered in Fez in 1033; thousands more in Almoravid Granada in 1066; the entire community of York in 1190. A friend of mine, currently in Spain, tells me almost all of the rarefied intellectuals she has encountered have been adamant that the victims were to blame, which, given the murder of thousands of Jews in 1391, is a bit rich.

"Nor was this persecution really about religion. Survivors who converted were, for all their professions of Christian faith, still tortured and burnt alive by an Inquisition suspicious that their blood was too impure for salvation. So Jews have been murdered for being too separate and murdered for being not separate enough. They were killed in vast numbers by Cossacks in 1648; by Russian pogroms in the 19th and 20th centuries. In 1899 an anti-Dreyfusard journal asked its readers what they would like to do with Jews. The responses were enthusiastic and ingenious: use them as targets for new artillery, turn them into dog food and, needless to say, gas them.

"In the face of lethal peril, help has been conditional. Children were rescued by the Kindertransport on condition of being separated from their parents, many of whom they would never see again. A conference on 'refugees' was held in Bermuda in 1943, when the Final Solution was known, basically on condition the word 'Jew' was never mentioned. It was this lose/lose situation that moved Theodor Herzl, the father of modern Zionism, prophetic about a coming annihilation, to insist that in the end Jews must count only on themselves for their protection.

"That core Zionist article of faith collapsed last Saturday, not least because of the Netanyahu government’s obstinate refusal to listen to Israel’s security chiefs, who warned him that the safety of the country was being imperilled by policies that were dangerously divisive. Whatever the immediate unity of the country, his days as prime minister are numbered and his legacy will forever be this catastrophe. But that inevitable departure will not staunch the tears, bring back the dead or heal the trauma. And should there be a ground invasion, innocent Palestinian and Jewish lives will pay a terrible price, not that Hamas cares about either.

"But Israel will survive, revive. If only because, even in this dreadful extremity, one text from Deuteronomy, 30. 19 lies at the indefatigably beating heart of Jewish history:

"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, a blessing and a curse: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live."

h/t Shoshana Hantman

[firespirited]

I don't have faith. Was bullied pretty badly for pessimism and lack of trust and attempted to adopt a persona of hope and positivity for a few years in order to "fake it until you make it". It didn't work.

but the moment I got a spare cent to my name, I started "tithing" a tenth of my income to the local shelters then the food bank since they opened a secular branch ten years ago. And offering other forms of mutual aid like tech support and filing documents, being part of a grey-black market of off book goods and services, giving space and time to dodgy messy complicated women who come and go like a tornado. Charity kept me alive so these are my acts of faith.

and you can call it believing in Santa, I guess technically that fits. Or you could call it a choice to be a part of the army of invisible women that make Santa happen (and is that really the human pet guy?) The analogy makes my brain fizz with a thousand memories. I guess the closest an essentialist ever gets to faith is building things to get used, then rebuilding again.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Colette Colfer

Published: Jan 17, 2024

A slow-burning religious revolution is transforming Ireland. The Catholic Church has waned to a smidgin of its former significance and much of the enormous space it once occupied in the Irish psyche has been vacated. A gap has appeared. We need to mind this gap.

At the same time as Catholicism is declining in importance, a new belief system centred around the concept of gender identity is gathering momentum, thrusting roots deep into the cultural fabric of Irish society, and filling parts of the expanse previously occupied by Catholicism.

This new belief system has implications for all sectors of Irish society including education, sports, legislation, and the media. It also influences popular individual understandings of the self.

‘I am large, I contain multitudes’ wrote Walt Whitman (1819 – 1892) in his famous poem Song of Myself. The kaleidoscopic complexity of the individual is often eclipsed when those espousing gender identity theory magnify gender identity out of proportion to other facets of the self.

Although the idea of gender identity is considered secular in nature, there are many religious parallels. A certain level of faith is required to believe in the existence of the scientifically unfalsifiable intangible internal essence that is the gendered self. This disembodied sense of self, elevated in importance above the body, mirrors ideas about the soul. Sacrificial rites involving the removal of healthy organs assert the primacy of gender identity that is bestowed with a sacred quality.

There are echoes of holy days and religious seasons in new calendars listing dates associated with gender identity. These include Agender Pride Day (19th May), Non-Binary Awareness Week (in July), International Pronouns Day (20th October), and Transgender Awareness Month (November). There are also quasi-religious symbols, priest-like leaders, slogans that sound like mantras and compulsory articles of belief including that sex is ‘assigned’ at birth, that everyone has a gender identity, and that social transition and affirmation are the path to finding one’s true self (or salvation).

Societies are always changing. When 108-year-old Florence Pannell was interviewed on UK television in 1977 about growing up in Victorian England, she was asked what had changed most during her lifetime. Florence responded: ‘Everything! Nothing is the same! Everything is changed!’ To be alive is to be caught in a web of change. The rate of religious change in Ireland is happening faster than the rate of population change. The Irish population rose 46% from 3.5 to 5.1 million between 1991 and 2022. During the same period, the number of people with ‘no religion’ increased by over 1,000 per cent.1

Ireland in the 1900s was steeped in Catholicism. Church steeples punctured skylines symbolising the highest societal value and pinpointing the geographical locus of the community. Streets and remote country roads were dotted with grottos of the Virgin Mary. Silhouettes of huge crosses were visible on hills and rocky outcrops. Weeks revolved around Sunday mass. People’s entire lifelines were patterned with religious rituals.

Catholicism in Ireland reached its peak in 1961 when Roman Catholics made up a phenomenal 94.9 per cent of the population. Since then, however, the proportion of Catholics has been in decline. By 2022 it had dropped to 69% and since then, the tide of Catholic belief has been receding further still.

Receding tides require attention. In 1907, a tidal wave resulted in the deaths of 70% of the inhabitants of Simeuleu in Indonesia. Survivors told the story of an earthquake followed by a receding sea and then a tidal wave. They referred to the sequence of events as smong. Stories of smong were passed down through the generations in popular lullabies and poems.

When a devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean on the 26th of December 2004 killed an estimated quarter of a million people, the island of Simeuleu was an anomaly in the region as there was only a minimal loss of life. Just seven victims were recorded from the population of almost eighty thousand. The high survival rate was accredited to the stories of smong. Islanders had recognised the signs of the retreating sea after an earthquake and had rushed to higher ground.

Declining religious adherence has potentially important implications. Sascha Becker and Hans-Joachim Voth point out, for example, that: ‘As the role of religion in public life declined from the late 19th century onwards, new ideologies and totalitarian world-views spread’. Becker and Voth mention that the ideologies of both Communism and Naziism were more popular in highly secularised areas of interwar Germany.

The decline of Catholicism in Ireland and the concomitant increase of those with no religion warrants careful consideration. Catholicism has faded significantly from the public sphere, scarpered from centre stage to a quieter corner in the wings. The stage is now peopled by those proclaiming the new gospel of ‘equality, diversity, inclusion’ and the stage is festooned with sacralised Progress Pride flags signalling the adoption of gender identity theory. The ideology of nationalism has more recently made a notable public appearance side stage and new belief systems or older ideologies could also emerge and rise to prominence.

Ireland’s National Census of 2022 indicates a religiously heterogeneous society with over fifty separate categories of religion outlined. This compares to the National Census of 1981 when just eight separate categories of religion were recorded and all the Christian denominations combined constituted 99.4% of the total population. A look at just some of the 2022 categories and numbers of adherents gives an indication of the level of religious change: Islam: 81,930; Hindu: 33,043; Taoists: 200; Scientologists: 132; Satanism: 189; Jedi Knight: 1,800, Jehovah’s Witness: 6,332; Buddhist: 9,053. A low-key online campaign in the run-up to the 2022 Census encouraged those with concerns about gender identity theory to identify their religion on the census form as ‘Believer in Biology’. Although the official census data did not publish details, a Freedom of Information request showed that at least 163 of the 8,064 in the ‘Other stated religion’ category identified their religion as ‘Believer in Biology’.2

Minding the gap vacated by traditional religion that is currently being filled, at least in part, by gender identity theory involves paying careful attention to the latest top-quality research on gender dysphoria, following best medical practice, developing guidelines based on evidence rather than ideology, allowing space for a diversity of beliefs and for healthy civil discussion that allows open conversation and respectful dialogue about the implications of gender identity theory on wider society including on single-sex spaces, sports, and children’s psychological and physical well-being.

The highest point in the urban skyline of Ireland today is the satellite pylon rather than the church steeple. This signals a switch in societal values and the locus of community formation. Social media is where new belief systems are promulgated and where younger generations are most likely to seek and find meaning. The trains of communication in the internet era are fast-moving. Mind the gap.

-

According to the National Census, 66,270 people had no religion in 1991. This rose to 736,210 in 2022 – a difference of 1,011% ↩︎

The numbers for ‘Believer in Biology’ only include records processed after November 2022. ↩︎

==

This speaks to the "Substitution Hypothesis," which suggests that as traditional religions decline, other quasi- and religious-like practices fill the void to satisfy human tendency towards religiosity.

[thatsonemorbidcorvid]

“It was mainly in the 18th and 19th centuries that churches were fitted out with fixed pews. Prior to this, naves tended to be open spaces and medieval churches were commonly used not only as places of worship but as a focal point for the neighbourhood, with evidence of markets, dances and other civil functions being held in them.

JG Davies wrote in his 1968 book The Secular Use of Church Buildings: “There can be no question that in the Middle Ages the church was an all-purpose building. It is difficult to think of any secular activity that has no connection with it.””

Churches should boost their efforts to double up as community hubs by hosting more playgroups, yoga classes, concerts, exhibitions and cafés, according to more than 70 per cent of Church of England priests in a Times survey.

A poll of almost 1,200 active Church of England clergy found that most respondents want to see churches do more to transform themselves into places where people gather for non-religious events, activities and amenities.

A Times analysis found that 250 churches per year are applying for permission to rip out pews, replacing them with foldable chairs that can be moved aside to create space for community groups to use.

For churches with dwindling congregations, it is seen as a way to raise money while inviting people to a place where they encounter a Christian space and may perhaps be inspired to return as worshippers.

Many churches have faced criticism from heritage groups that do not want to see pews removed or modern amenities fitted into ancient church buildings. Cathedrals have been criticised for hosting events such as fashion shows, crazy golf courses and helter skelters.

The survey asked priests: “Some churches and cathedrals have been granted permission to alter or offer their buildings for use outside of service times by community groups such as playgroups and yoga classes, for events such as exhibitions and concerts, and for amenities such as cafés and post offices. Do you think churches should be doing more or less of this?”

In response, 71 per cent of priests said they should do more while 21.9 per cent said the current level was “about right”. Only 3.7 per cent said they should do less.

It was mainly in the 18th and 19th centuries that churches were fitted out with fixed pews. Prior to this, naves tended to be open spaces and medieval churches were commonly used not only as places of worship but as a focal point for the neighbourhood, with evidence of markets, dances and other civil functions being held in them.

JG Davies wrote in his 1968 book The Secular Use of Church Buildings: “There can be no question that in the Middle Ages the church was an all-purpose building. It is difficult to think of any secular activity that has no connection with it.”

Emily Gee, the Church of England’s director for cathedral and church buildings said: “Our churches and cathedrals have long been, and remain, at the centre of our communities. Church buildings are often flexible enough to provide a wide range of activities that support the wellbeing, enjoyment and uplift of the people and places they serve, but with worship and prayer at their heart.

“We are pleased there is such support for creatively offering community use alongside worship and with the significance of our wonderful buildings in mind.”

Meanwhile 60 per cent of priests say that they have confidence in the church’s often criticised safeguarding policies

The Church of England has faced criticism over its handling of safeguarding, while archbishops’ efforts to form an independent safeguarding watchdog collapsed this summer.

The Times survey asked priests how confident they were “that the Church of England’s safeguarding system and policies are adequate”.

It found that 60.5 per cent of respondents were confident, with 52.2 per cent “fairly” and 8.3 per cent “very” confident. This compared with 36.9 per cent who lacked confidence, with 26.9 per cent replying “not very” and 10 per cent saying they were not confident “at all”.

Richard Scorer, head of abuse law at Slater and Gordon solicitors, said: “Parish priests will probably answer this question from their local parish perspective, rather than speaking of the Church of England as a whole, and therefore there may be an optimism bias. My own experience … is that there is both good and poor practice in the church.”

He added that recent reports should “eliminate any complacency” and that “independent oversight is so important”.

The Rt Rev Joanne Grenfell, lead bishop for safeguarding, said: “Work is under way to review and improve policies … We welcome the survey and will continue to build on this feedback to ensure clergy and others are more confident with the policies.

“We must never forget the legacy of poor safeguarding in the Church of England and the enormous impact that this has had.”

The Church of England must also pay attention to views of Anglicans overseas, the survey suggested. Priests believe that the opinions of the 80 million Anglicans in foreign churches should be taken into account when changing Church of England policies and doctrine at home.

There has been division within the Anglican Communion, a fellowship of 42 Anglican churches, between those in places such as the United States and Scotland that have started conducting same-sex weddings and those in countries that strongly oppose them, including Uganda and Nigeria.

Some traditionalist churches have threatened to depose the Archbishop of Canterbury as spiritual leader over his backing for blessings for those in same-sex relationships.

In debates at the General Synod, some have argued that the Church of England must not change its doctrine to endorse gay relationships if the majority of the Anglican Communion opposes it, while others have said this should not delay reforms.

The Times survey found that more than half of respondents want the church to start conducting same-sex weddings, but it appears priests are aware of the reaction this might provoke from traditionalist Anglicans abroad.

The Times poll asked how important it was to “consider how other churches across the global Anglican Communion might react” to changes in Church of England policy or doctrine.

In response, 76.7 per cent said it was important, with 43.5 per cent saying it was “fairly” and 33.2 per cent “very” important.

Only 22.6 per cent said it was not important, with 18.8 per cent saying “not very” and 3.8 per cent “not at all” important.

The General Synod has backed moves to boost the number of Anglican Communion representatives on the body that will choose the next Archbishop of Canterbury, from one out of 16 members to five out of 17.

The Rt Rev Jo Bailey Wells, the bishop for ministry in the Anglican Communion, said the body was like a family and said it was “heartwarming to see that relational awareness revealed in the survey from Church of England clergy”.

[whitehairedanimeboyfriend]

Saw some posts going around about being homeless and wanted to throw my own two cents in on strategies you can use.

A lot of people think that once you lose your home, your two options are either spend a bunch of money on motels or sleep outside. There are many other options you should exhaust first.

Pack light. Bring a couple changes of clothes, but don't over burden yourself. Fresh underwear and socks are more important than anything. You can swing wearing the same jeans for longer than the same shirt.

Don't break the habit of brushing your teeth often. It's important and a difficult habit to build up again.

Get a good phone charger, and a good portable battery. You can get ones on Amazon that will fully charge your phone up to 10 times on one charge of the battery. If you don't have a place you can accept deliveries, try dollarstores, Walmart, and best buy, or other electronic stores.

High data plans are really cheap right now, so if you're already paying 30-40 for your phone plan, check to see if you can switch to a higher data plan for the same price on your phone provider's website.

Have utensils. You can get packs of portable and easy to wash ones that come with fork, spoon, knife, and straw. Or you can just pack normal ones. It's up to you.

Get a multi-tool. Theyre really handy to have.

If you buy a weapon of any kind to defend yourself, make sure you know how to use it and really have an indepth check in with yourself: if you were in a fight, would you be willing to use it on another person? If you are unsure even a little bit, don't carry it. Knife, gun, any of those specialized self defense items. They're more likely to be taken and used on you. Especially if you hesitate.

Get on welfare, income assistance, food stamps, or whatever other government program you can. These often provide access to resources and if you get a social worker, they will often be familiar with resources and programs you can access.

Be kind and respectful to other homeless people but don't make friends with them. This may sound harsh but people in these situations are desperate and if you drop your guard around some individuals you will get robbed. Plus, it's really easy to get sucked into toxic mindsets where you spiral into self destruction if there are other people to go down with you. You will feed off of each other's bullshit. It's just better for you and them to focus on yourself right now.

Having a baby right now will not save you or fix your situation. If you have sex, use protection. If you get pregnant, highly consider getting an abortion if you're able to. Being pregnant complicates homelessness a lot and your kid will almost definitely be taken from you, which is heartbreaking.

Keep a low profile. Don't get into fights or arguments, don't yell at service workers, don't be a nuisance to retail. Sometimes you will be wronged and it'll feel unfair, but often it's best to swallow your pride and to remain in good standing with the people around you.

Sell or leave any laptops, tablets, and other electronic devices you can't keep on your person. If someone doesn't steal them they will most likely just get broken or damaged.

Look up all the soup kitchens and foodbanks in your area. Most of the time, there will be at least one place open any given day of the week. Churches are the ones that will do this more often than not, and as long as it's not Salvation Army they usually do not care who you are or how you got there. Missions tend to feel more secular than say, Catholic churches, if that matters to you. (but getting a hot meal is often worth sitting through the Lord's Prayer.)

If you're under thirty, look up Youth resources. Usually there will be services tailored specifically for you that won't be as in demand as general population services.

Employment centers, libraries, food banks, etc, should have contact information regarding shelters. If you're a woman running from an abuse situation there are even more options.

Shelters tend to be hit or miss. I've stayed in really awful ones, I've stayed in really good ones. The best you're going to find are the ones where each resident gets their own room. They're hard to come by, but one of the shelters I stayed at the most when I was homeless let you stay up to two months on your first go. Then youre out for two weeks, then you can come back for up to a month at a time. If you're lucky, you'll find a shelter that provides meals as well. This is a great place to have a warm bed to sleep, meals, and showers.

Couch surf. Now's the time to call on your friends for favours. I try not to stay in any one place for longer than five days. Mixing this with staying at a shelter got me through about five years of homelessness.

Group homes, supervised living programs, etc. These tend to be the next step up from shelters. Almost all of them give you your own room and are more long term than shelters. Often, you have to actively be working and/or participating in an education or employment program to stay, but it's way more stable than staying at a shelter.

Do not bother with Facebook marketplace queer housing groups. In a lot of cases you'll be out on your ass again in a couple of months. There's a reason people in these groups can't keep roommates.

When you can, have a set of clothes that make you not "look homeless." You will find situations where you need to blend in. If you have a secure place to store your belongings even better. Dead giveaways for homeless people are often their huge backpacks and a lot of people know this.

Out of the cold shelters open up in the winter. They're more temporary than regular shelters and it's usually sleeping on the floor of a church or community center, but they're okay options in a pinch.

If you have to sleep outside, go off the beaten path if you can. It's easier to do this outside of city centers but this is obviously not always an option. Tents are great but tarps are even more portable. Sleeping bags help maintain body heat far better than blankets. Use your backpack as a pillow, or grab a pillowcase and stuff it with your clothes when it's time to sleep.

This may go without saying but if you have a car, sleep in that. You won't need to bother with shelters or sleeping outside.

Showering at gyms and truck stops is obvious, but if you can find a drop in center, you can shower, get something to eat, and often even do your laundry. Some drop in centers require membership but it's often not difficult to get and it's free. They just want to register you and keep track of who is coming and going. You will often be assigned a case worker that will help you with finding a place to stay or even a job.

Short hair is easier to maintain in these situations. Moreover, I highly recommend against dying your hair at this time, especially bright unnatural colours because the colour will fade fast, and it'll be really difficult to blend in with non homeless people when you have to.

Spend your days in libraries charging your phone, keeping warm, and entertaining yourself. You can stay from open until closed without being disturbed. Look at bulletin boards and pamphlets while you're there and you might find programs you can join or resources you can access.

I personally have never gone dumpster diving. I've never had to. I don't live in a very rich city but there was still always resources I could access before it came to that. Personally, I would exaust all my other options before I start rooting around in trash cans but that's just me.

If you keep food on hand while you're outside, be mindful of animals. Look up methods of keeping your food safe from bears if you are staying in wooded areas. Even places you think are too close to civilization can have bears wandering around. Also, be mindful of "refrigerate after opening" warning labels on food. It's best to get shelf stable items when possible. Condiment packets that are single use are better than bottles because they'll keep longer.

Stealing from grocery stores is easier if you buy some things, too. You can get toothpaste, shampoo, etc from drop in centers and foodbanks but I would personally suggest buying larger items like sandwich meat, and stuffing small items like water flavoring into your pockets when you're wandering down an unoccupied aisle. On that note if you have a hard time drinking plain water, get water flavoring! It's important to stay hydrated.

This might just be the country I live in, but one other place you're very unlikely to be bothered is hospital cafeterias. This is one example, I think, of a place where you don't want to "look" homeless. If it's an especially cold night though, sitting in the corner quietly and being on your phone won't look suspicious. You may need to stay up for the night and then take a nap outside in the day. Or, go to a Library in the morning.

Wear sunglasses and hold your phone or a book in front of you and nap when you're indoors. Especially if you're in a corner by yourself and especially if you're "blending in" with non homeless people, no one will bother you. Best place to do this is libraries.

Food courts are also a decent option. Usually there are so many people that no one is going to bother a random person that's there all day. One of those other instances of its easier if you don't look homeless.

Cycle through places you stay at during the day. It'll look a lot less suspicious if you only spend one day a week at any given place.

Depending on your age, if you live in a university town, you can spend time in university areas. Cafeterias, libraries, computer labs. This one is not something I'm quite as familiar with but I know people that did it. Try to blend in, look like you're busy. Students are easier to blend in with than probably any other population you can think of. You're going to really have to choose your own adventure with this one, but I would aim for places with a large student body that you don't need a key card to get into, and make yourself look busy.

If all else fails, ride around on public transit. Take long lines from start to finish. Catch a nap if you can. This is an especially great option if you have a bus pass, and while it is easier to do if you blend in, depending on the size of your city and how many people are on, you will be mostly undisturbed.

[mourning-again-in-america]

I know I sound like an utter crank bitching about le globalists but I really do believe that the greatest vector pushing internationalism and secular humanism in the US has been the CIA.

How can you look at Margaret Mead and her Coming of Age in American Samoa and Ruth Benedict and her Chrysanthemum and the Flower and how they treated people like Bob Taft as being so akin to 19th cent protectionists, so obviously incorrect that they couldn't even be considered even while the CIA kept shooting themselves with Cuba, Iran, etc.

Edit: tbc, by this I mean much more "there is one race, the human race" and "From A Distance" Kellogg-Briand bullshit much more than "Marxist CRT" bullshit -- the latter arises when your classmates at Yale are annoying versions of the former type.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Simon Schama: Confronted with enormity: murdered infants, abducted grandmothers, slaughtered villagers, lusty chants of “gas the Jews” at the Free Palestine demonstration in Sydney, mere words feel like weak carriers of so much horror and sorrow. Journalistic bloviation on the cause of this and the effect of that seems an indecency, at least until the bodies are gathered and returned to families. So context me no contexts, analyse me no analyses, suspend your partially informed diagnoses; leave off your strenuous efforts at even-handedness. Let us be, to grieve, rage, weep; say the mourners’ kaddish. Perhaps images, then, not words? Of terrified young people who in a trice went from dancing to frantic running in a futile attempt to escape the spray of bullets; of a kibbutz dog shot as it emerged from a house (that must have helped Free Palestine); a young woman with bloody marks staining her sweatpants as she is bundled away by captors; a knife lying on a sofa in the kibbutz Be’eri, where 10 per cent of the population were killed; or visual evidence of “resistance” like the video of Mor Bayder’s murdered grandmother uploaded by her killers to Mor’s Facebook page. Sympathy, for the moment, abounds, for as the writer Dara Horn pointed out in the title of her unsparing book of essays, People Love Dead Jews; living ones, especially should we have the temerity to defend ourselves, not so much. There is, rightly, sympathy too for the Palestinians of Gaza who are also victims and prisoners of Hamas and do not deserve to be punished for the wickedness perpetrated by their fanatical tyrants, nor for the delusion that the deaths of Jewish families will make Israel disappear.

We do not disappear. But we do suffer. The great Columbia University historian Salo Wittmayer Baron spent his career inveighing against the fatalism of what he called “the lachrymose conception” of Jewish history. I myself have made an effort to go with the positive: to celebrate the poetry, music, religious and secular literature of the diaspora; to think about Jewish history with the human smoke of Auschwitz blown away by time and education. But this now seems an idle hope. From reports all over the world in the days following the massacres last weekend, it is obvious that the spectacle of dead Jews can still excite, rather than restrain, antisemitism. Apparently it still needs saying that Zionism is not the cause, but the consequence, of perennial, dehumanising, antisemitism. The massacre of Jews not only long predates Zionism but is a constant fact of diaspora existence. Jews were attacked and exterminated in both the Muslim and Christian medieval worlds: six thousand butchered in Fez in 1033; thousands more in Almoravid Granada in 1066; the entire community of York in 1190. A friend of mine, currently in Spain, tells me almost all of the rarefied intellectuals she has encountered have been adamant that the victims were to blame, which, given the murder of thousands of Jews in 1391, is a bit rich.

Nor was this persecution really about religion. Survivors who converted were, for all their professions of Christian faith, still tortured and burnt alive by an Inquisition suspicious that their blood was too impure for salvation. So Jews have been murdered for being too separate and murdered for being not separate enough. They were killed in vast numbers by Cossacks in 1648; by Russian pogroms in the 19th and 20th centuries. In 1899 an anti-Dreyfusard journal asked its readers what they would like to do with Jews. The responses were enthusiastic and ingenious: use them as targets for new artillery, turn them into dog food and, needless to say, gas them. In the face of lethal peril, help has been conditional. Children were rescued by the Kindertransport on condition of being separated from their parents, many of whom they would never see again. A conference on “refugees” was held in Bermuda in 1943, when the Final Solution was known, basically on condition the word “Jew” was never mentioned. It was this lose/lose situation that moved Theodor Herzl, the father of modern Zionism, prophetic about a coming annihilation, to insist that in the end Jews must count only on themselves for their protection. That core Zionist article of faith collapsed last Saturday, not least because of the Netanyahu government’s obstinate refusal to listen to Israel’s security chiefs, who warned him that the safety of the country was being imperilled by policies that were dangerously divisive. Whatever the immediate unity of the country, his days as prime minister are numbered and his legacy will forever be this catastrophe. But that inevitable departure will not staunch the tears, bring back the dead or heal the trauma. And should there be a ground invasion, innocent Palestinian and Jewish lives will pay a terrible price, not that Hamas cares about either.

But Israel will survive, revive. If only because, even in this dreadful extremity, one text from Deuteronomy, 30. 19 lies at the indefatigably beating heart of Jewish history:

"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, a blessing and a curse: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live."

[Financial Times]

[dragonflycap]

4 Trade Ideas for Amazon: Bonus Idea

Amazon, $AMZN, comes into the week approaching the all-time high at 189.50. This is in the midst of a Positive RSI Reversal (higher low in price with lower low in RSI) that has a target to 199. It is also at the 6th touch point in an Ascending Triangle (connecting the last 3 lows) with a target to 213.50 on a push over resistance. The RSI is rising in the bullish zone with the MACD positive and moving up. The Bollinger Bands® also appear to be opening higher. There is no resistance above 190. Support lower is at 182.50 then 176 and 174.50. Short interest is low under 1%. The stock does not pay a dividend. 

The company is expected to report earnings next on August 1st after the close. The July options chain shows biggest open interest at the 170 put strike and big size at the 200 then 185 and 190 call strikes. In the August chain open interest builds from 200 to a peak at 170 then tails on the put side. The call side builds from 160 to a plateau from 180 to 210. The September chain has open interest spread from 180 to below 140 on the put side, biggest at 180. On the call side it is largest by far at 175.

Amazon, Ticker: $AMZN

Trade Idea 1: Buy the stock on a move over 190 with a stop at 182.50.

Trade Idea 2: Buy the stock on a move over 190 and add an August 180/170 Put Spread ($2.90) while selling the August 215 Calls ($2.25).

Trade Idea 3: Buy the July/August 200 Call Calendar ($4.30) and sell the August 170 Puts ($2.40).

Trade Idea 4: Buy the September 175/195/210 Call Spread Risk Reversal (40 cents).

Start of Summer Annual Sale! Hi all the Start of Summer Annual Sale is entering its last week at Dragonfly Capital. Get an annual subscription for 38.2% off or pay quarterly for 15% off. Both auto-renew at that discounted rate until you decide to leave.

After reviewing over 1,000 charts, I have found some good setups for the week. These were selected and should be viewed in the context of the broad Market Macro picture reviewed Friday which with the June quadruple witching in the books in the books, saw equity markets a bit gassed after a good start.

Elsewhere look for Gold to continue its consolidation in the uptrend while Crude Oil moves higher in consolidation. The US Dollar Index continues the short term move to the upside while US Treasuries continue their short term move higher in the secular downtrend. The Shanghai Composite looks to continue the short term trend lower while Emerging Markets look to be on the verge of breaking consolidation to the upside.

The Volatility Index looks to remain very low making the path easier for equity markets to the upside. The charts of the SPY and QQQ look strong, especially on the longer timeframe, but with possible reversal or digestion candles this week. On the shorter timeframe both the QQQ and SPY could us a reset on momentum measures as both are extended and pullbacks are helping there. The IWM continued to go nowhere moving mainly sideways in the upper part of the 2½ year consolidation. Use this information as you prepare for the coming week and trad’em well.

[corneliushickey]

i really adore that post that’s like “there is this dead eyed sect of online secular jews who talk about judaism as the most skrungliest religion but have no interest in meaningfully engaging in jewish culture and practice and want instead to pander to goyim with snapple facts” and i have in my heart a spiritual sequel to this post which is that the parasitic remora of these online jews are the online goyim who encounter any sort of joke, anecdote, personal essay, what have you about jewish diaspora and just have to put their dumbshit useless two cents in about how they think this is so charming and quaint or else “huh the way this thousand year old talmudic argument has been explained here seems very simple to me, the smartest person in the entire world forever, have the dumbass rabbinic scholars never thought of this?”

[mariacallous]

Talk of a right-wing wave breaking over Europe has become a commonplace of political punditry, but the reality is more nuanced.

Is a right-wing, even a far-right wing, wave crashing over Europe? A lot of pundits would have it so. A recent article in Politico, with the trenchant title “Springtime for Europe’s Fascists”, ran through the usual suspects, with a special focus on the rise and rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany, AfD.

There’s no doubting the right’s momentum in large parts of Europe. Far-right parties are either in governments, or are propping up governments, in “normally” social democratic Finland and Sweden. The AfD, as the Politico article noted, is scoring 20 per cent in the polls in once staid and centrist Germany – above the 18 per cent support for Chancellor Scholz’s governing Social Democrats. “Never in the history of post-war Germany has a chancellor’s party had such low approval ratings,” as Germany’s Deutsche Welle, DW, remarked.

Conservatives romped home in this year’s elections in Greece – which not that long ago, under Alexis Tsipras, was the flag carrier of the European left. A new far-right constellation, Confederation, is polling strongly in already right-wing-governed Poland. Georgia Meloni’s right-wing “Brothers of Italy” are presiding over Italy. In Austria, the far-right Freedom Party, FPO, is tipped to come first in next year’s elections. It’s a long list, and not a compete one. Who knows what elections in a jittery Netherlands, due in November, will yield?

However, even if the right, in various guises, is on a roll in Europe, talk of a fascist takeover remains wide of the mark, not least because right and far right are ideologically loose terms – umbrella words for a range of insurgent forces with a grab-bag of often conflicting agendas and few commonalities, beyond often vaguely expressed identitarian politics, opposition to large-scale immigration and much talk about helping “the family”.

Some, like Hungary’s and Poland’s rulers, are welfarist, some are not. The AfD and the FPO and Hungary’s ruling Fidesz are pro-Russian but Meloni’s Brothers of Italy don’t fit that description. Nor do rightists in Poland. Some echo US Republicans in their obsession with limiting or even outlawing abortion, but not all of them do. Some flirt with anti-EU-ism, others don’t – and dream of taking over European institutions and reshaping them, rather than getting rid of them.

Some, like Viktor Orban’s Hungary – echoing Putin’s Russia – trumpet a noisy if flakey “traditional” Christianity, which usually involves ignoring the modern variety of the faith as espoused by the current Pope. Others can’t be bothered with that, seeing no votes in a moribund Church, posing instead as defenders of the Enlightenment and of a Western secularism they see as threatened by Muslim immigration.

Moreover, in another complication, the victorious Greek conservatives are more of a classic old-style pro-European centre-right party. That suggests the doom supposedly hanging over the European centre right, and its imminent annihilation by the far right, is not a foregone conclusion.

Then there’s Spain. Right up to polling day in the Spanish elections in July, those predicting a far-right tsunami in Europe were practically salivating over the expected outcome – a victory of the conservative right, which would be propelled into office on the back of a strong vote for the far-right Vox party.

It didn’t happen. Instead, the conservatives and the left polled similar amounts of votes and the Vox vote slumped, leaving the Spanish Socialists within reach of staggering on in alliance with, or supported by, Catalan and Basque nationalists. That wasn’t on the playbook.

The Spanish vote either points to Iberian exceptionalism [with the left also in power in Portugal], or to a possible alternative explanation for what’s going on in Europe, or parts of it – which isn’t necessarily a growing tilt to the right but a growing polarisation, with right and left-wing voting blocs crystallising and entrenching their positions.

Polarisation, of course, is not necessarily a much better outcome than a simple right-wing surge. The last time voters in Spain locked themselves into fiercely opposing left-right options, in the mid-1930s, the result was a civil war.

Either way, the immediate future looks bleak for Europe’s once formidable social democrats. They remain in the saddle in Germany, may cling on in Spain – and will likely take power in Britain next year – but both those latter two countries are literally on the margins of Europe; neither sets the European weather.

Next year’s European elections will formalise the way the political wind is blowing. But for now, the only question is whether the most gains are made by the centrist conservatives of the European Peoples Party, EPP, or by the more right-wing Conservatives and Reformists. Divided and baffled, the left seems out of puff.

[wizardkoolkelpie]

there's a stupid post going around right now (I've blocked op so I hope i stopped seeing it but my mutuals have kept reblogging it lol) about how "secularists call god nature" and I hate it so fucking much. just wanted to get my anger out lol

who cares if people worship nature over god? I personally think we should, as someone who's political and moral compass leans towards landback and indigenous sovereignty and autonomy i always find it so suspicious when ppl are preaching shit about god even from a "~secular~" standpoint lmao

anyways, that's my 2 cents and I think it's good to remember when ppl are talking about nature it's not always secular and ppl on this webbed site never have any perspective when posting shit lol

[wanderingwolpertinger]

I made a much longer post about this that I’ll not be sharing because I’m not interested in starting a huge kerfluffle (or maybe I will if I get really bored lol), but I wanted to give my 2 cents on all the posts about homeschooling that have been circulating the Christian side of tumblr lately.

If homeschooling most benefits your child, then it’s the right choice. If public or private schooling most benefits your child, then that is also the right choice. I may be taking this a bit personally, but when people broadly describe public schools as being government indoctrination centers and homeschooling as the perfect Christian alternative that everyone should employ, I’m not quite on board. If you raise your kid to understand the Christian worldview and why you believe it, they’re not going to have a problem navigating a secular public school (at least my brother, myself and our Christian friends didn’t).

Since most of the other posts were anecdotal, I’m going to share my personal side on this. My mom was a high school teacher and decided to not homeschool my brother and I, though she was obviously perfectly capable of it. Her parents (also teachers) made the same decision for their kids. (In both cases homeschooling was a financially viable option, if that matters) Personally, I wouldn’t have been able to get the same quality of education from homeschooling as I did from public schools. (I can share details as to why this is true, if someone wants me to). Also, my learning style just doesn’t jive with the standard homeschool options.

I suppose what I’m trying to say is that public schooling your child is not the end of the world and homeschooling is not the right choice for every kid. Maybe let’s not fear monger about this issue and recognize that neither choice is inherently bad, just that parents should be more involved in their children’s education, no matter what form it takes.