Inspired by his experiences in 'Around the World in 80 Faiths', part-time vicar Peter Owen Jones returns to credit-crunch Britain and to the realisation that modern life has become a frenzy of spending and working. He yearns for a life of simplicity and meaning - a deeper connection to both nature and people.
Filmed over the course of nearly a year in his beautiful Sussex parishes, the first in a three-part series follows Peter as he tries to turn his back on consumerism. But downsizing, helping the local farmer and growing his own veg doesn't prove enough, so Peter decides to follow the example of medieval saint Francis of Assisi and give up money in a last-ditch attempt to find fulfilment.
Can Peter carry this off in his own parishes? And will his parishioners support and possibly even join him? Peter hones his skills as a gardener, chicken keeper, wood-chopper and dish-washer in an unpredictable and entertaining journey as he tries to uphold the Rule of St Francis
Can anyone really survive without money in a modern capitalist society?
I am convinced the answer is a resounding NO even before watching the TV programme - after viewing my answer remains the same but there is a lot to engage with in terms of the premise, context and detail.........GOOD FOOD FOR THOUGHT!
I remain as ever one who ponders on whether I need or want something ( 2 extremely different concepts) and that is the driving force that underpins my every action
How do you live? what do you think about the notion that money should be used and NOT USE US?
Other comments of note...............................
Telegraph
Share your thoughts here if like
Monday, May 24, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
First Christian Rialto Church Paranormal Investigation
Built in 1906 on the corner of riverside and second street, the first Christian church of Rialto, Ca apparently plays host to a number of restless spirits and even a "portal" where spirits can enter easily, at will!
The building is no longer used as a place of religious worship, it had since been occupied by the Rialto Historical society
Perhaps the most popular reported paranormal sighting is the one about Kristina Hendrickson. Her ashes were kept at the church following her death in 1967 from leukemia. Her father bought the church to prevent it from being demolished after sightings and accounts of her were reported.
John Anthony Adams, Historian of the Rialto Historical Society - is quoted "I have spent 20 years at the intensely haunted old church building that is now occupied by the Rialto Historical Society. I have a Ph.D. in soil science from the University of California at Riverside, did scientific research for years, always ridiculed any suggestions of the supernatural, and I was a life-long atheist until the foundations of my belief system were blasted to pieces by my experiences with ghosts. I never could have imagined in my wildest dreams that I would ever believe in something that seemed so ridiculous to me as ghosts. The stories began with the discovery of a very appealing little girl ghost whose ashes had been kept in the church. She was sent on her way after three very emotional seances, but other ghosts remain to haunt the church. Two different pairs of Rialto policemen have told me of encountering the ghost of a woman in a Victorian dress on two different occasions after answering a burglar alarm after midnight"................read on..............
John has subsequently written a book about his experiences in the church that is called "The Little Girl in the Window: A True Ghost Story." It was published in June 2008 and is available on Amazon.com. "My ghost book tells of scores of extraordinary ghostly encounters that I experienced along with other witnesses. I have recorded minutely detailed notes of every incident and I have written the book with the greatest care to describe exactly what happened. Some of the incidents are similar to those commonly described in ghost stories, such as the sound of footsteps without a visible person to make them, but other bizarre things have happened that I have never seen mentioned elsewhere. One example is a drinking glass that disappeared from beside my dinner plate only to instantly reappear from thin air several minutes later at the same spot where I had last seen it".
Watch the video for an account of one of the paranormal investigations carried out at the building:
The building is no longer used as a place of religious worship, it had since been occupied by the Rialto Historical society
Perhaps the most popular reported paranormal sighting is the one about Kristina Hendrickson. Her ashes were kept at the church following her death in 1967 from leukemia. Her father bought the church to prevent it from being demolished after sightings and accounts of her were reported.
John Anthony Adams, Historian of the Rialto Historical Society - is quoted "I have spent 20 years at the intensely haunted old church building that is now occupied by the Rialto Historical Society. I have a Ph.D. in soil science from the University of California at Riverside, did scientific research for years, always ridiculed any suggestions of the supernatural, and I was a life-long atheist until the foundations of my belief system were blasted to pieces by my experiences with ghosts. I never could have imagined in my wildest dreams that I would ever believe in something that seemed so ridiculous to me as ghosts. The stories began with the discovery of a very appealing little girl ghost whose ashes had been kept in the church. She was sent on her way after three very emotional seances, but other ghosts remain to haunt the church. Two different pairs of Rialto policemen have told me of encountering the ghost of a woman in a Victorian dress on two different occasions after answering a burglar alarm after midnight"................read on..............
John has subsequently written a book about his experiences in the church that is called "The Little Girl in the Window: A True Ghost Story." It was published in June 2008 and is available on Amazon.com. "My ghost book tells of scores of extraordinary ghostly encounters that I experienced along with other witnesses. I have recorded minutely detailed notes of every incident and I have written the book with the greatest care to describe exactly what happened. Some of the incidents are similar to those commonly described in ghost stories, such as the sound of footsteps without a visible person to make them, but other bizarre things have happened that I have never seen mentioned elsewhere. One example is a drinking glass that disappeared from beside my dinner plate only to instantly reappear from thin air several minutes later at the same spot where I had last seen it".
Watch the video for an account of one of the paranormal investigations carried out at the building:
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Indian "Holy man" Perplexes Doctors
Doctors and experts are baffled by an Indian man who claims not to have eaten or drunk anything for 70 years - but is still in perfect health.
A team of scientists and doctors in Sterling Hospital, in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, are studying the claims of Prahlad Jani, a local holy man, who is over 70 years old.
He claims to have been blessed by a goddess when he was 8-years-old, which has enabled him to survive without sustenance and that he derives energy through meditation.
Most people can live without food for several weeks, with the body drawing on its fat and protein stores. But the average human can survive for only three to four days without water.
Al Jazeera's Imran Khan reports.
Initial medical tests show that he has the brain of an average 25 year old & initially attributes his condition to Yogic Exercises
A extreme case of "Mind over Matter"?
A team of scientists and doctors in Sterling Hospital, in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, are studying the claims of Prahlad Jani, a local holy man, who is over 70 years old.
He claims to have been blessed by a goddess when he was 8-years-old, which has enabled him to survive without sustenance and that he derives energy through meditation.
Most people can live without food for several weeks, with the body drawing on its fat and protein stores. But the average human can survive for only three to four days without water.
Al Jazeera's Imran Khan reports.
Initial medical tests show that he has the brain of an average 25 year old & initially attributes his condition to Yogic Exercises
A extreme case of "Mind over Matter"?
Saturday, May 08, 2010
Derren Brown Investigates
Derren Brown Investigates (Mon, 10pm, C4) looks intriguing as it takes a demystification approach to the Liverpudlian medium Joe Power.
I must confess to liking Mr Brown as he appears to "say it like it is" obviously based on his personal opinion! I also admire his work, being a lover of magic and although I realise his magic are mere "tricks" I wonder childlike at the performances. You see I believe that to lose the wonderment of a child's approach is to lose the meaning of life!
Anyway to the programme: I realise that some of the general public scorn any aspect of "psychic" work and I believe their opinion is based on the present topical, cultural, political and of course financial situation. How better to make a living perhaps than to offer the public some sort of solace when apparently all else appears lost?
I do watch as many programmes of this genre as I can, partially to research how psychics perform and mainly to seek any information that would explain & perhaps underpin my personal psychic experiences
So there in lies a dilemma; I comprehend what "debunkers" are attempting to accomplish & confess to agreeing with some, BUT I cannot deny my personal life-long experiences & therefore long for "truth"- hey who am I kidding? I doubt whether psychic phenomena can be proven particularly on film & even if it could would any producer be interested enough to make a programme based on this?
I really sympathise with a lot of psychics that are filmed because I personally believe that to perform psychically on film is extremely difficult and nearly impossible to repeat again & again! Why? because the pressure to perform degrades the psychic energy that is required to complete a psychic session. I balance my concern and sympathy for the psychic with the knowledge that they agree to be filmed & therefore need to deal with the consequences. Sounds harsh I know!
Not as harsh as the the Guardian's Pete Cashmore's critique on the show where quote "He's determined not to be upstaged by Brown and, indeed, gives a virtuoso performance of twattery that would actually beef his stage act up no end.
A medium he may be, but when it comes to being an arsehole he is a definite XXXL; he starts to goad Brown with jibes about his "psychic powers" almost as soon as he arrives and somehow manages even to direct Brown to the lavatory in a snide manner (try it at home, it's not easy)"
Anyway if you're interested watch the show - of course I'd love to hear your views on the psychic community!
I must confess to liking Mr Brown as he appears to "say it like it is" obviously based on his personal opinion! I also admire his work, being a lover of magic and although I realise his magic are mere "tricks" I wonder childlike at the performances. You see I believe that to lose the wonderment of a child's approach is to lose the meaning of life!
Anyway to the programme: I realise that some of the general public scorn any aspect of "psychic" work and I believe their opinion is based on the present topical, cultural, political and of course financial situation. How better to make a living perhaps than to offer the public some sort of solace when apparently all else appears lost?
I do watch as many programmes of this genre as I can, partially to research how psychics perform and mainly to seek any information that would explain & perhaps underpin my personal psychic experiences
So there in lies a dilemma; I comprehend what "debunkers" are attempting to accomplish & confess to agreeing with some, BUT I cannot deny my personal life-long experiences & therefore long for "truth"- hey who am I kidding? I doubt whether psychic phenomena can be proven particularly on film & even if it could would any producer be interested enough to make a programme based on this?
I really sympathise with a lot of psychics that are filmed because I personally believe that to perform psychically on film is extremely difficult and nearly impossible to repeat again & again! Why? because the pressure to perform degrades the psychic energy that is required to complete a psychic session. I balance my concern and sympathy for the psychic with the knowledge that they agree to be filmed & therefore need to deal with the consequences. Sounds harsh I know!
Not as harsh as the the Guardian's Pete Cashmore's critique on the show where quote "He's determined not to be upstaged by Brown and, indeed, gives a virtuoso performance of twattery that would actually beef his stage act up no end.
A medium he may be, but when it comes to being an arsehole he is a definite XXXL; he starts to goad Brown with jibes about his "psychic powers" almost as soon as he arrives and somehow manages even to direct Brown to the lavatory in a snide manner (try it at home, it's not easy)"
Anyway if you're interested watch the show - of course I'd love to hear your views on the psychic community!
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Psychic Alex Tanous predicts John Lennon's death?
Stumbled on this & just had to blog it as I am and always will be a "John Lennon" worshipper. Sad I Know!
On August 23, 1980, Lee Spiegel, who hosted an NBC radio show Unexplained Phenomena, was interviewing psychic Alex Tanous for a show that was to be broadcast later. The interview took place at the American Society for Psychical Research at West 73rd Street in New York, directly across the street from the Dakota Apartments. Spiegel asked Tanous to predict something that would occur in the next few months that would be of interest to the many rock fans in the audience.
Tanous replied: "The prediction that I will make is that a very famous rock star will have an untimely death and this can happen from this moment on. I say untimely because there is something strange about his death, but it will affect the consciousness of many people because of his fame."
Read on for full article...............................
On August 23, 1980, Lee Spiegel, who hosted an NBC radio show Unexplained Phenomena, was interviewing psychic Alex Tanous for a show that was to be broadcast later. The interview took place at the American Society for Psychical Research at West 73rd Street in New York, directly across the street from the Dakota Apartments. Spiegel asked Tanous to predict something that would occur in the next few months that would be of interest to the many rock fans in the audience.
Tanous replied: "The prediction that I will make is that a very famous rock star will have an untimely death and this can happen from this moment on. I say untimely because there is something strange about his death, but it will affect the consciousness of many people because of his fame."
Read on for full article...............................
Sunday, May 02, 2010
Phantoms and Monsters: Paranormal, UFOs, Cryptids and Unexplained Phenomena
Howdy Cowboy!
"EMERADO, North Dakota -- It all started with some surveillance video. Bar owner, Brent Aspinwall says it felt like someone tugged his shirt. A close-up of the image on tape, some say, looks like a person that they've named “Cowboy.” There have also been other incidents".
"I saw a figure by the dart board. It was quick and fast. It was an older man with dark rimmed glasses and a hat that snapped in front," said Penny Sorteberg, a resident of Gilby.
Further details including video for those interested:
Phantoms and Monsters: Paranormal, UFOs, Cryptids and Unexplained Phenomena
"EMERADO, North Dakota -- It all started with some surveillance video. Bar owner, Brent Aspinwall says it felt like someone tugged his shirt. A close-up of the image on tape, some say, looks like a person that they've named “Cowboy.” There have also been other incidents".
"I saw a figure by the dart board. It was quick and fast. It was an older man with dark rimmed glasses and a hat that snapped in front," said Penny Sorteberg, a resident of Gilby.
Further details including video for those interested:
Phantoms and Monsters: Paranormal, UFOs, Cryptids and Unexplained Phenomena
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