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Archive for February, 2011

When someone falls, you can kick them while they’re down or you can give them a hand to get back on their feet. Some folks will try to drag you down to their level, some will ignore your offered assistance, others will let you help them back up. You won’t know who’s who until you try.

The sun was still high as I climbed into my hammock.  It was near four o’clock and I’d slung my hammock about three meters in the air in the branches of a berry tree.  It was hot and still with only an occasional breath of breeze moving the dusty foliage.  It was early August, the dry season had begun two months before and now the animal citizens of the sertão were feeding on blossoms and berries under the great trees at night.  This was to be my first attempt at the espera, that most typical of hunting styles in Brazil’s great north-east. Read the rest of this entry »

“16 Dead Bodies Confirmed Resurrected from the Dead”- thus ran the headlines that blazed like wildfire through the Facebook religious community. Perhaps it’s my scottish blood, perhaps it’s my (Show Me State) land of birth, but somehow I tend to be sceptical of claims without good credentials.  Just because someone says it’s true because they heard it repeated by  someone they  know who heard someone speak about someone who knew someone related to the person who heard from the person who was there does not make it true. It is interesting that the Gospel accounts give names and places.  The Marys went to the tomb to anoint the body.  Peter and John ran to the tomb. All the apostles but Thomas were there.  500 people witnessed the bodily presence of Jesus the Christ – many of whom were still living at the time of the writing about this event.  There were plenty of first hand witnesses who were named and who could be interviewed at the time of the writing of the accounts.

In the matter above, however, there were flags in the account I read that waved “Warning!” from the beginning.  Read the rest of this entry »