Religion
I was reared Catholic, which was probably inevitable since
my mother was French and my father was
Irish-American. I still attend church services regularly.
This sometimes surprises folks who know me principally for
my salty language (especially while I'm debugging a program!)
or my deep interest in science,
especially astronomy.
I have never felt there was any
conflict between science and religion. Each addresses different
types of questions. I see them as complementary.
Perhaps I adopted this viewpoint because I
knew so many scholarly clergymen as a youngster, or perhaps I
was influenced by meeting top-flight scientists who were devout
Catholics, such as nobel laureate Sir John Eccles. Besides,
contrary to what many folks seem to believe, we Irish Catholics
in the States are quite liberal-minded about Catholicism. We're
good at poking fun at the Church, at the clergy, and at ourselves.
I believe Christians should consider very seriously
Saint Augustine on Science and Scripture.
His warning from 1,600 years ago speaks directly to modern
pseudo-conflicts between science and religion such as that of
Creationism.
I considered entering the priesthood when I was a teenager.
A priest who knew me well convinced me that my real calling lay
elsewhere. I took his advice, to wait a few years and see if I still
felt I had a calling to become a priest. My pull towards the priesthood
faded precipitously when I discovered girls. That priest obviously knew
me better than I knew myself!
My interest in religion intertwines with my interest in
mythology. Most if not all religions use stories,
whose "historical" content may or may not be "true", to teach and inform
about matters of spirituality, the relationship of humans to the rest of
the cosmos and each other, and the best way to live. Such stories -- myths --
permeate all the great belief systems of the world.
Some religions, including Christianity, incorporate strong apocalyptic
traditions. I believe such traditions may stem in part from periods
of genuine historical catastrophism, primarily
astronomical in origin.
Baha'i Faith
- Bahai Faith Page
by Glen Little introduces the Bahai faith, provides links to
many Bahai resources, and offers Bahai writings.
- Islam and the Baha'i Faith
seeks to promote "a better understanding of the relationship
between the Baha'i Faith and Islam, and to dispel some of the
misconceptions which may have led to feelings of mistrust and
suspicion."
Biblical studies
Christianity
-
Anglicanism
- Anglican Catholic Church Home Page
by James K. Reap offers information on this
denomination and what it stands for as well as links to
various diocesan and parish home pages.
- Anglicans Online!
offers online resources about the Anglican church,
including hot issues in the church, current news, links
for clergy, links for youth ministers and young
Anglicans, discussions on church music, information
about parishes and dioceses, and more.
- Archbishop of Canterbury's Pages
is the official web site of George Leonard Carey,
current Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury.
- Church of England
is the official web page for this church.
- Episcopal Church Home Page
by Thomas Bushnell is an unofficial web page about the
Episcopal Church. Site serves primarily as a repository
of information relevant to the Episcopal Church in the
United States.
-
Catholicism
- Archdiocese of Chicago
is the official web page of the Roman Catholic
Archdiocese of Chicago, Joseph Cardinal Bernardin,
Archbishop.
- Augustine
offers texts and translation of Augustine's works;
research material and essays; images; contemporary
influences of Augustine; and other early Christian
material of related interest.
- Augustine Club
is a student organization dedicated to the study of
Catholic intellectual approaches to the ideas underlying
the issues of our day.
- Byzantine Catholic Church in America
by John Vernoski discusses the tenets of these Catholic
communities and offers links to individual eparchies and
the Metropolitan Archeparchy of Piitsburgh.
- Carmina Clar-innse
offers Christian prayers in Celtic.
- Catholic Answers Home Page
offers a collection of tracts discussing a wide variety
of issues of interest to Catholics.
- Catholic Information Network
offers information about Catholicism including the
texts of papal addresses and encyclicals, news, and
other articles.
- Catholic Resources on the Net
- Catholic World News
is an "independent organization staffed by lay Catholic
journalists, dedicated to providing accurate world news,
written from a distinctly Catholic perspective."
- Claretian Missionaries (Chicago, IL. USA)
- Documentary Sources on Catholic Teaching
- EWTN Home Page
, the Eternal Word Television Network, is one of the
principal Catholic presences on Cable TV in the United
States.
- Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land
provides information about/from the Franciscan Custody
of the Holy Land and the Christian Sanctuaries of
Israel/Palestine. Includes news, historic material, and
archaeological and human experiences.
- Guide to Early Church Documents
offers pointers to Internet-accessible files relating
to the early Christian church, including canonical
documents, creeds, the writings of the Apostolic
Fathers, and other historical texts relevant to church
history.
- Independent Catholic Church of America
is an independent apostolic descendant of the Old
Catholic Church of Utrecht.
- Newman Centers/Catholic Chaplaincies
- Old Catholic Church History
by Bishop Faccione discusses the history of the Old
Catholic Church and the Utrecht Union of Churches.
- Radical Catholic Page
by Paul Halsall provides information about women
priests, gays and lesbians, liberation theology,
Catholic social teaching, and much more.
- Sheil Catholic Center
is Northwestern University's Catholic student
center/Newman center.
- Shroud of Turin Home Page
- Vatican -- The Holy See
is the official Web site of the Vatican, home of the
Pope.
-
Evangelical and Reformed
-
General Christianity
- Christian Resources
- Connecting Christians Worldwide
offers over 4,000 entries in the two databases for
Christian resources and church location/home pages.
- CrossSearch
offers a searchable index of Christian resources.
- Hall of Church History
offers works by Christian authors from early times to
the present. Includes works by the Church Fathers,
Augustine, Calvin, Luther, other reformers, Cotton
Mather, Jonathan Edwards, Spurgeon, R. L. Dabney, and
others.
-
Orthodoxy
General
Hinduism
- Bhagvad Gita
contains the complete text of this important Hindu work in
Postscript format. An English translation and summary are
also available.
- Hinduism
by Krsna Jayanthi offers an introduction to Hinduism,
spiritual quotes and poems, a discussion of spirituality, and
links to other Hinduism sites.
- Spirituality and Yoga Page
by Giri Madras offers an introduction to yoga and Hinduism
with extensive links and a bibliography.
- Tantrik Home Page
talks about the Tantrik tradition; gods and goddesses like
Kali and Ganesha; meditation; the siddhas and yogis of the
Natha sampradatha; and much more.
- The Yogi Bhajan Home Page
introduces Kundalini Yoga and the teachings of Yogi Bhajan.
Also provides an international directory of Kundalini Yoga
centers and teachers.
Islam
Judaism
Lamaism
Paganism and Wicca
- Pagan Best of the Web!
by the Rownahold Bardic Circle and John Harvey offers links
to many useful pagan sites.
Shamanism
- Shamanism
by Dimitri offers an overview and links to resources about
Shamanism.
Zoroastrianism
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Last modified by
pib on August 28, 2001.