Who Are These People?

My, my. We do these silly thing, it seems, because we can. Makes me celebrate the cynical skepticism of the Vienna Circle and the Linguistic Analysts.

religion

Brother Metal - Headbanger Monk Goes Viral

Just when I thought I'd seen it all, a heavy-metal Capuchin monk (the real kind) releases a second album and goes viral on YouTube after a BBC piece, here.

We're all familiar with Benedictines and Gregorian Chant, but heavy metal? Yea, that's what I'm talkin about. This is no fluke, the good brother was converted at a Metallica Concert decades ago. Now, sporting a full white beard and not-so-full a head of white hair, Padre Cesare Bonizzi is an unlikely headbanger. But he and his band Fratelli Metal have played the Gods of Metal concert now for a couple of years along side acts like Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Slayer. Uh-huh.

We're talking tats, leather and lots of natural pheremones here. So check out this pretty poor quality video below and see for yourself. On a side note, it is a real frustration when YouTube videos have the embedding "disabled by request." The "requestors" should know that they're not doing themselves any favors by limiting the ability of bloggers to share quality videos with their readers (end of rant).

Music
Metal
Brother Metal

Turkey Re-examines Hadiths

I'm intrigued by the news (here) that a sizeable group of senior Turkish Clergy and scholars have undertaken a review of the Hadiths. The Hadiths serve as Islam's second-most-important religious text after the Quran - which tradition holds is the direct word of God delivered verbatim to the Prophet Mohammed by the Angel Gabriel. The Hadiths give Islamic scholars insight and direction, through the stories, sayings, proverbs and illucidations they offer. If there is to be any modernization of the ancient faith, it will begin with a re-interpretation and updating of the Hadiths.

It is also of note that Turkey is undertaking this effort. Islam is well-suited to a single political authority, and Turkey was the last Islamic Caliphate. For an extended period of history, including the Ottoman Empire which stretched well into Europe and Asia, Turkey was the sole source of political law and religious influence in the Moslem world. As the article cited above notes (link), this is not the first time the Turks have undertaken such a review. So there is historical precedent for their effort. A good thing. And Turkey has its own motivations, as it seeks to become Europe's newest member. By demonstrating its moderation, Turkey can appease its own secular, hard-line generals; make an important gesture to the European Union; and, set in motion a process that could provide a clear alternative to Muslim extremism.

In doing so, at this moment, the current Turkish leadership - with firm roots in Islamic politics - is playing a powerful card. It is also positioning itself as a far more palatable regional leader than the current Iranian regime. It will be interesting to follow this development, as it has implications for religion, politics, foreign affairs as well as regional peace and stability. It is, however, not something you'll see showcased in the MSM.

Christian Clergy Clash on Christmas

The Church of the Nativity in Manger Square, where Jesus Christ was supposed to have been born. A holy site managed by priests from the Armenian Orthodox Church; the Eastern Orthodox (Greek/Russian) and the Catholic Church. A place where, predictably, on every high holy day there is conflict - among the clergy themselves. That's right. The ordained in pitched battle on the hallowed grounds where the Christian savior was born. Quite an image that. And a regular occurance. This time, it happened on Christmas and four were injured.

To review, the relationships between the sects charged with managing the site are so strained and bitter, every square inch of the place has been measured and marked-out as the turf of one sect or another. Cross the line, get you lights punched out. Then, of course, there are the differing calendars and dates that must be accomodated - often with rancor. Even cleaning the floor has been known to spark mini-riots. Such gracious and dignified behavior. OMG. Read the BBC report here.

But of course, we shouldn't be surprised. So many have died, often tortured and desecrated, in the name of one Christian sect or another. My own ancestors, the Celts, were famous for their internecine feuds. And the recent Irish troubles, pitting Protestants against Catholics, took almost half a century to settle. Then there's the Balkan conflicts. Don't get me started. Sometimes it seems to me that virtually all conflict has a least a few religious roots.