UFO Digest: Vatican Official Declares Extraterrestrial Contact Is Real

Wasn't I just posting about this awhile back? :)Vatican Official Declares Extraterrestrial Contact Is Real

Pussy Riot's cathedral performance

Brief clip of Pussy Riot's performance. See post below for more. BBC News - Pussy Riot's cathedral performance

BBC News - Pussy Riot trial: Putin urges leniency for Russia punks

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Mariya Alekhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich have been in jail since February, when they were arrested after storming the pulpit of the Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow.

 The punk trio danced in the Orthodox church while wearing garish colours and masks, chanting "Mother Mary, drive Putin away".

BBC News - Pussy Riot trial: Putin urges leniency for Russia punks

They're on trial. They're facing 7 years in prison for pissing off the Orthodox Church.

Lucha Libre Patron Saint, Folk Art

In Mexico, lucha libre -- the masked wrestlers -- recently had a celebration to honor their patron saint of their profession. That patron saint is the Virgin of Guadalupe, or Our Lady of Guadalupe. BBC News - Lucha libre wrestlers pay homage to their patron saint

Lucas Lorenzo, artist. From Sacred Art Pilgrim.

I found the Sacred Art Pilgrim site on Mexican folk art. Artist Lucas Lorenzo, along with family members, are "panel painters" -- painting on Masonite. (When I started painting decades ago I couldn't afford canvas but did have access to a lot of Masonite, which I used for painting surfaces. Both sides: the rough or back side had a texture that was oddly interesting to paint on.)

I wrote about Lucha Libre -- a topic I am curious about but really know very little of -- some time back for Tim Binnall's site. Seeing the Virgin; Tricksters Take it to the People, and Fun with Lucha Libre's Esoteric Side.

Contact with Extraterrestrial Life Imminent? What about God? - International - Catholic Online

A bit of synchronicity; the other day I submitted my article to UFO Magazine which was about the Vatican and its acceptance of alien life. Here's an interesting article on the topic. (Hat tip to UFO Disclosure Countdown for link.)Contact with Extraterrestrial Life Imminent? What about God? - International - Catholic Online

The Pope, Castro and ET: Jorge Martin on C2C Tonight

Tonight's Coast to Coast host is George Knapp, with guest Jorge Martin. Martin will discuss the Vatican and ET. Here's an article by Martin on Castro's thoughts of an alien presence, and what the Vatican thought in regards to the Pope's visit in 1998.Jorge Martin - Enigmas del Milenio / English version

BBC News - France's National Front to sue Madonna over Le Pen swastika

BBC News - France's National Front to sue Madonna over Le Pen swastika

France's far-right National Front is to sue Madonna after an image at the US singer's Paris concert showed party leader Marine Le Pen with a swastika imposed on her face.

National Front vice-president Florian Philippot said the party could not accept "such an odious comparison".

The image, in a video accompanying the song Nobody Knows Me, was followed by another resembling Adolf Hitler.

Home of the Order of the Blessed Saint Scully the Enigmatic

St. Scully. Indeed.

OBSSE Abbey: Home of the Order of the Blessed Saint Scully the Enigmatic

Debunker Faces Arrest for Debunking Watery Jesus

(This story dates back to March of this year.) Debunker and member of the Indian Rationalist Association Sanal Edamaruku faces arrest for his participation in doing what skeptibunkies do. He says he explained/exposed the watery seeping Jesus in Our Lady of Velankanni Church, in Mumbai.

India has laws against insulting religions and  "...deliberately hurting religious feelings and attempting malicious acts intended to outrage the religious sentiments of any class or community,” according to the Slate article.  On the surface Edamaruku is doing what's expected of debunkers, but I suspect there is a cultural and historical context at the root of his actions. (Italics mine):

What do you fear might happen to you?
If it comes to a trial, I have nothing to fear. I would welcome the opportunity to throw some light on the role that the Catholic Church played and is still playing today here in India. The possibility of arrest is threatening, however.

The religious zealotry, dogmatism and fanaticism Edamaruku fights is ironically mirrored by his own version of same:

Do you have any regrets about intervening? Why would one not intervene when somebody gives gullible people sewage to drink? But my reason is broader. The promotion of superstition and belief in paranormal phenomena dulls people's minds and establishes dangerous misconceptions about reality in our society. Such efforts have to be countered.

Edamaruku refused to back off and in fact, got quite contentious with critics. While India has the anti-insult to religions law, it also has this, according to Stephen Law.

Clause (h) of Article 51-A of Constitution of India states that : ‘It shall be the duty of every citizen of India to develop the scientific temper, humanism and spirit of inquiry and reform.’

Vatican astronomer offers to baptize ET | Openminds.tv

There's a great quote in the following statement; one I'm going to use for the blog header: "Any entity - no matter how many tentacles it has -- has a soul." On the surface, wonderfully silly and superstituious. But it's also very Buddha nature my Yoda minded friend. Do all things have a soul or just "entities" and what determines an "entity?" Are animals entities in the Catholic church -- if so, then they have souls. And so on we go:

Vatican astronomer offers to baptize ET | Openminds.tv: A Vatican astronomer has offered to baptize any extraterrestrials that might come in contact with Earth.

The Simpsons: alien character

Extraterrestrials may have souls, and Guy Consolmagno, a planetary scientist at the Vatican observatory, says he would baptize an ET if it asked him to. In an interview with The Guardian, Consolmagno explained, “Any entity – no matter how many tentacles it has – has a soul.”

Raelians banned from displaying ancient swastikas in Germany on 'World Swastika Rehabilitation Day' -

Raelians banned from displaying ancient swastikas in Germany on 'World Swastika Rehabilitation Day' - PR Newswire - The Sacramento Bee

LAS VEGAS, June 22, 2012 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- For the 3rd annual World Swastika Rehabilitation Day, Raelians, together with representatives from the Buddhist and Hindu religions, are planning to carry out major events in cities throughout the Americas, Australia and Africa on Saturday, June 23 (see http://www.raelpress.org/news.php?item.277.1).

In Europe, Raelians from Germany and its surrounding countries have decided to use this opportunity to inform the German public about the swastika's history, since most Germans completely ignore the swastika's good standing as a very ancient symbol of peace for Buddhists and a symbol of good luck for numerous other cultures.

The city of Karlsruhe, where the event is to be held, has nevertheless banned Raelians from displaying any type of swastika except for the Raelian symbol, in which a swastika intertwines with a six-pointed star.

"According to an order issued by the Karlsruhe government on June 15, the display of swastikas would lead to 'an immediate danger for the public safety and order' (see http://www.proswastika.org/download.php?view.3)," explained Thomas Kaenzig, coordinator of World Swastika Rehabilitation Day. "

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/06/22/4581777/raelians-banned-from-displaying.html#storylink=cpy

Why are there spaceships in Medieval art?

Why are there spaceships in Medieval art? Always the question, and some insist those things seen in the skies were only comets.

If Evil Were Here…It Would Look Like This

Vatican and art and the joy to beheld in the aftermath of war:If Evil Were Here…It Would Look Like This  Just Wondering – Alternative News and Opinions

Attempt to Abduct Israeli Girl at Disney World - Global Agenda - News - Israel National News

A very strange and scary story:Attempt to Abduct Israeli Girl at Disney World - Global Agenda - News - Israel National News

A nine-year-old Israeli girl was nearly abducted from her parents at Disney World, in Orlando, Florida, during the Pesach holiday.

Security cameras located the child, alive, in a restroom. Her head had been shaved, she had been drugged, and her clothing replaced. Rest of story at link.

Profiled By The TSA? There's An App For That : NPR

Profiled By The TSA? There's An App For That : NPR

The mobile app is called FlyRights. Travelers who suspect they have been profiled take out their smartphone, tap a finger on the app and answer about a dozen questions. Then they hit "submit" and an official complaint is filed immediately with the Transportation Security Administration.

The app is the work of civil rights groups led by The Sikh Coalition. Amardeep Singh, co-founder of the Coalition, says the idea came from Sikh entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley who felt they were being stopped unfairly at airports, too often.