I watched about ten minutes of tonight's total lunar eclipse, with the Earth's shadow just starting to crawl across the surface revealing the crescent of the soon-full moon. So far we've been unable to find any webcams covering it live (it's just that much easier for me to stare at a TV or computer screen for an hour than to crane my neck upwards at our only eastern-facing window), but during our search we discovered that even in this age, even among religions that stress knowledge and study, superstition still abounds. Take a look at this page. A similar screed can be found at the bottom of this page.
Me, I want to know exactly which "rabbis see the celestial event as a divine sign that the God of Israel intends once again to eclipse the contemporary annihilation plot emanating from Iran." Names and citations, please. Any rabbis seeing "divine signs" in well-documented scientific phenomena are about as loony as these "true believers" insisting they see the face of Jesus or Mary (who, if they even existed, lived 2000 years ago and left no trace of actual facial features, Shroud or no Shroud) in a waffle or tire tread or fluffy cloud.
Look, it's a fun thing to play with, the idea that something can be taken as an omen. I do it a lot myself. I tell myself Leah guides my steps sometimes because I miss her and it comforts me to believe my best friend is still beside me. But I'm not going around asserting that this personal belief is based in actual fact or is going to affect world events -- just the way I see them.
For me, Purim 2007 is a sign that I still haven't written Megillat Vashti, despite having an artist and a publisher and built-in publicity for the thing. And it's a reminder that I need to get off my ass (or perhaps on my ass) and do so, before the next Purim rolls around. That Leah's spirit is practically screaming at me to. That my writing for ComicMix is all but preparing me to. You want omens? Fine, there's your omen. It's entirely in the realm of personal belief and conviction, affects nobody but me, and isn't some kind of monumental geopolitical bullshit but an individual quest. Like omens, and stories, should be.
Me, I want to know exactly which "rabbis see the celestial event as a divine sign that the God of Israel intends once again to eclipse the contemporary annihilation plot emanating from Iran." Names and citations, please. Any rabbis seeing "divine signs" in well-documented scientific phenomena are about as loony as these "true believers" insisting they see the face of Jesus or Mary (who, if they even existed, lived 2000 years ago and left no trace of actual facial features, Shroud or no Shroud) in a waffle or tire tread or fluffy cloud.
Look, it's a fun thing to play with, the idea that something can be taken as an omen. I do it a lot myself. I tell myself Leah guides my steps sometimes because I miss her and it comforts me to believe my best friend is still beside me. But I'm not going around asserting that this personal belief is based in actual fact or is going to affect world events -- just the way I see them.
For me, Purim 2007 is a sign that I still haven't written Megillat Vashti, despite having an artist and a publisher and built-in publicity for the thing. And it's a reminder that I need to get off my ass (or perhaps on my ass) and do so, before the next Purim rolls around. That Leah's spirit is practically screaming at me to. That my writing for ComicMix is all but preparing me to. You want omens? Fine, there's your omen. It's entirely in the realm of personal belief and conviction, affects nobody but me, and isn't some kind of monumental geopolitical bullshit but an individual quest. Like omens, and stories, should be.
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