Ringing Bells
Christmastide
Christmas in Miami
American Place Names
January Holidays
Observations
Houses of Worship
Inauguration
Hajj/Pilgrimage
Telephone Outlet
Ringing Bells
05/01/01
@@According to the Gregorian calendar, an old year has ended and a new year has begun. In certain traditions, this is a time for ringing bells, but the mood stimulated by the bells of Christian churches, which ring when struck by a tongue on the inside, is different than that stimulated by the bells of Buddhist temples, which ring when struck by a hammer on the outside. Today's message is a poem, written 150 years ago by the English poet, Alfred Tennyson, "Ring Out the Old, Ring in the New."
Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying clouds, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night--
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.
Ring out the old, ring in the new--
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
Ring out the grief that saps the mind,
For those that here we see no more,
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.
Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.
Ring out false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.
Ring out old shapes of foul disease,
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.
Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land--
Ring in the Christ that is to be. (815)
Christmastide
05/01/05
Because of the recent extraordinary "tsunami" or "tidal wave" that has caused widespread destruction and countless deaths in countries around the Indian Ocean, it is common to think of one meaning of the word "tide," "the periodic variation in the surface level of the oceans." The basic meaning of the word, however, is "a time or season." The word "eventide" means "evening," and "Christmastide" means "the Christian church festival extending from December 24 through January 6." In the church calendar, the Advent season, which precedes Christmas, begins on the 4th Sunday before Christmas and Christmas itself is not limited to one day. Rather, it lasts for 12 days, until the feast of Epiphany. "Epiphany," derived from a Greek word meaning "manifestation," refers to the manifestation(s) of the divinity of Jesus Christ. The celebration of this feast actually preceded the celebration of Christmas in the early Christian church. A basic theme of this feast is the story, recorded in the 2nd chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, of Gentile priests from the east, called "magi," (translated as "wise men" in the classical English version of the Bible) who followed a star to Jerusalem and then on to Bethlehem, where they worshipped the baby Jesus. In this story, because three gifts (gold, frankincense and myrrh) were offered, it has been surmised that there were three magi, but the number of magi is not mentioned in the story itself. Nor does it note that they rode on camels, which has become the common assumption--as pictured in many Christmas paintings. (816)
Christmas in Miami
05/01/07
The southernmost state in the United States of America is Florida. This name is derived from the Spanish word for "flowery," for the flowers he saw there deeply impressed the Spanish explorer who landed on that peninsula. The largest city in Florida is Jacksonville, on the northeastern coast, named after General Andrew Jackson, the first military governor of Florida, who later became president. The second largest city, on the southeastern coast, is Miami. This name is probably derived from a Native American term for "big water." It is now one of the world's leading year-round resort centers. My wife and I spent Christmas in Miami last month because that is the city in which our granddaughter from Japan is attending a university. Our son and his daughter had arrived from New Mexico at Jacksonville Airport, about one hour away from our retirement community, after experiencing problems both in their flight plans and luggage retrieval. The day before Christmas, we drove the 600 kilometers to Miami and celebrated the day with our granddaughter who lives on the 8th floor of a 17-floor apartment building called The Towers. Because of the many Hispanic residents in Miami, it is helpful to know Spanish as well as English. On the day after Christmas, we attended the worship service at an historic Afro-American church; we were the only so-called "white people" there. The next day, we drove back to our home, by way of St. Petersburg on the west coast, where we left our granddaughter with the family she lived with during her final year of high school. It was a busy, but enjoyable, time for us all. (817)
American Place Names
05/01/10
Although the adjective "American" is often used in reference to the United States of America in particular, it may also refer to any of the other countries on the North and South American continents. In the previous "Timely Words" message, I mentioned the names of two states and three cities in the U. S. A. and noted the meaning of the names of three of them. The reference book I consulted for that purpose was "American Place Names," published by Oxford University Press in 1970. In my preparation of that message, I was surprised at a number of details, one of which was the number of places in this country named "Miami." In the "World Atlas" published by Rand McNally in 1983, there are seven different states in the U. S. A. that have cities or counties bearing that name. Even more surprising is the fact that there are five different explanations for the name, depending on the area in which it is used. I was also surprised to find that cities named "Jacksonville" may be found in seven different states and that there are 38 cities or counties named "Jackson" in 27 states. The name of the Florida city of St. Petersburg was given by the president of a local railroad whose name was Peter and who had formerly lived in St. Petersburg, Russia. Finally, there are three other states beside New Mexico whose names begin with "New," only one of which is in the area commonly called "New England." But there are over 150 American place names that begin with "New," including such cities as "New Boston" (in four states), "New Philiadelphia" (in two states) and "New Chicago" (in one). And the final vision recorded in the final book of the Christian Bible is of the "new Jerusalem." (818)
January Holidays
05/01/12
All countries have certain public holidays to celebrate cultural traditions, commemorate historical events or honor important persons. One country may have a holiday on the same day as another country, but for a different reason. Even when holidays are celebrated for the same reason, the way of celebrating differs according to the cultural traditions. In both the United States of America and Japan, there are three public holidays in January. January 1st is New Year's Day in both countries, but it is celebrated differently. As noted in a previous message (#792), both the U. S. A. and Japan have a holiday on the 2nd Monday of October for different reasons-to commemorate events that occurred on October 10 and 12. It is interesting that the two countries have chosen a different Monday, however, to celebrate events related to the same day in January. In Japan, "Coming-of-Age Day," to honor those young men and women who reached their 20th birthday the previous year and thus became adults and are granted all the rights of citizens, was previously celebrated on January 15, but now it is celebrated on the 2nd Monday of the month. In the U. S. A., the 3rd Monday is a holiday to honor Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., the civil rights leader whose birthday is on January 15. Five years before his assassination in 1968, Dr. King proclaimed his dream of the future before some 200,000 people in Washington, D.C. that "one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'" Unfortunately, his dream has not yet been fulfilled. (819)
Observations
05/01/16
As I sit at my desk and type this message, there are three different calendars which can be observed, depending on which way I am looking. They are of different sizes and have different characteristics. The one on the keyboard of my computer is very small. It includes the entire year of 2005, but there is no colorful distinction between regular weekdays, Sundays or holidays. The one on the file cabinet beside my desk also includes the entire year, but Sundays and holidays are printed in red. Since that calendar is from Japan, it is the Japanese holidays that have red numbers. Another calendar is on the window ledge in front of my desk. It is divided into weeks and has space for me to write the meetings or appointments I have for each day. It is also from Japan and on the opposite page each week there is a colorful painting or picture of Japan. In this calendar, Sundays are printed in red, but they come at the end of the week rather than at the beginning and the names of Japanese holidays are printed in red although the date is in black. In the small pocket calendar I always carry with me, my daily schedule is included. In that calendar, on Saturday, January 15, is written "Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday," but on the following Monday is written "Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday Observed". To "observe" may mean to "perceive" or "notice," to "watch attentively," or to "keep or celebrate a holiday." As noted in previous messages, in recent years, a number of traditional holidays related to a certain date are now being observed on a Monday to make a longer weekend. While we observe holidays and holy days, we should also observe world events and work to bring peace in the world and to help people in need. (820)
Houses of Worship
05/01/18
The European Union has begun membership talks with the country of Turkey, located on the eastern border of Europe and the western border of Asia. According to a news article, the Turkish prime minister recently "presided over the opening of a new synagogue, mosque and church--the last partitioned into Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox sections--in the Mediterranean resort area of Belek," to show that that secular but largely Muslim nation practices religious tolerance. What interested me were the different words used for houses of worship by the different religious groups. Although all of these words denote a place of prayer, meditation or worship, each one has a special, or peculiar, connotation. Synagogues are found wherever there are communities of Jews. Derived from a Greek word meaning "to bring together," a "synagogue" is the meeting place for religious instruction of Jews. The Jewish place of worship, the "Temple" in Jerusalem, was destroyed in 70 A.D. A "mosque," derived from the Arabic word "to worship," is the Muslim house of prayer and worship. "Church," the place of worship for Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox Christians, is derived from a Greek word meaning "of the lord," for it is considered the Lord's house, the place to enjoy fellowship both with the Lord and with his people. In Japan, there are two other words used for places of worship. In Shinto "shrines," found throughout the country, there are receptacles where sacred objects are "enshrined" and where local deities are worshipped. Buddhist houses of worship are called "temples," as are the places of worship in Hinduism. (821)
Inauguration
05/01/22
The 20th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America, which was ratified in January 1993 states "the terms of the President and Vice-President shall end at noon on the twentieth day of January." Thus, it is customary to hold an inauguration ceremony on that day. At noon on January 20, 2005, George W. Bush was inaugurated for the second time as President. This was the first such ceremony I was able to hear or view and I was impressed, impressed at the huge crowd of people who attended wearing coats and hats because of the cold weather. Since there is disagreement regarding how much religious influence should be allowed in government ceremonies in this nation with its peculiar history and present situation, I was especially interested in that aspect of the ceremony--the content of the oaths taken by the two men while raising one hand and placing the other on a Bible, the prayers that were offered by Christian ministers and the speech of the President, whose Christian faith was evident although he made reference to the scriptures of Judaism, Islam and Christianity. Obviously, he was speaking with a wider audience in mind than what was gathered in front of him. From my perspective, his view of the state of the nation and the world at large reflects his perspective, which obviously is not recognized by all people, within or without the U.S.A. He emphasized many idealistic aims which he will seek to attain, but the way to attain them was not specified and not all nations (nor all of his countrymen) will agree with the ideals put forth and the way he will seek to attain them. (822)
Hajj/Pilgrimage
05/01/25
Names and words that enter the English language sometimes change their spelling, pronunciation or usage over the years. Years ago, one of the major religions in the world was known as Mohammedanism; the founder was called Mohammed, the believers in that religion were called Mohammedans or Moslems and the sacred book was known as the Koran. Nowadays, those proper nouns have been changed to Islam, Muhammad, Muslims and the Qur'an. The "five pillars" or requirements of the Islamic faith which Muslims are obligated to follow are: 1( Repetition of the creed ("There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the prophet of Allah"), 2) Daily prayers five times a day (at dawn, midday, mid-afternoon, sunset, upon retirement), 3) Almsgiving (to the poor, slaves, beggars, etc.), 4) Fasting during the sacred month of Ramadan (no eating or drinking between sunup and sundown), 5) Pilgrimage to Mecca. The pilgrimage to the holy city and birthplace of Muhammad, at least once in one's lifetime, is called Hajj and it is preferable to make the trip during Ramadan, which is at this time of year this year. Recent news reports have focused on the millions of white-robed pilgrims from all over the world who are making the pilgrimage and performing the traditional rituals. A "pilgrim" is a religious person who travels to a sacred place or a person who embarks on a quest for some end conceived as sacred. In American history, the "Pilgrims" were English Puritans who founded the colony of Plymouth in New England. In one sense, all human beings are "pilgrims" on a "pilgrimage," hopefully leading to a meaningful and satisfying life. (823)
Telephone Outlet
05/01/29
There are a number of English words that begin with "tele," a prefix derived from a Greek word meaning "at a distance." "Television" denotes seeing at a distance; "telegraph" denotes writing at a distance, and we may hear a voice from a distant place using a "telephone." Telephones have greatly changed over the years. When I was a child, our telephone consisted of two separate parts connected by an electric wire: a vertical tube on the end of which was a mouthpiece into which one spoke and a receiver which was placed next to one's ear to listen to the words of the other speaker. Such telephones did not have dials; the telephone number was spoken to a telephone operator who made the connection. When dial telephones were introduced, there was no further need for telephone operators. The shape of telephones also changed, with the mouthpiece and the receiver connected into one unit. Now, the dial is being replaced by buttons which must be pressed. The cell phones which have now become so popular are much smaller and have many more convenient elements. Today (January 26th), a man came from the Maintenance Department of this retirement community to repair a damaged telephone connection in my study. A few days ago, I was unable to go online with my computer. Following the instructions given by my internet provider did not solve the problem. Then, I realized that I heard static when I used the telephone which shares the outlet with the computer and when I used another outlet, I was able to go online. Today, the telephone line was repaired and the problem has been solved. (824)