namahatta.org - Congregational Development Ministry

It’s amazing how you are expected to have an opinion on everything even if you know little or nothing of the facts, I have been asked on several occasions on the departure of the Temple president following aligations of over punishment of children in India and if I felt that he should be retained in some capacity.

Firstly I have had a long and productive talk with the head of ISKCON child protection and the safeguards are impressive although we agree not infallible.

How many did you get right?

Answers tomorrow.

My thought this morning:

Preachers should be compassionate. Administrators should be just.

When mercy replaces justice in a land, the people are left unprotected by the rule of law.

One of the great things about our modern political systems is that they are based on the idea that everyone should be protected by the rule of impartial law. There are no favorites, no elites who can act with impunity.

Fasting for one day each month may reduce the risk of clogged arteries by 40 percent, according to a new study conducted by researchers from Intermountain Medical Center and the University of Utah and presented at a conference of the American Heart Association.

Researchers first began to study fasting when an analysis of a health registry indicated that significantly fewer Mormons than non-Mormons in Utah suffered from the clogged arteries indicative of heart disease, even after different smoking rates were taken into account.

I lifted this from the excellent Krishna Kathamrita Bindu eMag:

by Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami

''We cannot say with any certainty that cellphones are either safe or not safe,'' Dr. Black said on CNN. ''My concern is that with the widespread use of cellphones, the worst scenario would be that we get the definitive study 10 years from now, and we find out there is a correlation.''

- Experts Revive Debate Over Cellphones and Cancer, New York Times

A prominent cancer researcher's warning to limit cell phone use has rekindled anew the longstanding question over mobile-phone health risks.

The media is abuzz with news of the memo from Dr. Ronald B. Herberman, director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. He sent it to faculty and staff Wednesday, saying, among other things, that children should use cell phones only for emergencies, since their developing organs are the most likely to be sensitive to possible effects of exposure to electromagnetic fields.
Dr. Ronald B. Herberman

This week the ISKCON New Govardhana farming project in Australia received organic certification from the national Organic Growers Association. After several rigorous inspections, the farm was granted a certificate of compliance which allows all fruit and vegetables grown to carry the official OGA logo.

This Sunday, 29th July 2008, is the second annual Yoga fest in Brisbane.

Jonathan Murphy from Radiant Light Yoga has worked really hard to pull off this event, which brings together Brisbane's entire yoga community once a year.

After delivering a extended philosophically intricate Bhagavatam lecture, the Temple President announced that he wished to meet with the temple board after the program, in his office. He returned to the office to find that the first person to arrive was an older Indian man, whom he didn’t recognize.

“Pardon me, Prabhuji,” the President said, “I think you misunderstood my announcement. This is a meeting of the board.”

“I know,” said the man. “If there is anyone here more bored than I am, I’d like to meet him.”

Part of being "inclusive", innit? :-)