Archive for June, 2009
June 27, 2009 at 2:01 am · Filed under 2009, essay/ personal narrative, reflection, thoughts and tagged: dualism, life after death
This semester, I am taking the subject Science, Technology, and Society, or more commonly known as STS. Last thursday was the first lecture by Dean Saloma of the College of Science. He was supposed to give us an overview of how science is viewed. In all the things that he told the class of 160 students, there are two things that I couldn’t forget.
The first one is the view that science is not just a systematic way of compiling a body of knowledge, but a way of perceiving. It is like a lens of a camera which one sees things differently. He mentioned, specifically, like religion. Thus, it was implied that you cannot mix religion and science. On the contrary, I believe that science is God-given. All the knowledge that we, humans, can aquire was allowed by God so that we can move towards Him, to bring Glory to His Name. Science answers the questions who, what, when, where, and how, and religion answers the question why.
Secondly, dualism was mentioned–mind and brain. I am not very familiar with the philosophical view, but in the little attempt that I’ve made to read about it, dualism proponents states that the mind and brain are two different entities. Setting that aside and going back to the lecture that I was in, this question was posed unto us: “can the mind work separate from the brain?” Being a psychology major, I am exposed to the studies of the brain, how it works, and it’s connection to how we think, feel, and act. I was thinking about all of those so in my mind, I answered “no, you cannot separate the mind from the brain.” Then out of the speakers was soundwaves that translate to something like this: “you cannot separate the mind from the brain. Therefore, there is no life after death. How can you have a mind when you are dead?”
I was dumbfounded. I did not see it coming. I was thinking of this life that we are living on earth that I ruled out life after death. It was the first time I’ve heard of the idea. Wow. As an automatic defense (so that I would retain a healthy state of mind), I told myself, That’s absurd. How can one debunk life after death based on knowledge obtained from this world, the world that is more pre-matured than the next world to come?
Now that I have put it into writing, and I have shared it to the rest of the world, tonight, I would be able to sleep soundly. Of course, excitement from reading another’s opinions on these things will keep me awake for some time.
This semester, I am taking the subject Science, Technology, and Society, or more commonly known as STS. Last thursday was the first lecture by Dean Saloma of the College of Science. He was supposed to give us an overview of how science is viewed. In all the things that he told the class of 160 students, there are two things that I couldn’t forget.
The first one is the view that science is not just a systematic way of compiling a body of knowledge, but a way of perceiving. It is like a lens of a camera which one sees things differently. He mentioned, specifically, like religion. Thus, it was implied that you cannot mix religion and science. On the contrary, I believe that science is God-given. All the knowledge that we, humans, can aquire was allowed by God so that we can move towards Him, to bring Glory to His Name. Science answers the questions who, what, when, where, and how, and religion answers the question why.
Secondly, dualism was mentioned–mind and brain. I am not very familiar with the philosophical view, but in the little attempt that I’ve made to read about it, dualism proponents states that the mind and brain are two different entities. Setting that aside and going back to the lecture that I was in, this question was posed unto us: “can the mind work separate from the brain?” Being a psychology major, I am exposed to the studies of the brain, how it works, and it’s connection to how we think, feel, and act. I was thinking about all of those so in my mind, I answered “no, you cannot separate the mind from the brain.” Then out of the speakers was soundwaves that translate to something like this: “you cannot separate the mind from the brain. Therefore, there is no life after death. How can you have a mind when you are dead?”
I was dumbfounded. I did not see it coming. I was thinking of this life that we are living on earth that I ruled out life after death. It was the first time I’ve heard of the idea. Wow. As an automatic defense (so that I would retain a healthy state of mind), I told myself, That’s absurd. How can one debunk life after death based on knowledge obtained from this world, the world that is more pre-matured than the next world to come?
Now that I have put it into writing, and I have shared it to the rest of the world, tonight, I would be able to sleep soundly. Of course, excitement from reading another’s opinions on these things will keep me awake for some time.
June 27, 2009 at 1:31 am · Filed under 2009, reflection and tagged: jc
I picked up my laptop from HP this morning, and am I ever glad to be reaquainted with it after a month. I received it, opened its lid, turned it on and watched it boot. I heard the sound when the windows logo appeared, and I heard the sound when start up was complete. I was as excited as a child is excited on her birthday party. I explored the programs, the desktop, my computer, my documents, pictures, music–everything’s like brand new!
Yes, it is bare, just like a recently purchased laptop, but only on the “inside,” or it’s software. But it has the same scratches, the same short-lived battery, the same “smoothened” keys, in other words, it is the same old, battered laptop. But the outside does not matter much. What is important for me now is that my laptop can start fresh. It will have newly installed programs, new documents, new music, new pictures, etc. It will function with more speed now that the RAM is upgraded to 2.5gb from 1gb. It would be able to support more tedious working conditions, more battering in other words, as I work my way to graduation day, and into a whole new world after that. Bottom line is this: it is old outside but new inside, and with the upgrade, I am promised that it will function more efficiently.
My laptop was given another chance to serve me. I am given another chance.
In the Lord’s name, then, I warn you: do not continue to live like the heathen, whose thoughts are worthless and whose minds are in the dark. They have no part in the life that God gives, for they are completely ignorant and stubborn. They have lost all feeling of shame; they give themselves over to vice and do all sorts of indecent things without restraint.
That was not what you learned about Christ! You certainly heard about him, and as his followers you were taught the truth that is in Jesus. So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to–the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God’s likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy.
Ephesians 4:17-24 (TEV)
I picked up my laptop from HP this morning, and am I ever glad to be reacquainted with it after a month. I received it, opened its lid, turned it on and watched it boot. I heard the sound when the windows logo appeared, and I heard the sound when start up was complete. I was as excited as a child is excited on her birthday party. I explored the programs, the desktop, my computer, my documents, pictures, music–every thing’s like brand new!
Yes, it is bare, just like a recently purchased laptop, but only on the “inside,” or it’s software. But it has the same scratches, the same short-lived battery, the same “smoothed” keys, in other words, it is the same old, battered laptop. But the outside does not matter much. What is important for me now is that my laptop can start fresh. It will have newly installed programs, new documents, new music, new pictures, etc. It will function with more speed now that the RAM is upgraded to 2.5gb from 1gb. It would be able to support more tedious working conditions, more battering in other words, as I work my way to graduation day, and into a whole new world after that. Bottom line is this: it is old outside but new inside, and with the upgrade, I am promised that it will function more efficiently.
My laptop was given another chance to serve me. I am given another chance.
In the Lord’s name, then, I warn you: do not continue to live like the heathen, whose thoughts are worthless and whose minds are in the dark. They have no part in the life that God gives, for they are completely ignorant and stubborn. They have lost all feeling of shame; they give themselves over to vice and do all sorts of indecent things without restraint.
That was not what you learned about Christ! You certainly heard about him, and as his followers you were taught the truth that is in Jesus. So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to–the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God’s likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy.
Ephesians 4:17-24 (TEV)
June 26, 2009 at 12:23 am · Filed under 2009, essay/ personal narrative, reflection, thoughts and tagged: jc, upyfc, yoke
I must say that I am blessed by tonight’s UPYFC prayer meeting. A sister shared her accident story and almost instantaneously, I felt like I was being shot straight to the heart while Someone whispers the Lord’s message to me.
At first, I wasn’t sure to whom the message was for. However, during the closing worship, I’m sure that it was really for me. At this point, maybe you’re curious what the story and the message is. I cannot contain myself that’s why I approached the sister who shared her accident story and told her what I realized. I also shared it to a good friend whom I shared a few minutes before the final worship my frustrations the last 24 hours.
The sister had a car accident. She was driving her car along the University Avenue when a truck hit her, and she crashed, “ala-Jackie Chan,” according to her. The policemen who responded to the accident couldn’t believe that she was the one in the car because the car was really dilapidated and couldn’t be driven when she only sustained a small cut on her right arm, all because of the seatbelt. Apart from that, she was as good as no accident happened.
That story was translated from her speech to mind into metaphors almost instantaneously. Jesus was the seat belt, which protects the driver from major injuries, or worse, death. The accident would be any lost battle when we fall to into sin. I was also reminded of Matthew 11:28-30, the verse which tells about the yoke that Jesus offers. Somehow, I likened the yoke to the seat belt. Wearing the seat belt does not guarantee that there will be no wounds, bruises, or injuries. It offers life. Just like Jesus, when He asked us to take His yoke upon us, He did not say it would be zero pain and wound-free. Instead, when we have Jesus in our life, He gives us life. The cuts, bruises, and other injuries that we might have obtained in the course of the accident serve as reminder for us: we obtained those because we have the seat belt on us. If we did not, we would have a completely different kinds of wounds and injuries, or worse, we could already be dead.
In the same way, when we have Jesus in our life, when we fall into sin, the injuries would not be that serious. Indeed, Jesus offers us life in Him, that when we get out of the “smoking car,” we’ll be able to walk out of it gracefully, and we would be able to walk on our two feet again.
Tonight, the Lord promised me that I would be able to walk out of sin “gracefully” as long I allow Jesus to hold me tight, as long as I put my security to Jesus Christ; for when I do so, the cuts would serve as reminders of Jesus’ presence, my fall, and the need to repent. All of this boils down to my hope of heaven.
Thanks again to that sister who shared her story. All Praise and Honor is for the Lord, Jesus Christ.
I must say that I am blessed by tonight’s UPYFC prayer meeting. A sister shared her accident story and almost instantaneously, I felt like I was being shot straight to the heart while Someone whispers the Lord’s message to me.
At first, I wasn’t sure to whom the message was for. However, during the closing worship, I’m sure that it was really for me. At this point, maybe you’re curious what the story and the message is. I cannot contain myself that’s why I approached the sister who shared her accident story and told her what I realized. I also shared it to a good friend whom I shared a few minutes before the final worship my frustrations the last 24 hours.
The sister had a car accident. She was driving her car along the University Avenue when a truck hit her, and she crashed, “ala-Jackie Chan,” according to her. The policemen who responded to the accident couldn’t believe that she was the one in the car because the car was really dilapidated and couldn’t be driven when she only sustained a small cut on her right arm, all because of the seatbelt. Apart from that, she was as good as no accident happened.
That story was translated from her speech to mind into metaphors almost instantaneously. Jesus was the seat belt, which protects the driver from major injuries, or worse, death. The accident would be any lost battle when we fall to into sin. I was also reminded of Matthew 11:28-30, the verse which tells about the yoke that Jesus offers. Somehow, I likened the yoke to the seat belt. Wearing the seat belt does not guarantee that there will be no wounds, bruises, or injuries. It offers life. Just like Jesus, when He asked us to take His yoke upon us, He did not say it would be zero pain and wound-free. Instead, when we have Jesus in our life, He gives us life. The cuts, bruises, and other injuries that we might have obtained in the course of the accident serve as reminder for us: we obtained those because we have the seat belt on us. If we did not, we would have a completely different kinds of wounds and injuries, or worse, we could already be dead.
In the same way, when we have Jesus in our life, when we fall into sin, the injuries would not be that serious. Indeed, Jesus offers us life in Him, that when we get out of the “smoking car,” we’ll be able to walk out of it gracefully, and we would be able to walk on our two feet again.
Tonight, the Lord promised me that I would be able to walk out of sin “gracefully” as long I allow Jesus to hold me tight, as long as I put my security to Jesus Christ; for when I do so, the cuts would serve as reminders of Jesus’ presence, my fall, and the need to repent. All of this boils down to my hope of heaven.
Thanks again to that sister who shared her story. All Praise and Honor is for the Lord, Jesus Christ.
June 17, 2009 at 9:35 pm · Filed under 2009, essay/ personal narrative, reflection, thoughts
I have not written an essay, even a single paragraph to start with, for the past several months. I stopped writing because I thought I couldn’t write anything of significance, a piece with substance. A number of excuses defended me from my self for not writing.
For one, I thought, I do not have anything to say, to write, to share, because all I have are questions, and different pieces of information not woven together. My mind was a mess, so how will I be able to create a coherent essay about something?
Another self-justification is this: I thought that I wanted to retain my privacy by not sharing what I learned, my reflections, and my insights. They are MINE. In short, I was being selfish. Besides, all these pieces of information that I have at hand are from different books that others can also read. I just happen to have an opinion, or an insight to it, and I know for sure that when others read, or watch, or listen to the same materials, they would produce their own opinions and insights that are different form mine.
Lastly, I attributed my lack of writing to the mishap I had with my laptop. Since it is still in the custody of HP Customer Service Center, I do not have the means to write something. I do not like typing at my brother’s desktop computer (which I am using now) because of it’s keyboard and the poor lighting in his room.
However, thanks to Mr. Conrado de Quiros, I now realize that my excuses were lame. He wrote in His column “There’s the rub” in the Philippine Daily Inquirer today:
“It’s not true at all that sticks and stones may break your bones but words can’t. The opposite is true: More than sticks and stones, or indeed more than Manny Pacquiao’s fists, words crush bones.”
Mr. de Quiros indeed rubbed it on my face! It reminded me of why I write in the first place–because I have an opinion and I have an insight that I want to share. I have a voice through my written words, words that would last as long as it is written. Not everyone have access to the materials that I have access to. A great way to spread knowledge is by writing about it. Posting it to a website such as this ensures that others will be able to read it. Writing is my way of paying it forward.
June 17, 2009 at 9:04 pm · Filed under 2009, reflection, thoughts
One afternoon, as I was studying in Krispy Kreme in Robinson’s Galleria, I overheard someone differentiating asking vs. questioning. She said, one doubts when one questions. I forgot the exact things that she said, but I remembered that I was not satisfied with her explanation. So, their difference remains a big question mark in the depths of my thoughts. I tried to think about the instances when we’re asking, and when we’re questioning. Is it true that when you question, you doubt? Recently, I have a lot of questions. Does it mean I doubt completely? Questions are usually entertained in the classrooms (or elsewhere) because they signify that the student is thinking. That s/he wants to understand. But question = doubt? I don’t think it’s that simple. To ask. We ask several things. We ask a favor, a request; we ask something from someone. We even ask for questions. Thus, isn’t the act of asking these questions can simply be questioning? Then, it hit me. Their difference is actually simple, and if I may say, it’s not the element doubt. In asking, we humble ourselves whereas when questioning, we put on the shield of pride. When we ask, we acknowledge that we are incapable of, in the case of asking a question, knowing the answer. We acknowledge our weakness. On the other hand, when we question, we assume that we are right, and we cannot accept the anomaly right in front of us, that’s why we demand for an explanation. Now, I would be more careful. With all my questions hanging, I would keep in mind to ask them, and not to impose them — to ask, and not to question.
A Quest 