Author: Jonathan Dodson

There are few things like reclining in a comfortable chair or couch, cafe au lait within arms reach, pleasant sounds in the background, and a well-written, engaging book in hand. Fewer still are these moments, especially as a parent. My wife sent me out this evening to enjoy one of the things I enjoy most.

The au lait isn’t that great; the coffee was too weak. The book, on the other hand, is titilating. It’s so engaging that I enter a five second debate after each chapter: “Should I save the rest for tomorrow?” I read on. Falling Man is a likely book from an unlikely author. Likely, because it’s a fictional account of life after 9/11 in the world of a few Manhanttanites. An unlikely author becasuse DeLilo is perhaps best know for his magnum opus, Underworld.

The first chapter of Falling Man is online for free. See Frank Rich’s NY Times review here. Many thoughts are brewing after the first five chapters. I’ll hold them until the end but expect a reflective post on Falling Man very soon. Books like this don’t linger long in my hands.

There are three major missionary world religions: Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism (Judaism in not considered global due to geographic limits). Each faith possesses a prosleytizing imperative. The karunah of Buddhism calls its followers to “be able to disclose the teachings of the Buddha in all the voices that exist in the world.”

The Dalai Lama will be presiding over a mass conversion of Dalits in India. Up to 100,000 Dalits will convert, perhaps the largest mass conversion in modern history. Interestingly, many Dalits have also converted to Christianity. These conversions are often motivated by Dalit hope in escaping the “untouchable” caste life.

See brief article here.

Sean Dorrance Kelly, professor of Philosophy at Harvard, has committed his life and work to answering perhaps the biggest question one can ask: “What does it mean to be human?” Kelly has background in mathematics, robotics, science, and of course, philosophy. In exploring this fundamental question through the works of the great French adn German philosophers, Kelly ponders the following question: “But a world without God and without external constraints is a lonely and disenchanted world. That raises a timely modern question, said Kelly: Can we regain a notion of the sacred, even in our secular world?”

Kelly has three books on the way, which he plans to complete in the next year. See Harvard interview here.

HT: Sarah V.

Tacks, The Boy Disaster is an emerging Austin band with a incomparable sound. Oh, Beatrice is a unique combinatino of pleasantly haunting piano keys, delicate yet deliberate vocals, and steady beats–thoroughly enjoyable music. Check out their mySpace site and stream four songs for free. “Frozen Feet” is more upbeat and “Paris” slower. These guys have a great sound.