I wish all Happy New Year 2008.
May 2008 bring peace to all. May it end conflicts. Let everyone have peace within himself or herself. Let there be peace among couples, families, communities and nations.
Let there be peace in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Burma. Let issues between India and Pakistan be resolved peacefully. Let there be peace in Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, West Bank, Gaza and Lebanon. Let there be peace in Darfur, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. Let there be peace in every other place.
May justice triumph. Let the backlog of cases in courts disappear. Let justice be fast. Let crime cease. Let corruption cease. Let victims get justice. Let victims of 1984 anti-Sikh riots, 1992 post Babri Mosque demolition riots, 1993 Bombay riots and 2002 Gujarat riots and other riots get justice. Let victims of murders, mutilation, rape, forced sexual acts, battery, assault, hijacking, kidnapping, financial and other frauds, cheating, theft, robbery, morphing and other crimes get justice.
Let everyone have enough of food, clothing and shelter. Let there be no starvation death.
Let there be no armament race. Let NATO be disbanded. Let money spent on armed forces and weapons be reduced and spent on people.
Let all good people prosper.
It is good if Orthodox Churches adopt Gregorian calendar. Orthodox Churches are clinging on to Julian calendar. Russia, Greece and East European countries follow Gregorian calendar. Members of Orthodox Churches have to follow two calendars: Julian calendar for religions purposes and Gregorian calendar for othe purposes.
Let no one hesitate to marry in 2008 because it is a leap year. One may not choose 29 February as the wedding date because anniversary will be once in four years.
Month: December 2007
Happy Christmas
I wish all Happy Christmas.
Happy Christmas is different from Merry Christmas. Merry need not be happy and happy need not be merry.
Many people have holidays because of Christmas and it is appropriate that they wish Happy Christmas. Everybody is not a Christian. I know some Christian sects do not celebrate Christmas. People who do not celebrate Christmas are free not to accept or reciprocate the greeting. That does not mean that Christians who celebrate Christmas should wish Happy Holidays instead of Happy Christmas.
Last year I watched on Night Out on NDTV 24×7 greetings of many Hollywood actors and actresses. Most of them are Christians. Most of them said “Happy Holidaysâ€. Some said “Merry Christmasâ€. Sylverster Stallone said “Merry Christmas and Happy Holidaysâ€. Daniel Craig said “Happy Christmasâ€. I wish more people had said “Happy Christmasâ€.
Jesus was born in Bethlehem
The decision to show the birth of Jesus in Nazareth in the Vatican crèche is baffling. Both gospels of Matthew and Luke mention that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. There is nothing to suggest that Jesus was born in Nazareth.
Vatican officials should not play with the faith of the people and go against what is written in the gospels. How Benedict XVI has allowed it? Does he think Jesus was born in Nazareth? If so, on what basis? The first chapter of the Gospel of Matthew does not mention that Joseph lived in Nazareth before he took Mary as his wife. In the second chapter of the Gospel of Matthew the magi are told that Bethlehem is the birth place of Jesus. There is no basis to say that as per the Gospel of Matthew Jesus was born in Nazareth.
The crèche at Vatican needs to be as per tradition. Otherwise there should be no crèche.