Tag: Olympic Games

Deities Associated with Thursday – Jupiter, Roman God


Deities Associated with Thursday – Jupiter, Roman God

Jupiter, also known as Jove, is the god of sky and thunder, as well as the king of gods in Ancient Roman Mythology. Jupiter is the top god of the Roman pantheon.Jupiter was considered the chief deity of Roman state religion during the Republican and Imperial eras, until Christianity became the dominant religion.

Zeus is Jupiter’s equivalent in Greek Mythology. The two share the same features and characteristics.

Due to Jupiter’s popularity, the Romans named the largest planet in the solar system after him.

Attributes
Jupiter is depicted with a beard and long hair. His other attributes include scepter, eagle, cornucopia, aegis, ram, and lion.

Jupiter, the Planet
The ancient Babylonians were the first known people to record their sightings of the planet Jupiter. The Babylonians’ recordings date back to the seventh century BC. It was initially named after Jupiter, the king of the Roman gods. To the Greeks, the planet represented Zeus, their god of thunder, while the Mesopotamians saw Jupiter as their god, Marduk.

Zeus
Jupiter and Zeus are equivalents in ancient mythology. The share the same traits and characteristics.
The Greek god Zeus was the top Olympian god in the Greek pantheon. After he took credit for rescuing his brothers and sisters from their father Cronus, Zeus became king of heaven and gave his brothers, Poseidon and Hades, the sea and the underworld, respectively, for their domains.

Zeus was the husband of Hera, but he had many affairs with other goddesses, mortal women, and female animals.
Zeus mated with, among others, Aegina, Alcmena, Calliope, Cassiopea, Demeter, Dione, Europa, Io, Leda, Leto, Mnemosyne, Niobe, and Semele.

He is king on Mount Olympus, the home of the Greek gods. He is also credited as the father of Greek heroes and the ancestor of many other Greeks. Zeus mated with many mortals and goddesses but is married to his sister Hera (Juno).

Zeus is the son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. He is the brother of his wife Hera, his other sisters Demeter and Hestia, and his brothers Hades, Poseidon.

Etymology of Zeus and Jupiter
The root of both “Zeus” and “Jupiter” is in a proto-Indo-European word for the often personified concepts of “day/light/sky”.

Zeus Abducts Mortals:
There are many myths about Zeus. Some involve demanding acceptable conduct of others, whether human or divine. Zeus was enraged with the behavior of Prometheus. The titan had tricked Zeus into taking the non-meat portion of the original sacrifice, so that mankind could enjoy the food. In response, the king of the gods deprived mankind of the use of fire so they wouldn’t be able to enjoy the boon they’d been granted, but Prometheus found a way around this, and stole some of the gods’ fire by hiding it in a stalk of fennel and then giving it to mankind. Zeus punished Prometheus with having his liver pecked out every day.

But Zeus himself misbehaves — at least according to human standards. It is tempting to say that his primary occupation is that of seducer. In order to seduce, he sometimes changed his shape into that of an animal or bird.

· When he impregnated Leda, he appeared as a swan [see Leda and the Swan].
· When he abducted Ganymede, he appeared as an eagle [see Zeus and Ganymede] in order to take Ganymede to the home of the gods where he would replace Hebe as cupbearer; and
· when Zeus carried off Europa, he appeared as a tempting white bull

— although why the Mediterranean women were so enamored of bulls is beyond the imaginative capacities of this urban-dweller — setting in motion the quest of Cadmus and the settling of Thebes. The hunt for Europa provides one mythological version of the introduction of letters to Greece.

The Olympic Games were initially held to honor Zeus.
 

Author

N.S. Gill, Ancient/Classical History Expert
Article published on & owned by About.com

 

82-Year-Old Nun Shuts Down Top-Secret Nuclear Facility

82-Year-Old Nun Shuts Down Top-Secret Nuclear Facility

by Judy Molland

Three activists, including an 82-year-old nun, have succeeded in closing temporarily the US government’s  only facility for handling, processing and storing weapons-grade uranium.

With the “Nuns on the Bus” tour for social justice in full swing, it  seems that social activism is defining a lot of nuns in the US. Excellent!

The facility at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, also known as “The Atomic City,” was shut down on Wednesday after at least three protesters,  including 82-year-old Megan Rice, cut through perimeter fences to reach the  outer wall of a building where highly enriched uranium, a key nuclear bomb  component, is stored.

This is awesome news; the facility is enormous, seemingly impenetrable, and  dominates the town of Oak Ridge. That anyone even had the idea to try and break  in is inspiring.

Ironically, WSI Oak Ridge, the private contractor responsible for protecting  the facility, is a subsidiary of the world’s biggest security firm G4S, which came up short by 3,500 of the 10,400 security guards  it had guaranteed to provide  at the Olympic Games in London.

Time for this security company to do some re-evaluating, maybe?

From rawstory:

The activists, who called themselves Transform  Now Plowshares, painted slogans and threw what they said was human blood on the  wall of the facility, according to government officials.

Although the activists triggered security sensors  they were still able to reach the building’s walls before WSI Oak Ridge staff  intercepted them.

In a statement the three activists said they had  passed through four fences and walked for “over two hours” before reaching the  uranium storage building, on which they hung banners and crime-scene tape.

The activists’ spokeswoman, Ellen Barfield, said  three were arrested and charged with vandalism and criminal trespass.

The three, identified as Megan Rice, 82, Michael Walli, 63, and Greg  Boertje-Obed, 57, are being held in custody and appeared for a hearing on  Thursday before a US magistrate judge in Knoxville, Tennessee.

A detention hearing was set for today, when prosecutors must show the  defendants are a flight risk and a danger to the community in order to keep them  in custody, according to court officials. The trial date is 9 October.

Not surprisingly, a spokeswoman for G4S declined to comment, but government  officials said the contents of the facility were not compromised.

But somebody is going to get into big trouble for this security breach.

The security failure was an embarrassment both for the security firm and for  the National Nuclear Security Administration, or NNSA, the Energy Department  branch that operates U.S. nuclear weapons plants. “It was obviously a pretty  serious incident,” NNSA spokesman Joshua McConaha told Reuters.

Peter Stockton, a former congressional investigator and security consultant  to the Energy Department, expressed skepticism at government assertions the nuclear  material was not at risk.

“It is unbelievable this could happen,” Stockton told Reuters. “The significance is outrageous. If  they were terrorists, they could have blown open the door and got inside.”

I think we need to re-think our image of nuns!

Spell to Break a Love Spell

Spell to Break a Love Spell

With Ritual – You will need a picture of both parties together or you can write their names on a piece of paper. You will also need a cauldron, which must be fireproof. Holding the photo or paper state:
“I wish to sever the unnatural ties between these two,
they were brought together by magic, and that shouldn’t be
Now I seek to right the wrong, break the bonds and set them free.
I ask the God and Goddess to break the bonds between (names).
(Cut paper) As I cut their tie let the bond between them be broken.
(Burn halves in cauldron) As I burn the tie let the bond be forever severed.
So Mote it be!

At last, bury or scatter the ashes.

Elder’s Meditation of the Day August 2

Elder’s Meditation of the Day August 2

“When you get older and you are ready, your ancestors will show up to guide you.”

–Joe Coyhis, STOCKBRIDGE-MUNSEE

Many of us, when we are young, spend a portion of our lives in learning. Unfortunately, some of us spend this time learning the hard way. When we are young we sometimes think we know everything. Sometimes we do foolish things. As we get a little older, we realize we don’t know anything. This is when we become teachable. There is a saying that goes, when the student is ready, the teacher appears. We usually aren’t teachable unless we are ready. The ancestors are waiting and willing to help. When we are ready, many beautiful teachers start to come into our lives. Then we really start to grow and mature. We are ready for the spiritual lesson.

Creator, help me to become ready and teachable.

No. 3 Things To Do For Lammas…..

Prepare for the “Games” of the First Harvest Feast.  The Greek  Olympics and Roman Heracleia games were held at this time.  What games  might you play?  Horseshoes, boche ball, races, swimmng races, croquet, volleyball, badminton, frisbee, baseball,  wrestling, spear throwing, arrow shooting, weight tossing ….  Get your equipment and playing court ready,  and practice. 

Olympic Dreaming: 4 Reasons To Watch With Your Kids

Olympic Dreaming: 4 Reasons To Watch With Your Kids

by Ronnie Citron-Fink

It’s that time again – the Olympics are rapidly approaching. The London  Olympic Games are expected to be viewed by more than 200 million people over the  17-day telecast.

Will you be watching? If so, there are number of ways you can both educate  and inspire yourself and your children by watching the Olympics.

Why watch the Olympics with your kids?

The Olympics are about people who sacrifice their whole lives to compete and  represent their country on the world stage. Not only does that make for some  fine international drama, watching the Olympics with your kids allows the whole  family to enjoy something together.

4 Reasons To Watch The Olympics  With Your Kids

1. Learn About Teamwork and Sportsmanship

Watching a team sport is the perfect way to show kids that working hard for a  common goal is good for the individual and for the team. While they may compete  against each other, they still cheer for each other and for their country. Every  now and then there are unfortunate examples of how players treat other teammates  and competitors poorly. Either way, teamwork and sportsmanship are important  lessons for kids to learn, and the Olympics set a wonderful stage for having  conversations about this.

2. Find Out About Geography and Culture

The Olympics present opportunities to discuss geography, weather,  transportation, food and cultures that are different from your own. Keeping a  globe and map handy can highlight where competing countries are located. Here is  a world map of the Olympic Cities. This interactive map lets you follow all the action from  London.

3. Learn New Sports

There are so many varieties of sports to choose from. Kids may get inspired  to try one when exposed to the various kinds during the Olympics. Years ago, my  family visited Lake Placid, home of the 1980 Winter Olympics. My daughter, who  was a little figure skater at the time the picture above was taken, wanted to  try as many Olympic sports as possible. Here she is cruising the luge run.

Here’s a list of some of the 2012 Summer Olympic sports:

Archery

Badminton

Beach Volleyball

Canoeing

Cycling

Diving

Equestrian

Fencing

Gymnastics

Handball

Judo

Rowing

Sailing

Synchronized Swimming

Table Tennis

Taekwondo

Trampoline

Water Polo

4. Learn About Attitudes and Goal Setting

A can-do attitude is infectious and it’s great for building self-esteem.  Listening to the stories of the athletes with their tales about the personal  hurdles and shortcomings they went through to get to their given Olympic sport,  allows kids to see that we all may not be born jumping out of a ski gate, but  with perseverance and a can-do attitude, some reach their goal. Check out the stories of the US Olympic  team.

5. Learn History

Sharing the history  of the Olympics with kids is both educational and inspiring.

Make Olympic Crafts

Kids will enjoy all of the excitement of the games with this round-up of Olympic  crafts.

One more reason to watch the Olympics with your  kids:

One day your kid will grow up and have dreams of her own.

 

What Is the Significance of the Olympics?

What Is the Significance of the Olympics?

by Sarah Cooke

With the kick-off of the Olympics this  past weekend, there have been dramatically varying reactions to the significance  of the games and, in particular, how that relates to culture and politics in the  United States.

One typical reaction to the Olympics is the blindly patriotic one. Many  Americans have a tendency to view the Olympics as a stage for the United State  to boast its supposed superiority. Of course, this is a very narrow way to view  both the games and the place of the United States in the global community.

On the other hand, many Americans reject the games outright because they do  not support many of the policies of the United States. They feel that the games  promote nationalism and that to care about the Olympics is to demonstrate  support for policies with which they disagree.

I fall somewhere in the middle. I enjoy the games as a demonstration of human  accomplishment. As a nation, we should absolutely be proud of our athletes – not  because they are American, but because they have worked hard to accomplish great  things. To me, the Olympics are not about what country walks away with the most  medals. The Olympics are a manifestation of the strength of the human  spirit.