Bodhi Day
Buddhists may not recognize one of the traditional Western celebrations of winter such as Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, or Saturnalia, but that doesn’t mean the religion doesn’t have its own seasonal festival. December 8 recognizes the day when Siddhar…
Celebrating Hanukkah
During the holiday season, Jews celebrate Hanukkah, which is known as the Festival of Lights or Feast of Dedication. Although Hanukkah is not ordained in the Bible, it is still widely celebrated around the world. The dates for this eight-day ho…
Religious Displays
Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you’ve probably heard about the Starbucks red cup controversy. Christians are up in arms about the plain red cup which Starbucks uses during the holiday season. Some people think it’s a non-issue…
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is one of the most traditional holidays in the United States, but it can be a field of landmines when you have family members who get together with different beliefs and views. If you need some neutral topics beyond sports or shopping duri…
Tolerance
On November 16, 1995, the Member States of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted their Declaration of Principles on Tolerance. Since that day, they’ve taken one day annually to generate awareness of tolera…
Evolution Day
In February, Darwin Day celebrates the contribution that Charles Darwin made to science. On November 24, 1859, he initially published his “On the Origin of Species.” To celebrate the contribution that Darwin made with the revolutionary work, Evolu…
World Freedom Day
November often seems like a month for military. Veterans Day is celebrated on November 11. This day is called Remembrance Day in other countries, and it not just honors our veterans, but it also commemorates the end of World War I. The United Stat…
Vedanta
Most people know about Hinduism, but there’s an even broader philosophy that gave Hinduism its foundations. It’s called Vedanta, and it’s based on the ancient texts, the sacred scriptures of India, the Vedas. The word “Vedanta” is from two words &…
Diwali
Here in the United States, most people associate the festival of lights with Christmas displays throughout November and December, but in India the festival of lights refers to one of the country’s biggest festivals – Diwali. Typically, Diwali falls i…
Peace Prize
Although it can seem as if talking doesn’t get you very far when negotiating peace in your family, the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize was given to four organizations that showed that dialogue was vital in the rebuilding of one devastated country. On October 9…