Jason trying out his new Beretta SV10 Perennia Field Grade III shotgun at the Stittsville Shooting Range. Not bad for a gun he picked up from the clearance bin at LeBaron Outdoor Products. An acquaintance of Jason’s from Canadian Gun Nutz, Matthew, joined us and offered some helpful pointers on skeet shooting.
Video produced and published by Geoffrey
In previous essays I discussed the topic of religion and state in the Western world, notably the role of Christianity, Catholic and Protestant, in the development of Western civilization. For centuries the Catholic Church had authority in temporal affairs and collected taxes in much of Europe. Following the Reformation in the 16th century there were instances where Protestant Churches had authority in temporal affairs. Geneva under the rule of John Calvin (1509-1564), the founder of Calvinism, was governed according to the Ecclesiastical Ordinances which were administered by the Consistory. The Enlightenment in the 18th century introduced new thinking in the natural rights of man and the place of religion in society. Enlightenment thinkers valued religious liberty, but also favoured a strict separation between religion and the state. By the end of the 18th century there were the American and French Revolutions which introduced constitutional law and separation of church and state. In the 19th century the last vestiges of church authority in temporal affairs were swept away with capture of Rome and the Papal States in the drive to unify Italy as a nation. Constitutional guarantees of religious liberty and separation of religion and state make religious pluralism an integral part of Western societies in the present, while Christianity remains the dominant faith, people are free to practice any religion they wish or none at all. How does the history and development of the Islamic world then compare to that of the Western world? Continue reading
Phoebe on a wire
Eastern phoebe perched on a wire and good enough to pose for me while out on a run with Hera and my friend Jason Quinn and his dog Nos, June 21, 2013.
Mallard ducklings
Hen mallard with a brood of newly hatched ducklings on the pond next to the Rideau River, June 20, 2013.
Photographed and posted by Geoffrey
Green heron
After seeing a pair of green herons on the pond next to the Rideau River where I photographed ducks, turtles, red-winged blackbirds over the past several weeks, one of the herons was good enough to pose for me at last on June 18, 2013.
Photographed and posted by Geoffrey
Eastern kingbird viewed while out for a run with Hera, my friend Jason Quinn and his dog Nos, June 17, 2013. The eastern kingbird is a plucky species of flycatcher common in the area. I see a few mated pairs every spring nesting in shrubs along the Rideau River. They are usually successful at rearing their broods as they mount a spirited defense of their nest and young, driving away crows especially. The often perch on the wires in the background, watching for the insects on which they prey, snatching them out of the air.
Photographed and posted by Geoffrey
Egg shells are all that remain of the clutch recently laid by a turtle in the soft earth next to a pond by the Rideau River that were dug up and eaten by a predator, likely a hungry raccoon. Life in the natural world is typically short and comes to a sudden and grisly end.
Photographed and posted by Geoffrey
Vireo, possibly a warbling vireo seen and photographed June 15, 2013 in a wooded area next to the Rideau River.
Photographed and posted by Geoffrey
The papacy was in a very precarious position when Pope Pius IX convened the First Vatican Council on June 29, 1868. The drive for Italian unification was underway, with a revolution in 1848 that led to the exile of Pius IX in the castle of Gaeta in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies from November 24, 1848, until his return to Rome in April 1850. The revolutionaries declared the Roman Republic comprised of the Papal States and in accordance with the ideals of the Enlightenment religious liberty and tolerance was enshrined in the new constitution by article 7 of the Principi fondamentali. Prior to this development only Christianity and Judaism were allowed by law to be practiced in the Papal States. The independence of the pope as head of the Catholic Church was guaranteed by article 8 of the Principi fondamentali. While providing constitutional guarantees of religious liberty and papal authority over the Catholic Church, the framers of the Constitution of the Italian Republic curtailed the temporal authority of the Pope which was referred to as an “historical lie, a political imposture, and a religious immorality” by a reform-minded priest, Abbé Arduini. (as cited in Wikipedia) However, by June 1849 the Roman Republic was overthrown by French military intervention and Pius IX restored in office, returning to Rome and reclaiming governance of the Papal States. Continue reading
“Funny, you don’t look it” is a typical response when people learn I am a hunter. Aside from the fact I am gay, I am a gentle and thinking man. People find it hard to believe that I can choose to hunt down and kill a game bird or animal. Yes, hunting, unlike my gayness, is an ethical choice I make. It is a moral choice I keep to myself a great deal of the time as I find I have more venom spat at me for choosing hunting than for being gay. I concealed that I was gay and in a relationship with Mika from most of my hunting buddies. My hunting buddies are men and women from various ethnic and religious backgrounds. They are generally conservative. I feared I might lose them as friends and hunting buddies if they knew the truth, or at the very least, they would be uncomfortable knowing. It turns out they were not bothered in the least and are happy for me that I am in a long-term relationship with Mika. We remain friends and hunting buddies, taking to the field to pursue game and enjoy our sport. Everyone who takes up hunting has their reasons for doing so, but as for me, I have had a lifelong passion for hunting, the outdoors and wildlife. Continue reading
