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Greetings to each and everyone of you.


This section for English-speaking viewers –
and all those enjoying the culture –

has developed over the months and is now offering materials of all kinds:

texts, images, poems, videos, etc.

It will continue to provide you with rich contents week after week.

 

32nd Sunday of Year C – 2022

4 novembre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: 2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 2 Maccabees 7:9-14, belief, choice, everlasting life, Luke 20:27-38, resurrection, Sadducees

In today’s gospel text, we see a group of Sadducees and we are told that they “say there is no resurrection.”
They want to set a trap for Jesus to say something which will lead them to challenge his teaching.
So, thinking themselves clever, they make up a story – a story that could make people laugh but…
it is about an important matter: the resurrection of the dead.

Jesus’ answer will soon have them speechless.
His logic takes them by surprise.
They cannot refute his argument as it arises directly from their scriptures.

When a word is repeated in a conversation, or in a text, it calls for our attention.
When an idea is presented in different ways, when it is stressed again and again, we understand that it has a special meaning.

This is the case in today’s 1st reading (2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14) and in the gospel (Luke 20:27-38).
The words ‘rise’ and ‘resurrection’ come back 4 times in the gospel.
The 1st reading has them under different forms: ‘be raised, resurrection, everlasting life’.

No doubt, there is a challenge there for us, people of the 21st century…
Some of us may also think and say that “there is no resurrection.”
Others may ask themselves… could it be that there is something after this life?
They wonder… is it possible that, after death, we will live again… in a different way, yet be truly alive?

“It is a matter of belief”, will you say, and you are right.
But not only of WHAT you believe but rather… WHOM you believe.

And that is the choice which everyone has to make for himself/herself…

 

Note: Another reflection is available on a different but similar theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/32e-dimanche-de-lannee-c-2022/

 

Source: Image: YouTube

Use Your Common Sense Day – 4 November

4 novembre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: common sense, imagination, judgements, Memories, perceptions, social media

Use Your Common Sense Day is observed annually on November 4, since common sense is an important tool for living life. Common sense is “the applied knowledge of simple, sensible things”, such as not putting metal into microwaves or jumping into rivers without knowing what is under the water. This date also marks the birthday of Will Rogers — the man who remarked “Common Sense ain’t that common”! We need to remind ourselves of the importance of applying common sense to our everyday lives and decisions to avoid unnecessary dangers and make the most of opportunities! In the social media age, this is a pet peeve of many — that common sense seems to have fallen by the wayside. There are even calls for subjects stimulating common sense in the school curriculums in the U.S. because so few seem to employ it!

HISTORY OF USE YOUR COMMON SENSE DAY

Common sense as a concept is ancient, first being brought to the limelight by the great philosopher, Aristotle. He described it as the ability with which animals (including humans) process sense perceptions, memories, and imagination to reach many types of judgments. To his thinking, only humans have real reasoned thinking, which takes them beyond common sense. This was then carried forward in the Roman interpretation, which holds that concepts like ideas and perceptions are held by man and make them more sophisticated than animals.

French philosopher, René Descartes, established the most common modern meaning, and its controversies, when he stated that everyone has a similar and sufficient amount of common sense, but it is rarely used well.

Since the Age of Enlightenment, the term “common sense” has been used for a rhetorical effect both approvingly, as a standard for good taste, and source of scientific and logical axioms.

In modern times, common sense is defined as ‘the basic level of practical knowledge and judgment that we all need to help us live reasonably and safely”. Without any doubt, applying common sense could save one a lot of problems.

Common Sense Day was created by Bud Bilanich, a career mentor, motivational speaker, blogger, and author. He’s starred in some leading TV shows and magazines and has written 19 books that highlight how to succeed in life, and how the application of common sense is vital to that success. Common Sense Day was first celebrated in 2015.

 

Source: Text: https://nationaltoday.com/use-your-common-sense-day/    Image: iStock

One Health Day – 3 November

3 novembre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: animals, Coronavirus, environment, health, humans, infectious diseases, influenza, Lyme disease, malaria, plague, rabies, zoonotic diseases

One Health Day - November 3

 

On November 3rd, One Health Day promotes efforts worldwide to bring together health disciplines that affect humans, animals, and the environment. The day also recognizes how closely our shared environment impacts human health.

Did you know that certain animals spread diseases between animals and humans called zoonotic diseases? Some examples of zoonotic diseases include:

  • Zoonotic influenza
  • Salmonellosis
  • West Nile Virus
  • Rabies
  • Brucellosis
  • Lyme disease
  • Plague
  • Malaria

Coronaviruses are also zoonotic disease. According to investigations, SARS-CoV was transmitted from civet cats to humans. Another type of coronavirus, the MERS-CoV, was transmitted from camels to humans. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), zoonotic diseases cause millions of death each year.

About 60 percent of emerging infectious diseases are zoonoses. These kinds of diseases can be found in every part of the world. Countries with the highest number of zoonotic diseases include Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tanzania, and India. Other countries are considered hotspots for emerging zoonotic diseases. These countries include the northeastern United States, the UK and other parts of Western Europe, and Brazil.

It takes cooperation amongst many groups of people to combat zoonotic diseases. Physicians, veterinarians, pet owners, farmers, ecologists, policymakers, and those who monitor public health threats form the group. The groups hope that working together will better understand zoonotic diseases. Understanding will lead to better control of zoonotic diseases and fewer cases worldwide.

 

Source: Text & Image: https://nationaldaycalendar.com/one-health-day-november-3/

International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists – 2 November

2 novembre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: conviction, crimes, impunity, journalists, media workers, prison, torture, UN, vilence

Every year, November 2nd marks the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists. The day draws attention to the low conviction rate for crimes committed against journalists on a global scale.

Some journalists stop at nothing to report the truth. Unfortunately, reporting facts cost some journalists their lives. In the past 12 years, over 1,000 journalists have died for seeking the truth and relaying it to the public. Other journalists suffered torture, were severely injured, imprisoned, and harassed. Women reporters suffered sexual assault. Unfortunately, the punishment for people who commit crimes of violence against journalists is too lenient.

In some cases, the offenders receive no punishment at all. Only one in ten cases committed against journalists in the last ten years has led to a conviction. This impunity leads to corruption and the covering up of human rights abuses.

The UN condemns all attacks and violence against journalists. Additionally, the UN urges the Member States to do everything they can to prevent violence against journalists and media workers. Perpetrators need to be held accountable, and justice must prevail.

 

Source: Text & Image: https://nationaldaycalendar.com/international-day-to-end-impunity-for-crimes-against-journalists-november-2/

International Internet Day – 29 October

29 octobre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: internet, invention, online, search engines, social media, web

International Internet Day on October 29th celebrates what many consider the most important invention in human history.

It’s hard to fathom a world without the Internet. The Internet provides instant access to information. Search engines make this information easy to attain. Besides gaining knowledge, internet users have an endless supply of entertainment. The internet makes it possible to do banking and shopping from the comfort of your own home. The internet is also a great way to make donations and raise funds. Thanks to the internet, many people are able to work remotely from anywhere in the world. Many use the internet to find a love connection, and many have had success. What in the world would we do without the internet?

To further prove the greatness of this invention, here are some mind-boggling statistics:

  • In 2019, there were 4.39 billion internet users in the world
  • About 4 billion people use the internet via a mobile device
  • Fifty-seven percent of the global population uses the internet
  • There are one million new internet users every day
  • On average, internet users spend 6 hours and 42 minutes a day online
  • On average, internet users spend 2 hours and 16 minutes a day on social media
  • Google is the world’s most visited website on the internet
  • YouTube and Facebook rank 2nd and 3rd for most visited sites

One of the reasons the internet is so widely used is because of the World Wide Web. The WWW became publically available in 1991.

 

Source: Text & Image: https://nationaldaycalendar.com/international-internet-day-october-29/

31st Sunday of Year C – 2022

28 octobre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: believe, merciful, portrait of God, rely upon, trust, Wisdom 11:22 – 12:2

Today’s 1st reading (Wisdom 11:22 – 12:2) gives us… A Portrait of God!
You wonder… you ask yourself what this really means…

Obviously, we should not look for a painting or a photo…
But let the words reach you again…

“You (Lord) are merciful to all…
You can do all things…
You overlook people’s sins…
You love all things that exist…
You spare all things, for they are yours…
You love the living…
Your immortal spirit is in all things…
You correct little by little those who trespass.”

Is this the God you believe in, the one you rely upon?…

 

The last line of the text tells us:
“So that their put their trust in you, O Lord.”

This is the reason we are given this… Portrait of God.

 

Note: The gospel scene of Zacchaeus, personified by Augustine Sellam, can be viewed in a video at:  https://youtu.be/7TIwA1YgPII

Another reflection is available on a different theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/31e-dimanche-de-lannee-c-2022/

 

Source: Image: WallpaperSafari

International Animation Day – 28 October

28 octobre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: 2D animation, 3D animation, animation, artform, artists, scientists, styles, technicians

On October 28th, International Animation Day recognizes the artists, scientists, and technicians behind animated art. It’s also a day to celebrate all aspects of animation.

When artists manipulate drawings to appear as moving pictures, they are creating animation. This art form has been used for more than 100 years to create cartoons and other types of entertainment. Through the years, artists and technicians have developed different kinds of animation.

Different Animation Styles

  • Traditional or 2D Animation: One of the most recognized animation artforms, 2D animation uses flat characters and environments. Before digital tools and advanced techniques came along, 2D animation required the use of meticulously hand-drawn frames. As you can imagine, this could take a very long time. Mickey Mouse, created by Walt Disney in 1937, is an example of 2D animation.
  • 3D Animation: This type of animation uses the art of motion and helps make characters look more realistic. With the help of computers, this type of animation got its start in the 1970s. Thanks to special software, 3D animation became very popular in the 1990s. During that decade, some of the most famous movies to use 3D animation include Toy Story, The Terminator, and Jurassic Park.
  • Stop Motion Animation: This type of animation is created by stringing together pictures of still objects in a specific sequence. The string of pictures combine to create the illusion of movement. Stop motion animation is also one of the oldest known types of animation. Modern examples of stop motion animated movies include Chicken Run and The Nightmare Before Christmas.
  • Typography Animation: Movies, commercials, and other forms of media often use animated text in their introductions or credits. Typography animation allows moving text to shrink, expand, or morph into another object. Think of the intro to Star Wars, and you get an idea of what typography animation looks like.

Other commonly used types of animation include rotoscope, motion capture, mechanical, and claymation.

 

Source: Text & Image: https://nationaldaycalendar.com/international-animation-day-october-28/

World Day for Audiovisual Heritage – 27 October 2022

27 octobre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: archives, audiovisual, collective memory, cultures, digital, documentaries, héritage

Audiovisual archives tell us stories about people’s lives and cultures from all over the world. They represent a priceless heritage which is an affirmation of our collective memory and a valuable source of knowledge since they reflect the cultural, social and linguistic diversity of our communities. They help us grow and comprehend the world we all share. Conserving this heritage and ensuring it remains accessible to the public and future generations is a vital goal for all memory institutions as well as the public at large. The UNESCO Archives has launched the project « Digitizing our shared UNESCO history » with this very goal in mind.

The World Day for Audiovisual Heritage (WDAH) is a commemoration of the adoption, in 1980 by the 21st General Conference, of the Recommendation for the Safeguarding and Preservation of Moving Images. The World Day provides an occasion to raise general awareness of the need to take urgent measures and to acknowledge the importance of audiovisual documents.

In this way, the World Day also serves as an opportunity for UNESCO’s Member States to evaluate their performance with respect to implementing the 2015 Recommendation Concerning the Preservation of, and Access to, Documentary Heritage, Including in Digital Form.

WDAH’s celebrations in 2022

The 2022 World Day for Audiovisual Heritage will be celebrated in conjunction with the 30th anniversary of the Memory of the World Programme. The celebration will take place from 27 October to 5 November 2022, under the theme “Enlisting documentary heritage to promote inclusive, just and peaceful societies”. Taking its cue from the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, documentary heritage, as an information resource, lends itself both to the “public access to information” component of Target of 16.10 of SDG 16 and its “fundamental freedoms” component. With respect to the theme of the celebration, while the question of ensuring universal access to documentary heritage remains a foundational concern, there is a strong focus on how documentary heritage can be used to promote inclusive, just and peaceful societies.

Source: Text: https://www.unesco.org/en/days/audiovisual-heritage     Image: internationaldays.com

World Amyloidosis Day – 26 octobre 2022

26 octobre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Amyloidosis, body tissues, diagnosis, organs, patients, proteins

Amyloidosis is the name for a group of rare, serious conditions caused by a build-up of an abnormal protein called amyloid in organs and tissues throughout the body. The build-up of amyloid proteins (deposits) can make it difficult for the organs and tissues to work properly.

Source: Text: google.com

Second World Amyloidosis Day

The Amyloidosis Alliance and worldwide patients organization has created an International Day of Awareness dedicated to this rare disease, with different participating countries throughout the world.
The objective of this World Amyloidosis Day is to alert the world about the diagnostic delay that patients face, which averages 4 years.
Faster diagnoses and better quality treatment can only be achieved by more widespread knowledge of the disease.
Our campaign is aimed at all: health authorities and professionals, pharmaceutical companies, scientists, associations, etc. Let’s be the link to supporting patients and their loved ones.
Source: Text: https://www.oneamyloidosisvoice.com/    Image: Journée mondiale

International Artist Day – October 25

25 octobre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: artists, beauty, culture, paintings, photography, reality, Sculpture

We celebrate International Artist Day on October 25. Art as a creative human expression encapsulates myriad things. It portrays the beauty of life or a bitter reality. It records history, revolutions, rebellions, and sometimes is a means to escape them. In short, there is no history or culture without art. This day celebrates all forms of art — paintings, sculpture, photography, architecture, music, and more. Through this celebration we show our respect for the passion and creativity in all artists. As art provide you with a medium of speech let us also see the work of those artists who study, research and criticize artists to showcase their art of words, here is a list of top art journalist.

HISTORY OF INTERNATIONAL ARTIST DAY

In the summer of 1961 President Kennedy made an effort to settle a salary dispute between the Metropolitan Opera and the American Federation of Musicians. He succeeded. Kennedy’s actions signaled his passion for the arts. Congress, in the mid 60s, designated the National Cultural Center, launched in 1958, as a “living memorial” to President Kennedy and authorized $23 million to begin construction. It’s now simply known as the Kennedy Center.

The following year President Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts & the Humanities Act, which created the National Endowment for the Arts. 

By 1970 focus on the arts increasingly spread to television and cinema. Mobil Oil committed more than $1 million to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for presentation of Masterpiece Theatre on PBS — and for 5 million copies of new Sesame Street magazine to be given free to preschool children in low-income neighborhoods. This was the largest gift to CPB from the business community to date.

A decade later President Reagan, himself a former actor appointed a Presidential Task Force on the Arts & Humanities to review the purposes of the National Endowments; broaden private support; engage more non-government professionals, private groups & individuals; & recommend ways to strengthen the overall structure of both agencies.

Still another president would show his support as well. Bill Clinton, in his 1997 State of the Union Address, asked Congress to maintain support for the arts — and urged citizens to make the year 2000 a national celebration “so that we can remain the world’s beacon not only of liberty but of creativity, long after the fireworks have faded.”

Recently the Museum of Modern Art in New York City reopened after a $400 million renovation — adding over 40,000 square feet for galleries (including two at the street-level)— inside the new West 53rd St. tower. They are free to the public.

 

Source: Text & Image: https://nationaltoday.com/international-artist-day/