Blog #11

I was raised with a Methodist background when I was growing up.  I attended pre-school at Trenholm Rd Methodist Church which is also where we attended church; my family did not attend church that often when I was a child, and once I was around the age of ten or so, we stopped going to church altogether pretty much.  My religious background does not affect my thoughts about spiritual ecology whatsoever.  I do not consider myself a religious person and therefore I am open to many new ideas.  Spiritual ecology is a concept that essentially states that all organisms on earth are connected spiritually.  Basically, you and me are connected to each other, who in turn are connected to our neighbor's dog, who is then connected to the bush in the front yard.  We then come full circle back to you and me because we are connected to the bush as well. 
The Gaia Hypothesis is an interesting concept.  It states that everything on the earth builds up one complete organism which is the earth itself; the earth is a living creature, and we are all essentially the cells that make the earth alive.  This is quite a radical concept, but intriguing nonetheless.  I agree with the idea that we are all connected and do make up something larger than what we see on the surface.  But I do not believe the earth is a living entity; we are just a part of the beautiful circle of life on earth.
I think we do most certainly live in a hyper-masculine culture.  The male gender has always been the dominant gender of our species since the beginning of history.  Today, I believe that this notion is changing dramatically.  We have women in many powerful positions in office in our government; for example, Hillary Clinton was recently the Secretary of State which is a coveted position.  Change is happening rapidly considering that women just got the right to vote less than 100 years ago. I could see men and women being completely equal in society one day.