User talk:Mahagaja

Why did you say this?

From FAC page on RCC you stated this: "I'm not a Catholic (though I'd probably convert if I thought they'd let me in),". I was just wondering why you thought they would not let you in - to my knowledge everyone is welcome. NancyHeise (talk) 16:10, 15 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, I don't think they'd be terribly happy about the fact that I'm a man who's married to another man. :-) —An gr 17:21, 15 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You would not be allowed to take communion but you would be allowed to come to Church and be part of the congregation. There are a number of people who have divorced and remarried who are also not allowed to come to communion but (happily) they are there anyway and I believe that when I go to communion, I am allowed to take it for those who can not and that they will receive the graces of communion because I have asked for them to. Many Catholics do exactly that when they go to communion. They have children and friends who are divorced and remarried or who live in same sex partnerships or who have committed some crime or other mortal sin (for which they have not repented) that prevents them from receiving communion and the Catholics who can receive remember them when receiving saying "Please let the graces of this Holy Communion be also for x and x". Many significant people who participate in church ministry are homosexual. Our Church teachings do not allow homosexuals to become priests but they also tell us that homosexual people are God's children who are to be treated with respect and love. That doesnt make all Catholics good and holy and within every parish you will meet many people who are really beautiful on the inside and also some others (not many) who have a long way to go before I would call them beautiful on the inside. We politely consider all of us, however ugly on the inside or not, as being on "the journey". I will include you on my list of "x and x's" when I take communion. You seem like a very nice man who may already be farther down the road to "beautiful on the inside" than many others like me who are allowed to take communion. Maybe you could pray for me too. NancyHeise (talk) 19:36, 24 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I will! And as long as I stay a "schismatic and heretic" Anglican, I'm allowed to take Communion – and not just in Anglican churches, but also in Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland churches and Old Catholic churches (virtually unknown in the U.S. but occasionally encountered over here). This evening, in fact, I went to Communion at an EKD church just down the street (normally I'd go to the Anglican church on Sunday morning, but my husband's sick so I want to stay home tomorrow morning to take care of him). But as much as I like the idea of being part of the most direct descendant of the church Jesus founded through Peter, rather than one of the groups that broke away from it, I'm not prepared to give up a denomination that does allow me to take Communion in exchange for one that doesn't. But I still consider myself part of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, and sometimes I'll even say a Rosary or a Chaplet of Divine Mercy. —An gr 21:32, 24 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I was baptised into the Episcopalian Church in 7th grade. I have only happy memories of my church where I babysat for the priest's kids and was involved in a really fun youth group. I used to think that the Catholic Church was really stuck up for its rules and beliefs and thought the rules were really stupid too. Until I had my religious experience and now I believe that John Paul II was telling us the truth and that the Catholic Church is the only church providing a certain level of truth that others are not. There is a kind of love Jesus wanted us to find that we can not find if we are not chaste. We can't have sex with everyone we love but Jesus told us to love -really love people. There is a love that is higher than sex and more beautiful that people can not find if they are always giving in to the "flesh" and that is what the Catholic Church is leading people to with all it's "stupid" rules. While we all believe that Jesus is present in Christian communities Catholic or not and that he can save and pour out graces in these places, we can't get upset with the Catholic Church for doing what Jesus may exactly want them to be doing. Peace to you and your husband, I hope he feels better and don't be upset with me for sharing - I really do like you and would like to be friends. NancyHeise (talk) 01:02, 25 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, I disagree that sex in the context of a loving, monogamous relationship that has been blessed by God is unchaste. And the Catholic Church has a lot of rules I disagree with that have nothing to do with sex! If I were ever to convert (which would only happen if, God forbid, my husband were to die, and if I decided afterward that I was willing to be abstinent), I would have to be able to either change my mind on those issues, or at least keep my points of disagreement to myself. But back to the original point of this thread: I seriously doubt I would be allowed to go through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults if it was clear I wasn't going to be allowed Communion at the end anyway. And even if I were allowed to go through the Rite, why would I bother? I'm already allowed to attend Catholic services as long as I don't take Communion. —An gr 07:30, 25 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It is my hope that you will consider the possibility that there is something more than sexual love that is every bit more than satisfying if you think that is what God's will is for you. Since I am not God, I will not try to tell you what that is. However, I will tell you that Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults welcomes all who profess the faith, go to confession, and intend to try to be a Christian. There are a lot of chaste homosexuals within the Catholic Church and yes, some of them have former partners who have died and they have decided to be abstinent. One of my elderly male friends is a former practicing homosexual. We belong to the same prayer group and he is very much in love with Jesus and I absolutely think he is so very wonderful and beautiful. He is happy to be chaste and to spend any sexual energy in prayer instead of in practice. NancyHeise (talk) 17:11, 25 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, since my husband is 12 years younger than me and in better health, the situation is unlikely to arise. But as long as he and I are together (which will be as long as we are both alive, since at the Blessing of our Union we vowed before God to be each other's lifelong partner "until we are parted by death"), I can't promise to "try to be a Christian" by the Catholic Church's definition of that term, since their definition includes intending to avoid all sexual contact except within a heterosexual marriage. But I already do try to be a Christian by my own understanding of that term, so for now I'll stay an Anglican. There are lots of things about the Catholic Church that appeal to me (if I ever had to be rushed to the hospital I would certainly request to be taken to a Catholic one!), but at this point in my life I can't agree to the membership requirements. —An gr 17:54, 25 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"Love covers a multitude of sins. We are all sinners in one way or another. The sins of human weakness are less serious than the sins of human cruelty. If we keep the Ten Commandments and do no more that only makes us balanced out, not in the "red" (using financial terms) - we are required to produce good fruit - to do something good that helps others. Eternal life begins today." A priest I love very much (and can't and would never have sex with) that I pray for often, said these things. Perhaps your sin of human weakness is going to be balanced out by other good things you do - your love that covers a multitude of sins. God bless you. NancyHeise (talk) 21:32, 25 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Please think about how you would feel if someone referred to your love for your husband as a sin of human weakness. —An gr 21:36, 25 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Love is never a sin. But there are some ways of expressing it that are more advantageous to our beloved's soul than others. I think what the Church is trying to do is to help people find these other ways and they don't force those who disagree to accept it. NancyHeise (talk) 00:28, 26 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

span.IPA at User:Angr/monobook.css

Hi, thank you for all your contributions to Wikipedia. :)

I noticed that you still have span.IPA in your Monobook settings; as I wrote at WP:PHON's talk page, using just ".IPA" allows more flexible styling.

I'd like to convert the IPA article to use the "IPA wikitable" CSS class again, but one reason I'm hesitant to revamp the article is because you, a major contributor to Wikipedia, are still using span.IPA.

Could you kindly switch to ".IPA" in your user stylesheet, please? Thank you very much. --Kjoonlee 23:41, 19 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Like this? I don't really understand how CSS's work; someone else showed me how to set up that page once, and now my changes to it are hit-and-miss. If I'm lucky, I actually succeed in doing what I want to. —An gr 12:51, 20 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yep, that's it! Thank you very much. You might need to check this link and bypass your cache. --Kjoonlee 03:00, 21 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

(Deletion log); 21:45 . . Angr (Talk | contribs) deleted "Image:PaulStanleyArtByPhilKonstantin.JPG" (I6: No justification given for non-free image)

So when I explained that the author of the work gave me permission to use the photo of his artwork on the internet, you consider that to be "No justification given for non-free image."

Would you please explain how that works.

Phil Konstantin Phil Konstantin (talk) 01:10, 20 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia doesn't use non-free images by permission. We use non-free images when they comply with the non-free content guideline and policy. This image was improperly tagged as PD-self, was not low-resolution, and had no non-free content rationale. —An gr 12:59, 20 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Image of Jayne Marie Mansfield

The image didn't fail WP:NFCC#8 anymore. Extensive commentary is on the article. Do you think a different title for the image is needed? At least one thing is mighty sure that G4 doesn't apply here. Aditya^{(talk • contribs)} 19:11, 20 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, the image does still fail WP:NFCC#8; all the arguments made at IFD back in September/October still hold, so WP:CSD#G4 applies. A new title for the image won't help. If you disagree, the place to go is WP:DRV. —An gr 19:32, 20 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I have taken the issue to DRV as per your recommendation. Please, take a look. Should I also notify User:Nv8200p, who deleted the page earlier, and User:NAHID, who is sending e-mails to raise issues? Aditya^{(talk • contribs)} 03:52, 24 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, that would be a good idea. —An gr 08:03, 24 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Deletion review for Image:JayneMariePlayboy.jpg

An editor has asked for a deletion review of Image:JayneMariePlayboy.jpg. Since you closed the deletion discussion for this article, speedy-deleted it, or were otherwise interested in the article, you might want to participate in the deletion review. Aditya^{(talk • contribs)} 03:52, 24 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Help/advise needed

I had created a .png (Image:Bir Sreshtho Medal.png) file to stand for a .jpg file (Image:Bir Sreshtho Medal.jpg) which is no more. I also had copied the image description for the original file, which claimed a fair use. It's been tagged by the User:STBotI. When I revisited the image, I was struck by the possibility that the image may not be non-free at all. It may be perfectly eleigible for an inclusion in the commons, like Image:AshokaChakra.png. Any suggestions? Aditya^{(talk • contribs)} 14:37, 22 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I doubt that Image:AshokaChakra.png is really public domain. The uploader may have taken the photograph, but the design on the medal itself is probably copyrighted, unless the design has been around for over 100 years or so. —An gr 15:54, 22 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Oh! May bad. Thanks. Aditya^{(talk • contribs)} 03:54, 23 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Gaeilge

Just wondering, why are you so into editing the Gaeilge/Irish language page?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.105.162.101 (talk) 13:16, 26 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Because it's a topic that interests me. —An gr 14:09, 26 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm From Caois Farriage in county Galway and I'm fluent in Irish.......if i wanted to translate english pages onto the irish wikipedia would i have to find references in Irish webpages or could i use the english ones? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.105.162.101 (talk) 00:40, 29 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You could use the English ones. The important thing is that readers be able to read the references provided, and since the number of people who can read Irish but cannot read English is vanishlingly small, you can be sure 99.9% of your readership will understand references in English. —An gr 04:08, 29 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

German translation on ref desk.

Thanks for sprucing it up. I sort of had images of Greek temples in Germany playing in my mind. I thought the Jewish churches were called "synagogues" (sp.?) The possessive with the marriage license just didn't come to mind. I knew the thing looked odd, but couldn't quite figure what was off. That's why I played around with the preposition, which wasn't it. I don't know if you get that, too, but sometimes I have the feeling something is off, but can't put a finger on why. Then I look at it later, or someone else tells me and it's forehead slapping time. Anyway, thanks for your help. --Lisa4edit (talk) 17:31, 28 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I think there's a difference between a synagogue and a temple. I'm not Jewish, though, so I'm not sure. We could probably read Synagogue and Temple and find out, though. —An gr 17:34, 28 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Okay, I've read them. It seems that Reform Jews and some Conservatives call their houses of worship temples, while Orthodox and most Conservatives call them synagogues. —An gr 17:39, 28 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mariology

Hi, you did a nice job on the reorganization of the disambig page. Thank you. History2007 (talk) 03:56, 31 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks! —An gr 08:27, 31 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Verkündung der Wehrfreiheit 1935

Re: your comment on the Treaty of Versailles Talk page: the document is at my office where I'll return only on Weds. Scanning's a bit of a problem; I might photograph it if that would help, so I may yet take you up on your offer. The printing is some blackletter typeface that neither I nor a younger colleague could puzzle out, and I'm contemplating showing it to one of the seniors educated in Europe. Basically I'm hoping that nailing the terminology will provide insight into that milestone in 20th C. European history... though I've been told overtly that I'm naive (or worse) to seek subtleties in Nazi promotional texts. Anyway, I'd like to put it on that page. I'll update you ...meanwhile, thanks! -- Deborahjay (talk) 16:55, 2 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If it's Fraktur I should be able to read it with no problem. At least it's not handwritten; Kurrent gives me a headache even when it's very clear and neatly written, and of course it usually isn't. And it would be nice to know what it says even if there is no subtlety behind it. —An gr 18:12, 2 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]