WASHINGTONIn a world of uncertainty there appears to be an abiding desire for some kind of surety about the hereafter. The Washington-based Conversations on the Green, tapped into this wellspring of interest Sunday afternoon when it presented the bestselling author of "Proof of Heaven," Dr. Eben Alexander, and Dr. Lisa Miller, a scholar on spirituality at Columbia University, in a debate that explored the role of spirituality in modern life.

Dr. Alexanders own near-death experience left him profoundly persuaded that there is life after death.

The packed forum was moderated by former NBC News correspondent and talk show host, Jane Whitney, a local resident and it benefited Greenwoods, a Litchfield County nonprofit that provides help to anyone struggling with emotional, behavioral or psychological issues.

Dr. Alexander's book details the events leading up to his illness, as well as the unearthly journeys he took while in a coma caused by bacterial meningitis. He met God, he says, and now believes that death is a passageway to an eternal world led by a Divine being.

He is currently preparing another book, "The Map of Heaven," to be released this fall.

Tongue in cheek, Ms. Whitney opened the discussion by asking Dr. Alexander, You say that during your near-death experience, you saw God. What is she like?

The deity is beyond anything you could remotely put in words, he responded. When I first came back and was trying to understand what had happened, I realized it was more than words could describe. When journeyers do go there and come back, it is important t to realize that earthly language cannot do justice to that realm. Language very much gets in way. Its hard to use earthly worlds to describe something that is not like a trip to Disney World.

The word God was such a puny little human word, he continued. I had witnessed was what many call Godcheck off God, Jehova, Yahweh, Buddhawhatever you call him. I came to realize the hard problem of consciousness, what near death experiences have been telling us for millennia, is that there is something we dont understand at all and it is really beyond naming, that infinite power, that all-loving light. It takes the fear of death away forever.

He said he came to accept what he had seen slowly. I had been a man of science, he said. I liked facts and I really didnt buy into this. I had grown up in the Methodist churchmy father was both religious and scientificbut over the course of my career in neurosurgery, my faith waned. I couldnt understand how consciousness survived the death of the brain. For the eight years before my coma I was agnostic.

But the belief that the physical brain creates consciousness is false, he concluded. Whether it filters it or allows it to come into existence is quite another thing, but the hard problem of consciousness is that no one can give you the first sentence on how the brain creates consciousness, because it does not. Continued...

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'Proof of Heaven' Conversation is Held

MOUNT VERNON -- The Rend Lake Marketplace will offer a variety of general education courses, aerobics classes, computer workshops and improvement programs this fall.

Most general education courses start this week and continue through early December. Courses include calculus and analytic geometry, integrated reading and writing, medical terminology EMT basic, EMT paramedic, psychology, phlebotomy and food sanitation.

Seven computer classes also begin this week, including computer basics, Excel for beginners, intermediate-level Excel, advanced Excel, Quickbooks for beginners, Word for beginners and Access for beginners.

Two spinning aerobics and zumba classes will also be offered this fall. Access to exercise equipment is $80 for the semester, and aerobics courses are an extra $5.

For more information, call618-437-5321.

-- The Southern

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RLC Marketplace hosting variety of classes this fall

Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence is apparently dating Coldplay frontman, Chris Martin. The news came following Lawrence's split from her X-Men co-star, Nicholas Hoult in June 2014.

Apparently, flirting began at a party following a Coldplay concert in July of this year. Martin had been single since March when he split up with his wife, Gwyneth Paltrow after being married for ten years. Rumours began to circulate in various US media outlets before recently appearing in UK newspapers.

Jennifer recently split from X-Men co-star Nicholas Hoult

Ten years after marrying fitness loving Paltrow, who has a strict excercise routine and enjoys a healthy diet, Martin has made a complete U-turn by dating the junk-food-enjoying smoker Lawrence. It has been suggested that this opposite lifestyle is what Martin finds attractive in Lawrence.

More: How did Jennifer Lawrence become a Hollywood darling?

In stark contrast to the Lawrence rumours, Martin also apparently still finding time to spend with his ex-wife, with whom he has two children. The couple are reported to still live together despite their split due to still being good friends. The family of Martin, 37, Platrow, 41, and children Apple, 10, and Moses, 8, were seen on holiday in East Hampton last month. Coldplay recently released their sixth studio album in May 2014 with no tours planned until the Iheartradio festival in Las Vegas in September.

More: Chris Martin writes a song about the breakdown of his marriage

Lawrence, 24, who has finished filming for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay parts one and two which will be released this year and next, broke up with 24-year-old Nicholas Hoult after a combined three years due to conflicting schedules. They first began their relationship in 2011 while filming X-Men: First Class, but the couple split in 2013. After six months, they got back together after filming X-Men: Days of Future Past before finally calling it quits this year.

More: Jennifer Lawrence isn't annoying, but there are other celebrities who are

While no official confirmation of a relationship has emerged from either party, reports continue to trickle in from alleged friends of both Lawrence and Martin. The couple seem all set to become the favourite A-list couple of tabloids across the world in the upcoming months.

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Rumours Of Jennifer Lawrence And Chris Martin Relationship Continue To Surface

If youve survived a heart-attack, you probably know that its especially important for you to get out and run or walk to help your cardiovascular health, however a new study suggests thats true only to a point.

Researchers studied about 2,400 heart-attack survivors and found that running is good for their cardiovascular health unless they ran more than four-miles a day. They also found that walking is good for their health unless they walked more than six miles per day. At those points, their cardiovascular risk started to go back up.

If youre a person with heart disease in your family, doctors say you should do about 30 minutes of exercise per day.

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/running-4-miles-day-bad-article-1.1901922

A new study from the University of Alabama found that, if youre already healthy, you can likely double your daily recommended sodium intake and still be okay

Researchers found that people under the age of 60 who dont have high blood pressure didnt seem to be affected by the extra salt.

There are two big catches here. First, theres still a correlation between salt intake and high blood pressure, and second, it turns out most of us already eat twice the recommended daily intake of sodium.

In short, no, this doesnt give you license to put extra salt on those fries, because chance are, youve been doing it all along.

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Excercise And Cardiac Health; More Salt Ok?

BANGKOK: Southeast Asian stock markets were range-bound on Monday, with Thai shares easing as investors cashed in on recent gainers among large-caps such as Intouch Holdings, while stocks in Malaysia snapped five days of gains amid foreign-led selling.

Malaysia's key index fell 0.14 percent after hittinga more than one-week high on Friday. Malaysia and severalmarkets in Southeast Asia reported outflows amid concerns abouttensions between Ukraine and Russia.

Exchange data showed foreign investors were net sellers ofMalaysian shares worth 60 million ringgit ($19 million).

Bangkok's SET index ended down 0.3 percent, giving up early gains after data showed Thailand avoided recession in the second quarter. Investors awaited the formation of an interim government seen taking place by next week. Broker KGI Securities said optimism the new cabinet would boost growth in the second half of 2014 remained intact. General Prayuth Chan-ocha, stressing that the military had a "limited time" in power before a return to civilian rule, submitted a draft fiscal 2015 budget on Monday, with defence and education receiving hefty increases. Foreigners also offloaded a net 31 million peso ($709,463) in Philippine shares and Thai stocks worth a net 983 million baht ($31 million). SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS Change on day Market Current Prev Close Pct Move TR SE Asia Index* 443.67 444.35 -0.15 Singapore 3312.78 3314.77 -0.06 Kuala Lumpur 1861.75 1864.31 -0.14 Bangkok 1542.36 1546.62 -0.28 Jakarta 5156.75 5148.96 +0.15 Manila 7027.58 7008.51 +0.27 Ho Chi Minh 605.08 604.24 +0.14 Change on year Market Current End 2013 Pct Move TR SE Asia Index* 443.67 388.37 +14.24 Singapore 3312.78 3167.43 +4.59 Kuala Lumpur 1861.75 1866.96 -0.28 Bangkok 1542.36 1298.71 +18.76 Jakarta 5156.75 4274.18 +20.65 Manila 7027.58 5889.83 +19.32 Ho Chi Minh 605.08 504.63 +19.91 * The Thomson Reuters South East Asia Index is a highly representative indicator of stocks listed in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

(1 US dollar = 43.6950 Philippine peso) (1 US dollar = 31.8200 Thai baht) (1 US dollar = 3.1550 Malaysian ringgit) - Reuetrs

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Southeast Asia stocks: Range-bound, foreign investors sell RM60mil worth in Malaysia

GEORGE TOWN: He is not a politician, he is not a rich man but he draws hundreds to see him five days a week in Penang.

He is Jeorge Subramaniam and he is known as the one person who can get many to sweat it out. He conducts regular aerobics sessions at the Penang Municipal Park.

He is doing good for the people and indirectly for the good of this country, wrote Carolina Tan to The Star.

Tan wrote in 2008 that Jeorges twice weekly sessions at the park, formerly known as the Youth Park, brought together hundreds of people from different races and hoped that he would carry on his good work in promoting goodwill among the various races while also improving their health.

Jeorge, 66, has done more than that. He expanded his aerobics classes to the New World Park the same year besides maintaining the one at Medan Mayang Pasir in Bayan Baru, which he started in the late 1990s.

His classes continue to attract people of different races, many of whom have found new friendships with other participants.

Housewife Norlaila Ismail, 51, said she had followed Jeorges aerobics sessions for the past 20 years and found him to be someone who is generous in his commitment.

He never expects anything in return and welcomes everyone to join him, regardless of age and race, to lead a healthy life, she said, adding that her husband and three grown-up children also joined in whenever they are free.

She said she had also made many good friends from various races who are also regulars at the classes.

Why do we need to spend so much on gyms when we can follow this easy and fun yet effective activity, she added.

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Penangites regular aerobics sessions bring hundreds together to keep fit

Published: Saturday, 8/16/2014 - Updated: 10 hours ago BOOK REVIEW

BY TK BARGER BLADE RELIGION EDITOR

Imagine that, with the prestige of your job, you can have contact with just about any spiritual leader in the world. Imagine that the tensions from your work are steering you to seek some spiritual help. Imagine learning about your spirituality by having elite religious figures become your teachers. And imagine that you have a reason to seek a better path.

Dan Harris didnt have to imagine. When he was addressing a panic disorder and turning away from destructive behavior, including drug use, he became curious about the benefits of meditation.His job, as a correspondent for ABC News, gave him entree to inspirational people who wrote best-selling books or led religious movements. His mentor Peter Jennings, then the anchor of World News Tonight, had appointed him as ABC's religion reporter; today Harris is one of the anchors of Nightline and cohost of the weekend edition of Good Morning America, as well as a reporter for World News Tonight and other ABC News programs.

Sometimes for his reporting and at other times using story ideas for his own spiritual inquiry, Harris contacted prominent authors and religious leaders and learned their ways. For this religious education, he started with Eckhart Tolle, an Oprah-approved self-help swami, then went to Deepak Chopra, probably the most famous guru on earth, and later even had an audience with the Dalai Lama, head of Tibetan Buddhism: Within minutes, he had already proven himself more reasonable than either Eckhart Tolle or Deepak Chopra.

Harris also found some Jew-Bu, or Jewish-Buddhist, authors, psychologist Dr. Mark Epstein and meditation teacher Joseph Goldstein, who continue to provide guidance. Prior to reading Epstein, he wrote, my most substantial interaction with Buddhism was when, as a 15-year-old punk kid, I stole a Buddha statue from a local gardening store and put it in my bedroom because I thought it looked cool.

As Harris was reading about Buddhist meditation, The thought popped into my head: Should I try this? I decided: Damn it, let's give it a shot. Carpe diem, and whatnot. He followed the book's instructions on how to meditate sitting comfortably, consciously focusing on breathing in and out, and the biggie. Whenever your attention wanders, just forgive yourself and gently come back to the breath.You don't need to clear the mind of all thinking; that's pretty much imposssible.

Meditation turned out to be what he needed. If you'd told me when I first arrived in New York City, to start working in network news, that I'd be using meditation to defang the voice in my heador that I'd ever write a whole book about itI would have laughed at you, he wrote in the preface.

Harris's most important revelation about meditation became the title of his book, 10% Happier, which is partly memoir of life in network news, partly appreciation of the practice of and effects from meditationwith a how-to-meditate appendix. Meditation makes Harris 10 percent happier, he realized. It doesn't completely change you; meditation makes things a little bit more manageable. The little bit for Harris is in the subtitle: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually WorksA True Story.

The 10% Happier phrase had the dual benefit of being catchy and true, he wrote, simultaneously counterprogramming against the overpromising of the self-helpers while also offering an attractive return on investment.

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Book review: 10% Happier

Spirituality is often identified with the value center of life, especially with all we do to find meaning and purpose in life and connect ourselves to others by means of compassion and empathy. Cultivating a spiritual life affects our relationships and, more subtly, our thinking our perceptions, our evaluations and our ways of knowing. We all acquire frames of understanding that we trust will help guide us to the truth about ourselves and the world, but with spiritual growth comes a freedom to engage in deep questioning about our ability to see the truth we seek.

The spiritual point of view allows us to take seriously questions that challenge our ordinary ways of thinking and our culturally embedded assumptions. This was recently brought home to me when a friend asked, "Who understands more about breathing, the pulmonologist or the yoga master?" Many would no doubt respond, "the pulmonologist," and for this reason: if science is the arbiter of truth, and you want to know the truth about breathing, go to the scientist who specializes in breathing.

But there is more to the story, which is why asking questions about yoga masters and pulmonologists or about geologists and potters (who best understands clay?) is important. Such questions provoke reflection and self-confrontation. There are cultures in which people trust the deep understanding of yoga masters and potters, so what do we do with that? We might express our disagreement and give our reasons, or even dismiss such unenlightened thinking, but perhaps some humility is required. Perhaps the more important question to ask is this: "What is it they know that I don't?" Allowing ourselves to be stumped when confronted with our own assumptions reflects an openness to learning and even some deeper spiritual stirring or awakening.

Calling assumptions into question is the work of scientists as much as it is that of philosophers and theologians. William James, an early 20th century philosopher and scientist, refusing to be boxed in by the boundaries of disciplines and the artificial orderliness of academic structures, once commented that the universe is a "more many-sided affair than any sect, even the scientific sect, allows for." He then followed up by saying "science and religion are both of them genuine keys for unlocking the world's treasure house to him who can use either of them practically ... ."

On this understanding the geologist whose mineral and soil analysis leads to a decision about where to put a building to avoid a landslide is akin to the potter who whirls clay on a wheel, shapes it, glazes it, fires it in a kiln and makes a functional and perhaps beautiful pot to enhance daily living. Both understand earthen materials clay and both hold a truth that does not negate the other's.

If spirituality so affects thinking and understanding that it breaks down the barriers we have created to avoid complexity, then we do well to take James' serious point about truth that truth appears in what is practical. And the practical test of spiritual growth will appear not only in outlook and attitudes but finally in the most practical thing of all our actual behavior.

Consider a central spiritual value, humility, and how it is expressed in practical behavior. Humility has its critics and despisers, but there is no doubt that genuine humility is a difficult spiritual attainment. Humility poses a direct challenge to the egoism and competitiveness that is so fostered in our society, and if the English author and philosopher Iris Murdoch was right when she said, "Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real," then humility is actually necessary for the seeing beyond ourselves that is love.

What does it look like to see humility expressed practically in action?

In the 1960s, England's secretary of state for war, John Profumo, got himself tangled up in a sex scandal with a call girl who had herself been involved with a Russian spy. After lying about the affair and having the lie exposed, Profumo resigned. The conservative government of Harold Macmillan followed suit not long after.

Profumo never sought to excuse his behavior. He removed himself from the public eye, and for the next 40 years, until his death in 2006 at the age of 91, he worked in a charitable settlement, Toynbee Place, helping the poor in London's East End. This disgraced public official became a dedicated social worker who washed dishes and cleaned toilets, who visited prisons and worked to house the poor. When he died many considered him a saint.

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Faith and Values: Reflections on spirituality, true humility