Repeating Islands

News and Commentary on Caribbean culture, literature, and the arts

Ivette Romero-Cesareo and Lisa Paravisini-Gebert have produced a wonderful blog that deals with a wide ranging subject matter tied to the broader discourse of Pan-Caribbean Culture. Their own words describe the matter best:

"Our use of the title of Antonio Benítez Rojo’s influential text, The Repeating Island, for the name of our blog represents both our tribute to a lost friend and a simple way of defining our audience–those scholars and readers whose interests focus on pan-Caribbean literatures and cultures. We welcome your comments and contributions.

Please note that this is a project intended to bring the broader Caribbean community closer through the sharing of news and information that transcends the linguistic divide in the region. It is a labor of love supported partially by our institutions in the form of student assistants. Therefore, we do not accept advertisements nor will we in the future. We thank you for understanding.

Our banner is taken from Gesner Abelard’s Agwe-Ta-Royau (1955), from Jonathan Demme’s collection of Haitian paintings."

Repeating Islands: News and Commentary on Caribbean culture, literature, and the arts

Arte Maçónica .'. Masonic Art

Carmen-Lara is a Portuguese visual artist with a rich palate and an equally diverse subject matter. One of her stated interests is in devoting canvases to Masonic themes.

VITRIOL or V.I.T.R.I.O.L. is the abbreviation of the Latin expression "Visita Interiorem Terrae, Rectificandoque, Invenies Occultum Lapidem," which means: Visit the Center of the Earth, grind it up, find the hidden stone (or Philosophy). Philosophically it means: Visit the Interior, purify, find the Hidden Self, or "the essence of your human soul." It is the universal symbol of man's quest to constantly improve himself and society in general.

Of her art, Carmen-Lara remarks, "Art adds beauty, excellence, nobility, dignity, and balance to a space. Let the feeling of well-being, of harmony, of emotions, invade your being!

ART IS A LANGUAGE!

Arte Maçónica .'. Masonic Art
http://artemaconicadacarmen.blogspot.com/

Logia José Martí

From time to time we will offer some small photographic pieces of masonic architecture, because we have and believe all Freemasons should have an interest in the forms of lodges in various corners of the world. We will start, perhaps somewhat arbitrarily, with the Logia José Martí in Palma Soriano, Santiago de Cuba, in eastern Cuba. José Julián Martí Pérez, 1853-1895, was a Cuban national hero and an important figure in Latin American literature. He was a poet, an essayist, journalist, revolutionary philosopher, translator, professor, publisher, and a political theorist. He was also a Freemason. Through writing and political activity, he became a symbol for Cuba's bid for independence against Spain in the 19th century. He also fought against the threat of United States expansionism into Cuba. He is unique among political symbols in the world for being a revered figure for both Cubans who support the current government and those who oppose it. After his death, one of his poems from his collection, "Versos Sencillos" (Simple Verses) was adapted to become the song, "Guantanamera", which is the definitive patriotic song of Cuba.

Yes Virginia, there is a...XXIst Century Freemasonry

Today, many are seeking new models to breathe more life into the dying edifice of North American Freemasonry. There have been a few cautious steps; models such as Traditional Observance or European Concept lodges attempt to respond to the apparent lack of engagement offered by mainstream Masonic institutions today. However much such examples may appeal to some, they have not reversed the general trend in American Freemasonry. They represent a limited attempt to provide relevance to a larger antiquated system.

In part this may be due to the way in which the larger organization relates to them. Their compromise is to work within the larger system attempting to carve out a small space in the desert where they can embrace their own vision of the craft, but always within that larger shadow of the GL system. Such efforts should be encouraged, as far as they can go.

But there is a different way. What happens when sheer energy, enthusiasm, and creativity are given the chance to be the norm? If you want to have a view into that world look to the blog Masonería Siglo XXI and take a tour through the various blogs listed on that blog as well.

NB: Skill in Spanish will help, but if you can't read the language, if you use the Chrome browser, you can translate them on the go. THe translations are not fabulous, but they will help.

Race: Coming to a city near you!

Race is a small but powerful word. Race shapes how one sees and is seen by others. Yet, many people poorly understand what race is and isn't.

To help promote a broad understanding of race and human variation, the American Anthropological Association has undertaken the RACE Project. The RACE Project has produced to date an award-winning public education program entitled RACE Are We So Different? The program includes a traveling museum exhibit, an interactive website, and educational materials. The program is geared for middle school-aged children through adults.

RACE Are We So Different? looks at race in the United States through the eyes of history, science and lived experience. The program explains how human variation differs from race, when and why the idea of race was invented, and how race and racism affects everyday life. The program conveys three overall messages:

Race is a recent human invention
Race is about culture, not biology
Race and racism are embedded in institutions and everyday life.
The Ford Foundation and National Science Foundation have provided generous funding to develop and produce RACE: Are We So Different?



Race is coming to a City near you! to see where the film and exhibit will be in the coming year, click here: Tour Dates and Venues

A Piece of Architecture: Haiti's Gingerbread Houses

Why a link on the Victorian Architecture of Port au Prince, Haiti? Well, It a piece on Architecture, and I love puns. Looking at these old 'Grandes Dames' of the Caribbean in their steamy setting warms the bones of this old mason on the chilly first day of December. Besides, there is perhaps no other country in the New World which has played as significant a role in the development of Freemasonry in the Americas as had Haiti, and Port au Prince is its capital. The love of architecture and Masonry should go hand in hand. I was in love with the former before I was old enough to be aware of the latter. As both masons and humans, we should all remember the Haitians and redouble our concern and support for them as the world and its humanitarian donors seem ready to allow this fierce and beautiful country to be forgotten again.

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2004148_2166285,00.html

Roosevelt Center for the Study of Civil Society

The goal of the Roosevelt Center is to serve as a focal point for conversation, inquiry and action by students, faculty, Masons and others interested in the emerging scholarly fields of civil society and Freemasonry, in California and across the world. The Center approaches Freemasonry as an association historically representative of civil society as it developed from the eighteenth-century onwards. It supports inquiry into the role Freemasonry assumed in private and public life. It also explores Masonic thought in a variety of historical and contemporary settings. The approach of the Center is multi-disciplinary, comparative and intended to support work at multiple institutions as well as with independent scholars.

The objectives of the Roosevelt Center are to

•Improve understanding of civil society and Freemasonry.
•Inform universities in California, the Masonic community and the learning public about the emerging field of the academic study of Freemasonry, and the advantages and need for comparative and global studies.
•Facilitate funding for research and travel grants, scholarship programs, post-doctoral fellowships, communications, and exchange programs.
•Convene conferences and exhibitions at appropriate facilities.
•Publish studies, papers, supplemental materials and news from academic conferences held on the topics of civil society and or Freemasonry.

http://www.therooseveltcenter.org/