Paul Babic

Heroes

I was asked the other day how I identify someone as one of my "heroes". It was a good question... Really good, actually. To tell you the truth, I've never really thought about it. Whenever I've identified someone as a "hero" to me, it's been almost instinctive. I simply admire them and feel…

different wrapper Once I knew a man who was, at one point, discerning a life as a Theravadan monk. For those of you who aren't familiar with the various strains of Buddhism, allow me to explain: the Theravada School is perhaps the earliest form of Buddhism practiced in the world today. I won't claim that it goes all the way back to Buddha's early monastic community, however it would certainly love to say so.

different wrapper

Once I knew a man who was, at one point, discerning a life as a Theravadan monk. For those of you who aren't familiar with the various strains of Buddhism, allow me to explain: the Theravada School is perhaps the earliest form of Buddhism practiced in the world today. I won't…

ethics personified What is ethics? Often people assume that it's something that's rule-based. "Do this, don't do that, it doesn't matter either way, etc." Certainly, that's how many ethical systems have been constructed, going all the way back to the Ten Commandments—and even before then! While they can be burdensome, on some level it cannot be denied that we like these rules since they are clear-cut.

ethics personified

What is ethics? Often people assume that it's something that's rule-based. "Do this, don't do that, it doesn't matter either way, etc." Certainly, that's how many ethical systems have been constructed, going all the way back to the Ten Commandments—and even before then! While…

A Prayer Overheard

This prayer was said long enough ago that I don't mind posting about it here. I was in—it's safe to say—a period of incredible spiritual desolation. A friend of mine, who I hadn't seen in years, messaged me asking me to pray for her. I won't say what for, but she was having a…

our great shame

Especially now that it's gotten warmer, I have (on one or two occasions) found myself craving ice cream in the middle of the night. The great thing about Toronto is that there is never a time when you are completely without the possibility of ice cream, so the last time I found…

Kanada

Recently, I had the privilege of seeing the Auschwitz exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum. For those near Toronto, I would highly suggest going to see it, although it's not especially pleasant, nor should it be! There were a lot of things—horrible, damnable things—that stuck with me, but…

the timeless bard

My mum and I have a tradition where we'll go down to Stratford (Ontario) two or three times a year to watch Shakespeare in the theatre. We've seen some great ones: Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, and (a wonderful parody of Shakespeare) Something Rotten. Personally, I've always…

a tale of dual belonging

Finding religion in adulthood, when you weren't raised with anything in particular, is a strange experience. I haven't met many people like that. It seems most stories are about people leaving religion, not finding it. Moreover, most of the people who have a religion were…

ifs and the art of gaming

Celeste has quickly become one of my favourite platform games of all time. In case you don’t know, “platformers” are games, like Super Mario, where you’re on a 2D plane, generally doing lots of jumping and falling. Celeste has a lot of that, actually, since the premise is…

get real

Rick and Morty is one of my favourite shows—definitely in the top-three—and this is why. It's like Doctor Who on crack—I love it! Amidst the ridiculousness and the sci-fi level grossness of it all (not to mention the adult humour), it also succeeds in grappling with some interesting…

no-scoping narratives 🎯

I'm a big fan of video essays. They're my podcasts, if I'm honest—a soundtrack to my day. And I saw a few in my recommended the other day that were about Halo. You know, the game? It was one of my favourites growing up. I had to play a bootlegged copy on my PC—no Xbox in my…

samsara and the shining

This has been a long time coming.... The Shining is my favourite horror movie of all-time. Having said that, when I first saw the film, I was pretty confused, especially with the ending. And I did what anyone of my generation would do: I googled responses, reading other…

Here is an otter snoot to start your day.

an ode to used bookshops

I like a good used bookshop like I like a good pub: affordable, accessible, and diverse. Strangely enough, like pubs, there's a sense in which a used bookshop is a microcosm of the whole community. Reading attracts all types of people, after all, and you can tell a lot…

reflections on cpe

I recently finished my first basic unit of Clinical Psychospiritual Education. It was exactly this kind of experience that I wanted when I first applied to my MDiv program. I liked theology, religion, philosophy, and that kind of thing; but I also wanted to do something with…

a new home 🚀

Greetings, readers! A little bit of digital housekeeping. Welcome to my blog's new home! For the past week, I've been working on getting myself set up on a brand-new, shiny server in Switzerland for increased reliability and privacy. Not to mention, I've been among those "hosers"…