On June 13 of this year, Papa Franciscus (Better known as Pope Francis) sent a letter (encyclical) asking each of us who share Planet Earth to attend to its deteriorating condition; discuss it among ourselves; and make decisions about how to maintain it. Acknowledging that only about a third of humans claim to be Christians and about half of Christians are Catholic; he crafted his letter to speak to all of us about caring for the Earth – and ultimately about caring for each other.
Francis described Creation – our planet and our universe – as a gift to mankind that we will pass on to successive generations. Using biblical language, he pointed out that, “…the Genesis account which grants man ‘dominion over the earth’…” does not warrant “the unbridled exploitation of nature…”Continue reading IS POPE FRANCIS ALSO A PROPHET?→
Do we humans have a “right to die” and a “right to assistance in dying”? These questions will soon take center stage in the American culture war. If you choose someone to make your decisions about dying in the event that you are unable, will that person be allowed to carry out your wishes? In the US today, that depends on where you live and whether someone powerful wants to intervene, asGovernor Jeb Bush and Senator Bill Frist intervened against Terri and Michael Shaivo, forcing Terri’s brain-dead body to function for seven years after Michael authorized removal of her feeding tube.Continue reading DEATH WITH DIGNITY?→
I am thankful to live in a free, secular nation where there are few limitations on my right to live as I choose. That liberty was thoughtfully created by the framers of our constitution and protected by every generation of Americans. Continue reading THANKSGIVING FOR A SECULAR NATION→
About 25 years ago, I heard columnist William Raspberry speak at Wittenberg University about our need for more hypocrisy. His opening line shocked me so I began to pay close attention to his reasoning. He introduced me to a quotation from the French philosopher Francois de La Rochefoucauld, “Hypocrisy is the homage that vice pays to virtue.” Then he said that we have come to justify behaviors that we know are wrong by pointing out that others do the same things and therefore finding them to be acceptable. Continue reading BRING BACK HYPOCRISY→
