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War Story
Bob lived in an old two story tenement, thin, tall, and long with clapboard exterior badly in need of paint. Other tenements of similar age and quality lined the street, which was crowded with parked cars, some working but others … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Biography, European history
Tagged D-Day Invasion, World War II
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Reflections on “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”
First, I will admit that I have been teaching American history for almost 35 years and have never, until recently, read Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Why? For several reasons, I suppose. First, it was never assigned in any … Continue reading
Posted in American History, books, Christianity, God's Providence
Tagged Harriet Beecher Stowe, Slavery, Uncle Tom's Cabin
4 Comments
Blessed are the Poor?
In the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, as recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Jesus taught his disciples as well as others what he considered to be the most important lessons by which to live. Matthew and Luke … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, God's Providence, Reflections on the Psalms
Tagged Blessed are the Poor, god, Jesus, Love, Poor, Sermon on the Mount
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Images of Lincoln
When I was a teenager–not very thoughtful and focused mostly on baseball and basketball–my grandfather, a retired custodian whom I would have never thought would read such books, gave me a three-volume biography of Abraham Lincoln by Carl Sandburg. The … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Biography, books, Government
Tagged Abraham Lincoln, Carl Sanderg, Civil War, Slavery
4 Comments
Moral Expediency and the Atomic Bomb
The Manhattan Project that resulted in the development of the Atomic Bomb was one of the most creative moments in world history. American scientists accomplished what only a few years before was considered unthinkable–exploiting the power of the atom in … Continue reading
Posted in American History, Government
Tagged Atomic Bomb, Harry Truman, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Manhattan Project, Morality
11 Comments
Montaigne Revisited: Do I Play with My Dog, Or Does My Dog Play with Me?
Humans have long considered themselves the masters of creation. The Book of Genesis declares that humans are made in God’s image. The implication is that other forms of life do not reflect the image of God. Genesis declares further that … Continue reading
The Sanctity of Life
In my last post, I discussed Just War. To continue… The key to solving the issue, the plague, of war, just or unjust, is for humans to adapt a culture of life. We are raised from infancy in a culture … Continue reading
Posted in books, Christianity, Reflections on the Psalms
Tagged Christianity, god, Jesus, Life, psalms
2 Comments
Is War ever Just?
In his novel, The Things They Carried, novelist Tim O’brien, writing about the Vietnam War, says: “A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain men … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, God's Providence, Reflections on the Psalms
Tagged bible, Jesus, Moses, Qur'an, Ten Commandments, War
8 Comments
The Seduction of Time
In Mark 8:33 of the New Testament, Jesus tells his disciple Peter, “Go behind me, Satan,” because Peter has suggested that Jesus was not going to suffer as the Son of Man. What does this verse tell us about Satan, about Jesus, … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, Reflections on the Psalms
Tagged Jesus, Love, Peter, psalms, Satan, Seduction, Temptation, Time
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Montaigne and Repentance
Michel de Montaigne, the French writer of Essays, was a thinker. Alone in a library, his library, pondering. Alone, as he was in conception, as he will be in death. Alone, facing his maker, facing the universe, facing himself. No … Continue reading
Posted in Biography, books, Christianity, Michel de Montaigne
Tagged Essays, Montaigne, Repentance
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The American Plutarch 