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048 <previous< Issue
049 Volume 10 No 2 Spring 2004
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Table of Contents - Spring 2004
The Pledge Controversy and
Civil Religion The United States Supreme Court is being asked to decide whether teacher-led recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. The Court should rule
that it does not. Here’s why. Conservatism and Liberalism in Religion and Politics
Several
letters abstracted in the October 2003 Christian Ethics Today objected
to sentiments that run counter to contemporary conservative political ideology.
The editor cited the late Baptist ethicist T. B. Maston: “You can be a
theological conservative without being politically conservative. I am
theologically conservative, but liberal in my application of the gospel to
life.” [i] U. S. Policy and North Korea’s Nuclear Program
North Korea observed an important anniversary on July 27, a date that ended the killing of American, Korean, and Chinese soldiers and divided the peninsula in two parts. The conflict was begun by Gen. Douglas MacArthur before Congress had declared war. The date North Korea
recently celebrated refers not to the end of that conflict, but to an armistice
signed that day by both sides. That truce, signed by Gen. Mark Clark for the United States,
provided for a Peace Conference, which occurred in April, 1954 in Geneva. When
the Chinese leader Zhou Enlai arrived, he held out his hand to John Foster
Dulles, who refused to take it and turned away. Dulles and the South Korean,
Syngman Rhee, refused to discuss peace, and the Chinese leader proposed that the
conference adjourn and set a date for a new meeting. The Canadian delegate
reported that the American “simply waved his hand in opposition,” and the motion
did not pass. Who Has Weapons of Mass Destruction—And
Why? The question “Who has weapons of mass destruction?” (commonly referred to as WMDs) has been of global concern at least since the 1940s. The three principal types appear to be nuclear bombs, poisonous gases, and biological agents such as anthrax and smallpox. The question whether Iraq had weapons of the latter two types and an interest in obtaining nuclear bombs, the stated reason for the pre-emptive strike against that nation, is still under investigation. The much more important question, in this writer’s opinion, “Did Saddam Hussein have the means to use WMDs against our country?” seems to have been overlooked by the Bush administration and our news media. I
will confine my discussion to nuclear bombs because the identity of nations
possessing them is fairly clear and efforts of countries such as Iran and North Korea to
obtain them is a matter of current concern. The report that Saddam Hussein was
trying to obtain uranium from Africa proved to be bogus. Even if it had been true, it
should have been put in the “so-what” category. Oak Ridge, Tennessee,
owes its existence primarily to the need for facilities to enrich uranium from
the 0.7 percent level of the naturally occurring element to the 90 plus level
of bomb grade material. Even if Iraq had possessed the technology to accomplish this
formidable task, which seems unlikely, it is a time-consuming operation. “Wall Of Separation” Metaphor
Increasingly the separation of church and state in America is maligned and belittled. Many commentators, authors, and political figures advance the theory that the separation doctrine is a myth, that there never have been any limitations on the forces of faith winning political power and directing the course of the nation’s destiny along religious lines. At a time when the 9/11/01 tragedy should alert all Americans to the dangers of the radical mix of politics and faith, the crusade to strengthen the formal bonds between church and state in the United States seems to be winning converts at an alarming rate. One of the most popular
strategies adopted by many anti-separationists is to discredit or redefine the
meaning of the “wall of separation” metaphor made famous by President Thomas
Jefferson in the early nineteenth century. Jefferson used the controversial Updated Tuesday, January 04, 2005 |
Hope and Healing in
the Land of Oz For six years HBO broadcast a dark and gritty series about inmate life in a prison named Oswald—Oz, for short. I took notice, but not quite the liking I took to some films on the same theme. “Shawshank Redemption” (with its subtitle, “Hope Can Set You Free”) is a favorite everywhere. It seems to be playing every day on some cable channel. “O Brother Where Art Thou?” took the country by storm. A few weeks ago, Time magazine reported the death of James Carter, who in 1959 at age 33 was recorded leading a Mississippi chain gang chant, “Po’ Lazarus.” It opens the sound track which won the Grammy Award in 2001.
Then came “Chicago.” It is a
lively, humorous movie about prosecutors, reporters and a jail house mama. Breaking the Da Vinci Code Dan Brown wrote a book and for weeks it has been at the top of the New York Times bestseller list. I understand why: I could not put it down. If you like architecture, history, and religion mixed into a crime story, this book is for you. But if you demand historical accuracy, be careful. The basic premise of the book is what Brown calls “the greatest cover-up in human history.” Jesus was not celibate: he married Mary Magdalene, who was with child at the time of the crucifixion. Mary escaped to France, gave birth to a daughter named Sarah, and lived under the protection of the Jewish community. The remains of Mary Magdalene are stored in the Holy Grail, hidden somewhere in England. All
of this seems preposterous. No historian or theologian of any reputation puts
any stock in such a flight of fancy. But on a corollary theme, there is much
truth: namely, that Roman and Christian authorities of the fourth and fifth
centuries suppressed minority traditions and assigned to them the word
“heresy.” It was, in part, an effort to centralize power for political effect
for both church and state. The Church and the
Aged: A Covenant of Caring
Bioethics might sound like an area of study that has little relevance to the local church. After all, issues concerning genetic engineering and environmental legislation might find interest in the Sunday School classes of affluent churches filled with professionals, but do these issues ever cross the minds of the majority of Christians? Over the past several decades, however, bioethics has begun to address issues that receive a great deal of attention in all churches. Abortion, euthanasia, and the AIDS crisis have nearly made “bioethics” a household word. Another issue has surfaced in quite a different way that extends the relevancy of bioethics even further. The Greek word bios means “life.” Whereas, life has previously been defined as biological vitality, a new awareness of aspects of life has shifted the focus away from quantitative to qualitative qualifications of life. This
transition allows life to be viewed more holistically. Life is no longer solely
determined by a functioning heart and brain activity, both biological elements,
but also by emotional, spiritual, and other aspects of life. These aspects are
no longer viewed as secondary elements belonging to the primacy of the
physically functioning body. These aspects together form what we call the human
life. The Ethics of Spanking: A
Continuing Debate With the increasing awareness today of child abuse, the ethical dimension of spanking often enters the conversation. Children learn by example, and when spanking is used as an option for problem solving, then children learn that the use of violence is one way to solve problems. But the issue of spanking, or corporal punishment, is very complicated because many parents do not associate spanking with violence. Many parents believe that spanking is a way of modeling firm limits and consequences. Theologically, the Bible is often quoted as the source
for the necessity of spanking. Proverbs 22:15 (RSV) says, “Folly is bound up in
the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him [her].”
And Proverbs 23:13-14 (RSV) says, “Do not withhold discipline from a child; if
you beat him [her] with a rod, he [she] will not die. If you beat him [her]
with a rod you will save his [her] life from Sheol.” These verses feel more
awkward when the female pronoun is added to them. Somehow, it seems more
appropriate to “beat” a boy than to “beat” a girl. However, the use of the word
“child” in verse 23:13 makes it clear that both male and female are intended. The D’Arcy Oak I cut the walking trail below our house west of Austin, Texas, with a chain saw 25 years ago. It moves under six varieties of oaks, native elms, and far too many cedars. I walk around the trail four times each morning. It takes an hour. Recently I discovered a huge Spanish oak about 50 yards off the trail. The woods are so thick that I had not noticed it before. The tree rises 70 feet above the forest floor. Spanish oaks usually have multiple trunks. This one had four. Its branches shaded an area over 100 feet in diameter. There were cedars that would
have to be cut. Stumps and dead branches would have to be removed. When this
was done there would be an area where one could sit and pray/meditate/write or
read. Even the cars at the house could not be heard. It would be a place of
solitude.
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