Items included on this page come from a variety of sources. The perspectives conveyed may or may not express a Lutheran ethos. They can serve our instruction as discussion-starters, examples (positive and negative), and illustrations of intersections between God’s two kingdoms, intersections sometimes characterized by tension, sometimes by congruence. Inclusion does not imply endorsement.
The Boxer: This 7 min. video clip from PBS takes viewers to the Cross4Christ Gym at Created for So Much More Worship Center in where Mike Mosley is head coach. Students can consider the ministry of “this church that is drawing young people to its ministry with a boxing gym that teaches discipline, respect, and a sense of […]
Officers Can Turn To Police Chaplains In Time Of Need: This 5 min. audio clip (with transcript) offers a positive view on the role of clergy in local police departments large and small and an informative example of church and state, left-hand kingdom and right-hand kingdom. NPR interviews Mark Clements, president of the International Conference of […]
Christian physicians join the emerging transgender debate: Veteran religion reporter Richard Ostling offers this coverage on the “Transgender Identification Ethics Statement”issued by the Christian Medical and Dental Associations. The statement, approved at a CMDA conference April 21 but publicized only recently, urges doctors to treat these patients with understanding and grace. On the other hand, CMDA champions […]
Religious and Pro-Life Conscience Unwelcome in Healthcare: Wesley Smith offers this op-ed summary of cases in which the healthcare industry and its regulation has taken a distinctly secularized turn. Students can survey his examples, search others that are similar and different, and consider the case.
U.S. Public Wary of Biomedical Technologies to ‘Enhance’ Human Abilities: Americans are more worried than enthusiastic about using gene editing, brain chip implants and synthetic blood to change human capabilities. The survey examines public attitudes about the potential use of three emerging technologies that could fundamentally improve people’s health, cognitive abilities or physical capacities. See also Christians to […]
Blind faith in DNA: “We should be wary of accepting bold claims by researchers until they have been thoroughly tested,” says this position piece on science in the news. Have we really found the essence of life, as Nobel laureate James Watson puts it, by studying its parts? The genetics narrative may not be as air-tight […]
Is There No Moral Law, or Is There No Law Without Morality? Canada’s parliament has passed the assisted-dying bill into law. This position piece challenges the autonomy argument of such a law and examines the ethical claims at work in that argument. Students can consider the various positions and the social and theological implications of the […]
As California’s End of Life act goes into effect, some doctors question where to draw the line: Physicians are contemplating this new law and whether they would ever write a prescription for death. “We have always, up till now, been able to say we will never hasten a death,” Dr. Neil Wenger said. “Suddenly, that bright line is not […]
What happens when the military chaplain is shaken by war: One account of several chaplain cases of active duty under fire from Bosnia to Afghanistan to Iraq. The comments section is also instructive. The article prompts the usual issues and questions about suffering, the role of religion in the military, the endurance of faith, and […]
Inner Peace? The Dalai Lama Made a Website for That — For courses in psychology, world religions, philosophy, and health: the Dalai Lama and Psychologist of Emotions Paul Ekman (adviser to the movie, “Inside Out”) have created a popularized map of the emotional mind. The Dalai Lama wants to keep religion out of it. “If we see […]
