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.
What motivates moral outrage? — Expressing outrage could reflect an underlying concern with justice. Research shows bystanders’ level of moral outrage can predict their willingness to pursue justice for a victimized group. From this perspective, outrage is driven by differing conceptions of what is just. From our perspective, such public displays of outrage make more sense if […]
The Clash Between Religious Freedom and Equality Law: This review of a new book, Religious Freedom in an Egalitarian Age (Harvard University Press, 2017) by former ACLU lawyer Nelson Tebbe, considers his theme that “disagreement, both reasonable and unreasonable, is a fixed feature of constitutional politics.” Tebbe writes in a scholarly tone for colleagues in law and academia, […]
Supreme Incoherence: Transgender Ideology and the End of the Law — Agree or disagree with the author, this careful analysis will challenge students to think carefully about language, positive law, and the claims our words make to natural and revealed knowledge. This might be the essay to help students on any side of the gender identity […]
Daniel Dennett’s Science of the Soul: This lengthy article explores Daniel Dennett’s (Darwin’s Dangerous Idea, Simon & Schuster, 1996)) views on consciousness and physicalism: a materialist view on human nature. Students may find it useful as a conversational introduction to the various current positions on consciousness, soul, and the transcendent: the physicist’s world of matter and […]
The Happiness Effect: How Social Media is Driving a Generation to Appear Perfect at Any Cost by Donna Freitas (Oxford University Press, 2017) — Apart from the usual clickbait stories of cyber bullying and sexting, Freitas finds that college students have an overwhelming urge to present themselves on social media as successful and happy. Many reported […]
Healing Victims of Human Trafficking: A Long, Slow Road to Transformation — This brief article can introduce students to human trafficking ministries. The author is the Associate Executive Director of Naomi’s House , a long-term residential program for women (18+) who have suffered from commercial sexual exploitation. The program is trauma-informed, faith-based, and comprehensive. It is designed […]
A celebration of peace through progress: This article can introduce students to London’s Great Exhibition of 1851 and modernity’s coming-of-age. The Crystal Palace resembled a mighty cathedral: the great nave, more than half a kilometer in length, was intersected by a transept where the immense barrel-vaulted glass roof dwarfed the elm trees enclosed by it. When the […]
Doctors harvesting organs from Canadian patients who underwent medically assisted death: Doctors have already harvested organs from dozens of Canadians who underwent medically assisted death, a practice supporters say expands the pool of desperately needed organs, but ethicists worry could make it harder for euthanasia patients to voice a last-minute change of heart.
Holier Than You and Me: ‘Religious Liberty’ Is the New Bully Pulpit and Its New Meaning Is Endangering Our Way of Life and What Good Is Religious Freedom? Locke, Rand, and the Non-Religious Case for Respecting It — Here are two additional discussions on the role of religion in society and its complications.
Majority of Americans Oppose Transgender Bathroom Restrictions: Here are the current PRRI survey breakdowns on several religion-and-society issues including transgender bathroom laws, church endorsement of political candidates, marriage issues, LGBT issues and more.
