It can be argued that greatness is similar; that is, what is considered great in one culture may not be considered great in another. This can vary even among subcultures within the same cultural cluster. A few examples might help. An individualist culture stresses the importance of individual freedom as a primary value, while a
When American politicians speak of greatness one can hear the echo of American Exceptionalism in those words. This idea goes back to the Great Awakening, an early revival movement in America, and the preacher Jonathan Edwards. This revival movement had its beginnings in the 1730’s and 40’s. As with any revival movement, it laid great
Karidat operates seven different programs and among them is a “Victim Advocacy” program. in addition to operating the only do- mestic violence shelter in the CNMI, Karidat also provides individuals who are victimized by intimate partners (male or female) an advocate as they navigate their way through the court system. I sat down this
When American politicians speak of greatness one can hear the echo of American Exceptionalism in those words. This idea goes back to the Great Awakening, an early revival movement in America, and the preacher Jonathan Edwards. This revival movement had its beginnings in the 1730’s and 40’s. As with any revival movement, it laid great
The slogan “Make America Great Again” during the last election cycle challenged the electorate to believe that somehow America had fallen from greatness and that a vote for Trump would put us back on the right track as a nation. The slogan begs the question of what exactly is this “greatness” that has been lost
Earlier I mentioned that passing on the faith requires an engagement of the heart, mind and will. Given the better educated populace in many parts of the world, it is no longer sufficient simply to repeat theological jargon that young people can memorize. What do the words mean? Why should I believe it? What evidence
The theologian and religious educator, Thomas Groome, suggests that the key to an enlivened faith, perhaps even the discovery of our own adult faith, is the result of discovering the relationship between our life story and the Jesus story we find in Scripture. One of the most haunting and beautiful sounds is that of a
Religion, as a social institution, has a variety of social functions, as well as more spiritually oriented roles. From the perspective of society, religion provides a model for organizing society, provides both a legitimization of and check upon authority, and is a source for social norms and a means of enforcing such social norms. From
While my full-time ministry is as a judge on the Diocesan Marriage Tribunal and as the associate Director for the Permanent Deacon Formation Program in the Diocese of Erie, my parish assignment is at St. Luke’s parish. St. Luke’s is one of the larger parishes in the Diocese of Erie. It has a full-time pastor
We’ve considered religious truth and scientific truth. The first is dependent upon authoritative foundational stories of a narrative/religious tradition for its understanding of truth. The second is dependent upon the rules of the scientific method for its understanding of truth. Are there other ways of identifying “truth”? When two people are sitting down over a