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 Rev. Ian Lynch is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. He is pastor of First Congregational Church, UCC in Brimfield, MA He blogs at Culture Dove SHARE 
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OpEd News Member for 868 week(s) and 2 day(s)
13 Articles, 0 Quick Links, 9 Comments, 2 Diaries, 0 Polls
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Monday, March 10, 2008
An Immoral Document Ethics is the application of philosophy; morality is philosophy (or theology) in action. Thus, budgets are moral road maps. They prescribe how one wants to put one's thinking into action. As Jesus said, "you shall know a tree by its fruit." So what is the fruit of the president's budget? It will mean more spending on war, less on health care and children, and less revenue collected from those most able to afford to give it.
Monday, March 10, 2008An Immoral Document Ethics is the application of philosophy; morality is philosophy (or theology) in action. Thus, budgets are moral road maps. They prescribe how one wants to put one's thinking into action. As Jesus said, "you shall know a tree by its fruit." So what is the fruit of the president's budget? It will mean more spending on war, less on health care and children, and less revenue collected from those most able to afford to give it.
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Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Let the Truth Defend Itself Why is is that all we have now is assurances that the government is protecting us from unseen threats and appeals to expand the scope of its power to do this work in secrecy? Where is the evidence to justify this trust? Our essential liberty is being attacked in the name of temporary safety, we must not succumb to fear. Let the truth come forth and defend itself in the name of liberty.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008Let the Truth Defend Itself Why is is that all we have now is assurances that the government is protecting us from unseen threats and appeals to expand the scope of its power to do this work in secrecy? Where is the evidence to justify this trust? Our essential liberty is being attacked in the name of temporary safety, we must not succumb to fear. Let the truth come forth and defend itself in the name of liberty.
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Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Wolves and Sheep Saudi King Abdullah's recent visit to the Vatican where he met with Pope Benedict should not be overlooked as a possibly significant step toward security and peace in the world. Pragmatic pessimists may see a too small step on a too long journey. On the other hand, Vatican spokesperson, Father Federico Lombardi, said of the visit, "If we do not begin, we will never arrive."
Tuesday, November 13, 2007Wolves and Sheep Saudi King Abdullah's recent visit to the Vatican where he met with Pope Benedict should not be overlooked as a possibly significant step toward security and peace in the world. Pragmatic pessimists may see a too small step on a too long journey. On the other hand, Vatican spokesperson, Father Federico Lombardi, said of the visit, "If we do not begin, we will never arrive."
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Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Ending Economic Slavery Two centuries after the British parliament passed the bill outlawing the transatlantic slave trade, one might expect that enough time had passed to eradicate slavery completely. Tragically, slavery persists in the world in greater and lesser degrees around the world today. In Nepal, families in abject poverty will sell their daughters into the sex trade in Thailand.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007Ending Economic Slavery Two centuries after the British parliament passed the bill outlawing the transatlantic slave trade, one might expect that enough time had passed to eradicate slavery completely. Tragically, slavery persists in the world in greater and lesser degrees around the world today. In Nepal, families in abject poverty will sell their daughters into the sex trade in Thailand.
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Monday, October 22, 2007
For the Birds President Bush went fishing this weekend. In his weekly radio address, he told us that fishing not only builds memories but also adds billions of dollars to the economy. While he went on to outline some initiatives regarding the environment, it is telling that he started by making an economic case for the actions.
Monday, October 22, 2007For the Birds President Bush went fishing this weekend. In his weekly radio address, he told us that fishing not only builds memories but also adds billions of dollars to the economy. While he went on to outline some initiatives regarding the environment, it is telling that he started by making an economic case for the actions.
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Tuesday, October 16, 2007
One Person's Heaven Ann Coulter has once again stirred controversy with her comments. This time it was a comment that her dream of a perfect America is a place where we are all Christians happily defending America. The comments were made on CNBC's The Big Idea. When pressed by host Donny Deutsch, Coulter said that yes, she would throw out Judaism.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007One Person's Heaven Ann Coulter has once again stirred controversy with her comments. This time it was a comment that her dream of a perfect America is a place where we are all Christians happily defending America. The comments were made on CNBC's The Big Idea. When pressed by host Donny Deutsch, Coulter said that yes, she would throw out Judaism.
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Monday, October 8, 2007
Resisting Evil The recent expose in the New Times about secret endorsements of severe interrogation techniques once again forces us as Americans to consider whether torture not only has been, but quite possibly continues to be committed in our name. Clearly, the current administration has been walking a fine semantic line between so-called "enhanced" techniques and blatantly illegal torture.
Monday, October 8, 2007Resisting Evil The recent expose in the New Times about secret endorsements of severe interrogation techniques once again forces us as Americans to consider whether torture not only has been, but quite possibly continues to be committed in our name. Clearly, the current administration has been walking a fine semantic line between so-called "enhanced" techniques and blatantly illegal torture.
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Monday, October 1, 2007
The Politics of Fear Every year since September 11, 2001, the President has declared and Congress has voted that we continue in a state of emergency. One must wonder what threshold must be met to end this threat. As long as there is an official state of emergency, there is a legitimization of nearly any action identified as an effort in the war on terrorism.
Monday, October 1, 2007The Politics of Fear Every year since September 11, 2001, the President has declared and Congress has voted that we continue in a state of emergency. One must wonder what threshold must be met to end this threat. As long as there is an official state of emergency, there is a legitimization of nearly any action identified as an effort in the war on terrorism.
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Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Waging Peace The war in Iraq has to this point cost over $450 billion. By some estimates, it will cost over a trillion dollars by the time it ends. Huge numbers like these can become almost meaningless in their lack of relativity. With this in mind, the National Priorities Project created a web site, www.costofwar.com, to break down the massive expenditure into equivalencies.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007Waging Peace The war in Iraq has to this point cost over $450 billion. By some estimates, it will cost over a trillion dollars by the time it ends. Huge numbers like these can become almost meaningless in their lack of relativity. With this in mind, the National Priorities Project created a web site, www.costofwar.com, to break down the massive expenditure into equivalencies.
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Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Just Say "No" to War The Collegium of Officers of the United Church of Christ have written a powerful pastoral letter against the war in Iraq and are asking others to sign the letter.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007Just Say "No" to War The Collegium of Officers of the United Church of Christ have written a powerful pastoral letter against the war in Iraq and are asking others to sign the letter.
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Monday, September 10, 2007
A New Commandment On Thursday, August 30, Texas governor, Rick Perry, was just hours away from being personally responsible for taking the life of a man for a crime that the state agreed he didn't commit or plan. A state board had recommended clemency so only the governor's pen stood between Kenneth Foster and a needle that would deliver a lethal injection for the 403rd time in Texas since the death penalty was restored there in 1982.
Monday, September 10, 2007A New Commandment On Thursday, August 30, Texas governor, Rick Perry, was just hours away from being personally responsible for taking the life of a man for a crime that the state agreed he didn't commit or plan. A state board had recommended clemency so only the governor's pen stood between Kenneth Foster and a needle that would deliver a lethal injection for the 403rd time in Texas since the death penalty was restored there in 1982.
