Culture of superlatives: What does that mean, exactly? Recently, I’ve become aware of my tendency to use superlatives both in my writing and in speaking. Consequently, I’ve been thinking a lot about word selection, both mine and that of others. The fourth in the Lindsey McCall medical mystery series, Malthus Revisited: The Cup of Wrath […]
Our Culture of Superlatives: Do Our Words Matter? Read More »
Bet you pride yourself on being a logical thinker. Most of do. We’ve been schooled in Descarte’s Cogito Ergo Sum- I think therefore I am. The same Descartes who performed autopsies on live dogs, the euphemism vivisection sounds far more rational, doesn’t it? He claimed that their screams were merely neurological responses by non-rational organisms who
So You Are A Logical Thinker? Really? Read More »
Right. Why look back to Marcus Aurelius and Stoicism? Huh? Why would we want to return to one of the last Roman Emperors and a Greek philosophy which personified rigorous self-denial, extreme fortitude and emotional indifference? One of the very first books I devoured as a college undergrad was Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. A college professor
Why Look Back to Marcus Aurelius and Stoicism? Read More »
“Could you do that?” The implication of the question: “Could you sacrifice yourself? My friend and I were watching the recently released film, Megan Leavey and were asking one another if we could lead a platoon of marines as they crossed an IED riddled land which looks like the face of the moon: Afghanistan. The true story
Could You Do That? Sacrifice Yourself? Read More »
Got a minute? To figure out out what to do with the rest of your life? It shouldn’t be difficult, right? And yet, we know scores of people who feel trapped in a dead-end job or loveless marriage or say they have no reason to get out of bed in the mornings. Keep reading and
Got A Minute? To Figure Out What to Do With the Rest of Your Life? Read More »
“When there is no food for three or four days, the children cry from the pain. So I make them mud cookies to fill up their stomachs.” The missionary priest, Monsignor Patrick Marron from Food for the Poor, quoted a woman living in a village of about two hundred people about 20 miles from Port
Mud Cookies: Imagine Feeding Your Kids Some? Read More »
Last December, the movie Silence opened to a conflicting maze of reviews. Some greatly praising the film and others exceedingly critical of the tale of the ‘apostate Jesuit priests’ of seventeenth century Japan. I watched it three days ago and am still pondering its meaning. The film is gripping and relentless. Both intensity and portent
Silence: Apostacy, Jesuit Priests, 17th Century Japan Read More »
Conclave is the best of Robert Harris’ novels, high praise because Harris is an excellent writer of historical fiction. Each of his books reveals the writer’s journalistic background: Rich in detail and imagery, Harris’ extensive research for each story is evident. Conclave is all of that but much more. This story is riveting, sympathetic and
Conclave- Robert Harris’ New Novel of Power and Intrigue Read More »
For converts like me, the story of the prodigal son evokes a tsunami of emotion: gratitude, relief, sorrow and recognition are only a few. But upon reflecting on the well-known parable that Jesus tells the complaining Pharisees and scribes, I began to think about the older brother with an entirely different lens. Rather than my
The Prodigal Son Or the Older Brother? Read More »
Overcoming anger: the final spiritual struggle We feel it everywhere: Anger. Whether a seething whisper or bellowing roar, resentment, anger, even rage, feels like the fuel of this brand new year as the second decade of the twenty-first century heads south. The source is anyone’s claim. An endless laundry list of injustice, victims and causes.
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