Being Human
The World Standing Beside Me
Tue 18 Nov 2008 • Responses: 0 • by Jo Kadlecek
She didn’t mean to make me sad. My colleague’s words were short and brave, but there was no mistaking the heavy worry she felt as a mother.
“He’ll be here for a ten-day break,” she smiled. “Then back to Iraq for another tour. But really, it’s been okay. He’s okay.”
When I asked how she was doing, she emphasized the ways in which her son’s courage had grown during his twelve months away from home, how his sense of humor was still intact and his weekly phone calls encouraging.
Tragic or Comic
Wed 12 Nov 2008 • Responses: 0 • by Dan Russ
Two Visions of Life and Leadership
Senior Fellow Dan Russ turns to the two epics of Homer to recover a humane vision and strategy for leadership.
Lives of Adventure, Fulfillment, and Service
Thu 28 Aug 2008 by Christopher Gergen and Gregg Vanourek
Some people don’t just live a life, they lead a life. They don’t sit around waiting for a lucky break. They create opportunities for themselves. They go after their dreams and bring them to life. Rather than bending to the status quo, they change it. As with any great effort, their work is never done but ever-evolving, and it is often inspiring to those around them.
Welcome to the territory of life entrepreneurs.
The Greatness of Solzhenitsyn (1918–2008)
Mon 11 Aug 2008 by David Aikman
A Second Look
David Aikman looks back at his three interviews with the great Russian writer and offers a different assessment of his life, message, and influence.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, RIP
Sun 03 Aug 2008 by TTF Staff
“A great writer is, so to speak, a secret government in his country.”
The Chains of Freedom
Fri 11 Jul 2008 by Mark Meador
Wendell Berry could be called an agrarian curmudgeon, if not the agrarian curmudgeon. He could also be called modernity's Cassandra, an unheeded prophet of coming misfortune. And yet no matter how off-putting his tone may be (at least in his essays), no matter how hard-to-swallow his message, it is a challenging task to convince yourself he is wrong. His insights and logic seem to carry an uncomfortable truth.
Such is the case with his piece in the May issue of Harper's Magazine, wherein he attacks modern society's ahistorical and foolish preoccupation with limitlessness, something with which he says we equate “freedom.” This understanding of freedom, Berry argues, does not liberate humanity but rather destroys it:
Failure is Not a Sin
Thu 10 Jul 2008 by T. M. Moore
Flesh-and-Blood Jesus: Learning to be Fully Human from the Son of Man, by Dan Russ (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2008), 192 pages, $14.99.
Reading Dan Russ’s excellent and provocative new book about Jesus I was reminded of an incident in which I was involved during my preparation for ministry.
I went to seminary a complete theological novice. I’d been a Christian for only a few years and had never read any theology nor had any introduction to the theological traditions of the Christian heritage. On the advice of trusted pastors, I enrolled in a seminary in the reformed tradition, where it immediately became apparent to me that how one articulates what one believes is just as important as what one actually believes.
The Renaissance and Religious Toleration
Thu 26 Jun 2008 by Joe Loconte
Erasmus of Rotterdam’s recognition that “Compulsion is incompatible with sincerity, and nothing is pleasing to Christ unless it is voluntary” is one of the foundations of Christian humanism.
Historians debate the most significant achievements of the Renaissance, the cultural revival that began in Italy and swept through Europe from roughly the fourteenth to seventeenth centuries. There were scientific advances, a return to the study of the classics, and political theorizing a la Machiavelli. A visit to Florence provides an almost overwhelming sense of the artistic accomplishments of the era. Yet a crucial aspect of Renaissance history is often overlooked: its contribution to religious liberty, an ideal whose origins have implications for our own age of religious violence.
What Does it Mean to be Human?
Tue 10 Jun 2008 by Mark Meador
On May 31, 2008, at the World Science Festival in New York City, a panel of scientists gathered to discuss what it means to be human.
It appears to have been quite an interesting seminar, and the things that were spoken were true and insightful. Yet most were plagued by a somewhat restricted perspective. All of the contributors being scientists, the insights were mostly of a scientific nature, but scientific insights into the meaning of being human largely center on identifying the limits of science more than pointing out fundamental truths of what it means to be human. Even the sociologist’s views culminated in the summary, “I think we’re more than biological creatures. I’m not sure biology has answers.” Several contributors talked about humans being uniquely rational, having the ability to remember, having a “human program” in our DNA, and so on; but these ideas don’t seem to capture the fullness of humanity conveyed by ideas like justice, love, and friendship. At the end of the day, it was the neuroscientist in the group that had the most meaningful input: “I like to think of a generator of diversity in the frontal lobe—and those initials are G-O-D.”
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