Death metal…until?
I read once about a death metal band who sing about anarchy, violence, and rebellion against God – you know, don’t follow the rules. They got all upset because people were coming to their gigs, and were not following the rules. PICTURE: ipopba/iStockphoto “Someone bought a gun to the gig! They were trying to get […]
The Explainer: What the Catholic Church says about political violence and the need to forgive – even would-be assassins
JOANNE M PIERCE, in an article first published on The Conversation, looks at how Catholic views on the morality of killing have evolved over time, embracing the idea of warfare for self-defence and the common good and emphasising forgiveness for enemies…
Most adults in US, 16 other nations say belief in God, morality not always linked
United States RNS Is a belief in God a prerequisite for being a moral person? Most Americans say it is not, and majorities of adults in other countries with advanced economies agree. Pew Research Center released the findings – that also hold true among most of those affiliated with a religion – from its Global […]
Essay: How US Congress can bring good news to the poor this Advent
In an article first published on Religion News Service, JIM WALLIS, director of Georgetown University’s Center on Faith and Justice, says when something works to solve poverty the way the child tax credit has, it’s immoral to end it…
Technology…or behaviour?
My daughter pointed out to me that in virtually all books written before the Industrial Revolution that imagine future time-travel, none of them imagine technological improvement. Rather they look at future human behaviour. PICTURE: Ales Nesetril/Unsplash. Technological improvements were inconceivable before the industrial revolution, now they are the focus of almost all future discussion. And behaviour is […]
Morally desensitised
It’s really interesting to read how 100 years ago, when a drama on stage included a shooting or murder, audience member would often faint or scream in shock. Such a visceral response. Meanwhile, our movies are shockingly graphic in their depictions of violence and it just washes over us. PICTURE: Glenn Carstens-Peters/Unsplash In the same way […]
Righteous mind
Jonathan Haidt’s mind-blowing book The Righteous Mind looks at the research around morality and why we vote the way we do. PICTURE: Hannah Busing/Unsplash His compelling research says that left-leaning voters put compassion and fairness above all considerations when working out their morality, while conservatives value sanctity, loyalty and authority. His research shows that we need […]
Essay: It’s time at last for an ethical conversation about Afghanistan
In an article published on Religion News Service, JIM WALLIS says the US must not be distracted from “the deep reflection about our values now required in the aftermath of the United States’ longest war”…
Moral injury
There’s a new term that is finding traction on our world – it is especially being used in the area of things like post-traumatic stress disorder. A Holocaust memorial in Hungary. PICTURE: Mika/Unsplash It’s called ‘moral injury’. Not physical injury, but moral injury. It’s when someone has had an experience that is so repugnant to […]
Essay: Why Trump’s electoral crisis is really a moral crisis
In an article first published on Religion News Service, DAVID GUSHEE, ethics teacher and author of ‘After Evangelicalism’, says the US is witnessing “a crisis of truth and character”…