A La Carte (3/7)

A Surrogate’s Dilemma [2] - This is a horrible story from CNN that so clearly displays the horrors of a culture that devalues life in the womb. “Crystal Kelley was offered $10,000 to have an abortion after ultrasounds showed the baby she was carrying for another couple had severe medical problems.”

The Link Between Spirituality and Sexuality [3] - On a similar note, this article is thought-provoking. “[T]here is an embedded creational link between sexuality and spirituality. We were created for monogamy in both, and when a society loses one, it won't be long before it loses the other. Why? Because God would have it so.”

Canada’s Supreme Court Ruling [4] - And again, sticking with a theme, Joe Carter shows why Canada’s recent Supreme Court ruling (which some think may actually be beneficial to Christians) “has potentially broad implications for the Christian witness in Canada.”

The Competition for Coolness [5] - “James K. A. Smith, in an extended analysis of how our habits shape our orientation to the world, reflects on the impact of Facebook and Twitter on teenagers.”

Do Not Chillax [6] - Simon Akam writes a clever article on “adjoinages and the death of the American pun”

Whatever Happened to New Atheism [7] - This article at the Catholic Herald says that the New Atheism is already beginning to fade away. “Even to non-believers, the argument that religion is a damaging parasite seems implausible. In their everyday lives people see that atheism does not explain the fundamental questions and a godless world doesn't make us happier or even more questioning.” I sure hope it’s true! (Note: Though I risk stating the obvious, I do not endorse many of the Roman Catholic answers to those questions.)

Create a Contrast Culture [8] - “Church leaders who stop by our little house of worship in Washington sometimes ask what we have done to produce all the discipling, evangelism, and hospitality they see. What programs are we using? It’s a 20th-century American way of asking the question. Church growth has been viewed in business terms for at least half a century, so the questioner assumes some program has birthed these activities.”

Youth is a time of life wherein we have too much pride to be governed by others, and too little wisdom to govern ourselves. --Henry Scougal