Lewis: Justice & Mercy

  

Is it really merciful not to carry out justice? Is the concept of justice too harsh? Should a Christian believe in punishment for crimes? C. S. Lewis thought through this issue in an essay he published in 1949 called “The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment.” If we go by feelings, we may think we are being humane in forgiving without real punishment. Lewis disagrees. The essential act of mercy was to pardon; and pardon in its very essence involves the recognition… Read more »

John Dickinson & the Townshend Acts

  

The Stamp Act was repealed. The American colonists were deliriously happy that the controversy was ended. So what if the Parliament simultaneously passed the Declaratory Act, which stated that Parliament had the authority to do whatever it pleased? Most of the colonists seemed to believe it was just a face-saving measure and were willing to let Parliament blow off some steam and trust that everything was back to normal. It wasn’t. Charles Townsend, the new treasury secretary for the Mother… Read more »

Unfair Debate?

  

The conspiracy theories about the first GOP debate abound, mostly centered on the questions posed by the moderators. I’ve read that Fox was conspiring with Jeb Bush or with the GOP establishment or with the Democrats or with . . . well, you fill in the blank. In my view, Chris Wallace, Megyn Kelly, and Bret Baier did a valuable service for all the Republican candidates on that stage. They made them come up with answers to some hard questions… Read more »

Lewis: The Marxist Worldview

  

As much as C. S. Lewis said he didn’t like to discuss politics, my research into his writings, both published and unpublished, reveals a deep interest in the subject of governing and political philosophy. What he didn’t like were the day-to-day mundane activities and arguments of politics—who is going to win the next election, etc. Political philosophy, though, was another matter entirely. For instance, in a little-known but highly readable essay called “Modern Man and His Categories of Thought,” written… Read more »

My Debate Analysis

  

Last night’s primetime GOP presidential debate was energetic and revelatory, in my view. I promised yesterday I would try to assess it today, so here’s my attempt. The most efficient approach, I think, is to break it down candidate by candidate. I will not refrain from giving my opinion on each one’s performance, beliefs, and prospects. Consequently, probably no one reading this will agree with me completely, but I’ll stake out my ground anyway. I’ll cover them in reverse order,… Read more »

Trump? We Should Know Better

  

I will attempt today not to vent my frustration but to have a calm, rational post about Donald Trump. For the past six-plus years, I’ve been distressed with the foolishness of the American voter overall for putting Barack Obama in the White House. That distress is almost equaled by the possibility of Hillary Clinton returning to that address. Yet almost as frustrating is the boomlet for Trump among potential Republican primary voters. You all should know better. Trump’s meteoric rise… Read more »

The Senate & Planned Parenthood

  

The Senate’s vote on the bill to defund Planned Parenthood went the way most people expected. Fifty-three senators, mostly Republicans, voted to end the debate and move to a straight up-and-down vote on the funding. That’s a majority. But, according to Senate rules, 60 votes are needed to get past the debate stage. A grand total of two Democrats voted to go on to the vote. Two. Now, some of my conservative friends will spend all their time critiquing the… Read more »