Last Sunday, I accompanied a group of children from my church on a Mission Trip to the Humane Society of Missouri.  I was most impressed by the volunteers there, and grateful for their thoughtful approach to informing and educating our children.  What I didn’t expect was the impact that a chance remark would have.

In conversation, one of our docents mentioned that humane societies used to focus not only on animal rights, but on the rights of children as well.  This caught my attention and got my mind spinning.  A quick Google search was all it took to confirm the basic premise of her comment.  One researcher notes, “Surprisingly, many animal cruelty organizations also included child cruelty issues in their missions, as there were few child welfare organizations in existence during the late nineteenth century.”

Anyone who has read Charles Dickens knows the truth of that statement (think of Scrooge’s famous “Are…

I’ve recently discovered a book by Dag Hammarskjold called Markings.  I’ve not read his work before but was so moved by Markings, that I look forward to reading other works by him.

Dag Hammarskjold was Secretary General of the United Nations from April 1953- Sept. 1961. Mr. Hammarskjold died in a plane crash while on a UN mission to Congo.

Markings is written in diary form, though the many entries have the appearance of an aphorism. The entry dates extend from 1925 to 1961.  The entries trace the development of his spiritual thought throughout this period of his life.  Dag Hammarskjold was not afraid to look deep inside himself (psyche, soul?) and ask tough questions.  The book shows his progression toward a deep spirituality.

I love the title.  The word markings evokes connotations of a touchstone.  Those places on our spiritual journey that mark great insights and revelations.  Dag Hammarskjold is sharing his own insights, written…

President George W. Bush winks before speaking at the United Nations, Thursday, Nov. 13, 2008. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Hot off the Associated Press: President Bush spoke on faith this morning at a United Nations conference “designed to bridge differences between religions and cultures.”

It would be interesting to hear more about how and why his faith has sustained him. Kind of like saying Jesus is your favorite philosopher…sounds good but doesn’t say much. I’ve been rooting around the Internet but haven’t found anything.

Don’t know what to do with that wink, though. I’ll assume he’s getting the speck out of his own eye.

Update: here’s the full text of President Bush’s address to the UN. I found it to be a decent brief exposition of public/civil religion.

Choose compassion over consumption.

That’s the message of the “Give it 4 Good” campaign. Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation, an organization devoted to supporting the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, has begun a push to get people to think about the money they’ll be receiving from the government this spring.

“We have an economy that is based on overconsumption, one that puts our consumer desires above all other values,” says the Rev. Mike Kinman, EGR executive director. “It has caused us to cripple the creation with which God has entrusted us. It has led us into war. It has led us to look at our sisters and brothers around the world not as children of God but as objects in supply chains.”

“EGR has always been about spiritual transformation, and that’s what this campaign is about,” says Kinman. “The money given will transform and save lives, but even more than that the decision to…