In my growing-up years, whenever I reflected on the Ten Commandments I used to think one of them unnecessary. Why did the Lord include among the injunctions given to Moses on Mount Sinai the command “Thou Shalt Not Kill?” Was it not obvious that a person should never murder another human being, no matter what the provocation? How could any sane person ever consider committing such a horrendous act?
Arguing the World
Growing up in New York City, the four argued their way through their early manhood. Their chief rite of passage was passionate discussion of issues, especially the political issues that loomed over the 1930s and 1940s. Classmates at City College, they were sons of Jewish immigrants who were struggling to survive in a turbulent urban environment.
Irving Kristol, Irving Howe, Daniel Bell, and Nathan Glazer are the subjects of a fascinating documentary recently shown on public television and now available on videotape. This film, “Arguing the World,” traces the unforeseen changes that swept over the lives of the four men as the decades moved on. All but Irving Howe are still alive and working in professional fields where they have achieved notable reputations.
The Philosopher and the Monk
They sat on opposite sides of the moderator, two men marked by family resemblance but strikingly different in overall appearance: the father’s head almost bald because of age; the son’s shaved cleanly like a pro basketball player; the father dressed in a business suit with shirt and tie; the son wearing a long flowing robe saffron and dark red.
One of these two men, Jean-François Revel (an assumed name), ranks as one of France’s leading philosophers. Now 75 years old, he enjoys a reputation as a hardheaded secular thinker, a rationalist who trusts reason alone to understand reality.
Who Wants to Hit a Hundred?
Good news – – I’m going to live to 95.8 years of age! At least that’s what the Life Expectancy Calculator tells me. Following the suggestion of Harvard researchers, Thomas Perls, M.D. and Margery Silver, Ed.D., I took the test devised by them and can now plan ahead with confidence.
Praying for Peace
What do people of spirit do when feeling oppressed by the suffering of others? Often, they pray. And they pray often. This they do especially when the suffering happens far away and they feel unable to do much else.
Some divinity school students of my acquaintance feel deeply troubled by the war in Yugoslavia. Scenes of wholesale murder in a campaign of “ethnic cleansing” violate their sense of human dignity. So do the heartrending images of refugees driven out of their homes with only the clothes on their backs.
Scams
“We’re around the corner doing a job on a house – we have stuff left over and we’ll do it for free.” That’s the kind of bait used by people who prey on elder citizens, according to Detective Joseph Magee of the Boston Police Department.
The detective called me recently suggesting that I do a column alerting readers to the dangers posed by such scam artists.
Caretaking and the Spiritual Life
A great many people in American society spend much time caring for elder citizens who are in need. Professionals – – nurses, social workers, home-care aides, doctors, among others – – do so by reason of their jobs.
Family members everywhere – – wives and husbands, adult sons and daughters, daughters-in-law and sons-in-law and countless other relatives – – are also involved in the same task. They respond usually because they feel the force of blood ties and affection.