Christ and the End of the Scapegoat
Christians need to realize that there is no scapegoat on this earth that can be sacrificed to bring us a peaceful end to the evils we encounter.| Public Discourse
The Parable of The Workers in the Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16) is one of my favorite parables. I love it because it is a fascinating, triple-decker salvation sandwich! Yes, you read that right. I am comparing this beautiful and powerful parable to a sandwich! But before you rip your shirt screaming blasphemy or something of the […]| Catholic Stand
This week’s question was difficult to answer because I don’t think there’s an easy response: How do you determine what is right and good in a moral sense? To what degree do you depend on sacred texts or clerics? The question is a heavy one, and I know most people will say they base their … Continue reading The Questions We Don’t Ask – And Why They Matter, Part 4→| Thoughts about leadership, history, and more
Christians need to realize that there is no scapegoat on this earth that can be sacrificed to bring us a peaceful end to the evils we encounter.| Public Discourse
As a child, I witnessed the brutal torture and beatings that my mother, a teacher, endured at the hands of a gang of violent students, the Red Guards. The images of her half-shaved hair, a urine pot hanging from her neck, a high paper hat on her head, and the scars on her face, are forever ingrained in my memory. The full Years in a Pigsty by Sue Tong can be found at Memoir Magazine.| Memoir Magazine
Our teacher had said she thought the Negroes were going too far. I had raised my hand and disagreed. “Too far from what?” I had asked. The full An Eighth Grade Moment by Edna Garte can be found at Memoir Magazine.| Memoir Magazine
In the beginning. My father married my mother and they begat six children, loving each of us unconditionally. Dad played the organ at church, Mom sang in the choir, and they raised me to be a good Catholic girl. And God saw that it was good. Whatsoever you do to the least of my...| Memoir Magazine
Are people finally awakening to their sense of right and wrong?| Insight
Kant’s account of evil makes three key claims with major consequences for moral agency and responsibility. First, the distinction between good and evil lies in the will (R 6:59). Unlike prior theories that locate evil in natural inclinations or external circumstances, Kant situates evil in the will’s choice of maxims. This reveals that earlier theories […] The post Kant’s Empowering Conception of Humanity first appeared on Blog of the APA.| Blog of the APA
I have a new peer-reviewed publication in philosophy: “Objective Moral Facts Exist in All Possible Universes,” Religions 16.8 (2025). This consolidates my previous peer-reviewed work on metaethics (“Moral Facts Naturally Exist (and Science Could Find Them,” in The End of Christianity, ed. John Loftus, Prometheus 2011) and subsequent blogging and debates into a new peer-reviewed […] The post New Publication: Objective Moral Facts Exist in All Possible Universes appeared first on Rich...| Richard Carrier Blogs
I will be debating Andrew Wilson, live on stage, in Nashville, Tennessee, this November 16. Yes, that Andrew Wilson. I expect it will be a dumpster fire like it was with Sargon, and as experienced by Dillahunty last year with Wilson. But I’ll stick around. Because I only do this for real money now, as […] The post The Carrier-Wilson Debate in Nashville: Christianity Or Secular Humanism, Which Is Best for Society? appeared first on Richard Carrier Blogs.| Richard Carrier Blogs
When Jewish leaders transgress your own personal ethics, it can shatter the bond to your faith. The post Jews and Moral Injury appeared first on Moment Magazine.| Moment Magazine
There seems to be a deep intuitive connection between morality and interpersonal trust: if you knew somebody to be morally perfect, then you would trust them to keep their promises, not steal your possessions, not harm or kill you in your sleep, etc. But note that if utilitarianism is true, then this connection breaks down: there may be enumerable situations in which promise-breaking, theft, or even physical violence (up to and including murder) could serve to maximize utility. So if utilitar...| Jim Reilly's Philosophy Blog
First, the calamity We’re on a very bad path in the US at the moment. Many of you live in the US, as I do, although many of you don’t. However, as they say, “If America sneezes the rest of the world catches cold.” What happens here affects the entire world. Many people outside the...| Wildmind
My grandmother’s grandfather was David Celyddon Phillips (1848–1915), Welsh-born minister and poet, known by the bardic name “Celyddon.” Recently I learned that my second cousin David M. Phillips Jr. has in his possession a leatherbound, hand-written copy of D. C. Phillips’ long narrative poem The Promised One, or, Jesus of Nazareth — previously unpublished as far as either of us know, despite that one of Celyddon’s lengthy obituaries mentions:| Arthur O’Dwyer
A new UBC study suggests the roots of morality may be present from birth.| UBC News
Back in the days when schools taught something more than self-pity, indignation and jumping to conclusions, many teachers required that students read Henry Wads| The American TFP
What do you do when you hear bullying sounds coming from a nearby alley? Most of us keep walking, and new research reveals this choice is far more calculated than we might think.| Study Finds
By Dr Jeremy Gauntlett-Gilbert – student on the MSt Practical Ethics programme The advent of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence has opened up new possibilities for health research. Specifically, these techniques could be let loose on ‘big data’, such as the collective data of healthcare organisations (including the NHS), and would likely reveal new insights| Practical Ethics
In the Rue Neuve-Saint-Augustin, a hold-up in the traffic stopped the cab which was bringing Octave and his three trunks from the Gare de Lyon. The young man lowered one of the windows, although it…| This Reading Life
Some reflections in a piece for CLOSLER on looking at success in academic medicine through the lens of virtue ethics.| A Myth in Creation
Undergraduate Highly Commended paper in the 2025 National Uehiro Oxford Essay Prize in Practical Ethics. By Nicole Chinenyenwa Oboko. I have always been told that if a person has nothing nice to say, they should say nothing at all. For most of my life, I’ve upheld this belief. A decent person, as part of a decent| Practical Ethics
It’s not hard to see why the Catholic Church condemned Meister Eckhart for heresy. One of his teachings, in particular, is shocking even today: the good or blessed man, properly “poor i…| Love of All Wisdom
Many people wonder why the God who is infinite love would sentence someone to an … Continue Reading The post Why Those in Hell Can Never Leave appeared first on Catholicism Explained.| Catholicism Explained
A few weeks ago, someone presented a Scripture verse to me that, on face value, … Continue Reading The post Short Answers: Can a Justified Person Sin? appeared first on Catholicism Explained.| Catholicism Explained
Abortion is an issue of grave concern to Catholics because it concerns issues of human dignity. As Catholics, we believe that human dignity is rooted in God. Our dignity comes from the very fact that we were created by God in the image and likeness of God and because of this, all people are equal […]| About Catholics
Truth is more than abstract ideas or ideologies—it’s Jesus Christ himself. When we prioritize abstract rigid beliefs over our relationship with Him, we risk losing divine guidance and unity.| Public Square Magazine
Can Catholics Be Cremated? For much of history the Catholic Church banned cremation as a choice for dead Catholics, but in 1963 the Vatican lifted the ban. Cremation is now an acceptable practice for Catholics, but only if done for the right reasons. Contents show 1. Why Was Cremation Not Allowed? 2. A Change in […]| About Catholics
“I, the Lord, am your God. You shall have no other gods before me.” – God Contents show 1. Prioritizing God 2. Freedom in Loving God 3. No Other Gods Before the True God 4. Prayer and Answers to Prayer 5. More Commandments 6. Related Catholic Articles The very first commandments in the Ten Commandments […]| About Catholics
“Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day.” – God Contents show 1. Why is Sabbath Day on a Sunday? 2. Why Should We Rest? 3. The Next Commandment 4. Related Catholic Articles After not using the Lord’s name in vain, the third and final Commandment pertaining specifically to loving God with our total mind, heart, […]| About Catholics
One of the Ten Commandments is to keep the Sabbath day holy. The Catholic Church teaches that this means first and foremost going to Mass if possible. Another characteristic of keeping the Sabbath day holy involves resting from work. Contents show 1. The Catechism and Work on Sundays 1.1. What the Obligation Is 1.2. […]| About Catholics
Sexual intercourse was designed by God to unify a married couple and to further participate in God’s ongoing creation. Contents show 1. What is Marriage? 2. Sex in Marriage is a Sacramental Sign 3. Related Catholic Articles What is Marriage? Marriage is the union of a male and female for the rest of their lives. This […]| About Catholics
The Catholic Church abides and believes in the Ten Commandments, sometimes referred to as the Decalogue. This can be seen as a legislative body of rules. From the time when God issued them on Mount Sinai to Moses (Exodus 20:2-17) that is how some people practiced them. However, Jesus came to clarify how we fulfill […]| About Catholics
“Nobody knew math could be so complicated.”— nobody ever The most truthful — and, to me, the most infuriating — thing a certain public figure1 uttered over the course of his ongoing career was “It is what it is.” Given that he was referring to the deaths of over a hundred thousand people — deaths that, […]|
A common charge leveled against the Catholic Church is that it wrongfully teaches that Christians can “earn” grace. They say that this conflicts with the te| Catholicism Explained
One of the things I’ve been giving a bit of thought to, as I begin to contemplate retiring and not doing the stuff that I’ve been doi...| anthropomics2.blogspot.com
Some non-Catholics, especially of the Calvinist tradition, believe that a person whom God has justified will do good works automatically, a teaching that is par| Catholicism Explained
Marriage is intrinsically linked to sex so it is important that one has a good grasp of the role of sexual intercourse before one can delve into the topic of same-sex marriage. At the most fundamental level, a gay marriage is impossible because the same-sex couple can never consummate their marriage; they can never become […]| About Catholics
“You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.” As written in the Ten Commandments, there is huge importance on the way we should use God’s name. Crying out the name of Jesus Christ as profanity when one is mad seems to be a popular expression; however, it is a problem […]| About Catholics
Sins can be a very touchy subject, it can be very hard to discuss with someone, but as Catholics, we must be willing to know and educate ourselves about them. We all know that all sins are not good for us, but what we do have to remember is that not all sins are the […]| About Catholics
The Precepts of the Catholic Church are like a bare bones list of things you must do as a Catholic; they are like minimum membership requirements. The idea is to guarantee “the very necessary minimum in the spirit of prayer and moral effort, in the growth in love of God and neighbor.”In other words, the […]| About Catholics
Venial sins are less serious sins that do not cause death to the soul like mortal sins. Venial sins, while less serious in content or participation should be given strong attention because they lessen the love of God in the heart and weaken the power to resist further sin; they are still offenses against God […]| About Catholics
Marriage today faces a number of threats. Divorce, redefinition, and infidelity undermine the status and special importance of marriage in a society. Contents show 1. Divorce 2. Homosexual Unions 3. Infidelity 4. Related Catholic Articles Divorce Divorce threatens marriage by destroying the permanency of marriage. Marriage, as defined by the Catholic Church, is a life-long […]| About Catholics
The Ten Commandments (also known as the Decalogue, from the Greek for “ten words” or “ten laws”) are some of the most basic rules that Christians follow. God loves his people, so he makes sure we have rules to live by because these rules tell us how we flourish and function best. When we sin […]| About Catholics
Original Sin is the sin inherited by all humankind from Adam in his disobedience of God’s command not to eat from the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. The Original Sin event is referred to as “The Fall of Man.”| About Catholics
Mortal sins are sins of serious or grave matter. “Mortal” means death; they are sins that cause death to the soul. Mortal sins completely sever one’s relationship with God and the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation (commonly called Confession) is necessary to restore this relationship. Contents show 1. Are all Sins the Same? 2. Conditions […]| About Catholics
The Enlightenment may well be the end of an old story rather than the beginning of a new one. The philosophy of insatiable appetites changed the Christian-Aristotelian moral order into the modern world, but now that the change is just about complete, what purpose does its catalyst serve? (essay by Daniel McCarthy)| The Imaginative Conservative
Why is it so easy to humanize chatbots? Did millions of years of human evolution set us up to see a "mind in the machine"?| Practical Ethics
Explore the philosophical and theological nuances of sin, examining its gravity and relationship to God's law and reason.| Catholic Q&A
Funded by the Chynn Family Foundation| Asian American / Asian Research Institute
Did you know we’re all pagans? That’s right. America is majority pagan. We worship Ishtar and the Onion God and have cool-ass pagan festivals featuring palm fronds and sacred orgies. Public feasts in every town distribute meat and mead, blessed by pagan priestesses in ancient regalia, to all the townsfolk, at public or patriot expense. […]| Richard Carrier Blogs
“COVID19 is disastrous and devastating, but has never read up on the Me Too movement, has no opinion on colonization and doesn’t know Johnson.”| Crutches and Spice
Be wary of those who insist that they are simply acting from “moral values,” when the results of their values include pain and heartbreak, for either they are masking evil behind that façade, or their morals are dark and dire. Probably both. In either case, they are poisonous bedfellows.| Welcome to the Petting Zoo
Although Neo-Confucianism was not monolithic, what separated the new Confucian school from the classical Confucian writers was the belief in ultimate moral metaphysical truths. These were represented by the terms ‘heaven’ (tian), ‘principle’ (li), ‘the great ultimate’ (taiji), the basic element or energy (qi), and the way of things (dao), which explained the unfolding reality-principle […]| The Confucian Weekly Bulletin
When we think about morality, we often tell ourselves to avoid the big sins and be nice. Although these goals are good, especially for the novice Christian, the| Catholicism Explained
Submitted by Danny T. The underlying theme to the Pokémon film, Mewtwo Strikes Back, is philosophy vs. complacency. Mewtwo, the antagonist in this film, represents philosophy. He is constantly searching for the meaning of his artificial existence; whereas, the Pokémon trainers, Pokémon, Giovanni, and Mew all represent the complacent approach to life. As the film […]| The Journal of Cartoon Overanalyzations
Excerpt: But the strong feminist themes of the series are built on a foundation of political contradictions. The most fantastic element of the show is not that ponies can talk or that dragons exist; it is the illusion that an egalitarian society can be maintained among groups with massive biologically inherent gaps in ability and […]| The Journal of Cartoon Overanalyzations
Explore the benefits of Military Junior Boarding Schools. Develop leadership, discipline, and academic excellence in a structured environment.| Army and Navy Academy
In his June 2018 ‘Skeptic’ column for Scientific American, Michael Shermer discusses Google data scientist Seth Stephens-Davidowitz’s idea that Google searches may act as a “digital truth serum” for our deeper and darker thoughts.| Michael Shermer
Darkness, bleakness, even elements of horror, tend to be a big part of my fantasy gaming and the types of fantasy media I enjoy. A lot of my favorites tend to belong to the nebulous ‘dark fantasy’ subgenre – Kentaro Miura’s Berserk, Glen Cook’s classic The Black Company (and his often overlooked but just as […]| Augury Ignored
On the 29th of September 2013, the long-awaited final episode of American drama Breaking Bad (2008-2013) was aired to U.S. television audiences. Vince Gilligan’s AMC TV series turned out to be a co…| A R T L▼R K
I managed to coerce myself to have what I’m told is called “fun” a few weekends ago and it got me thinking about the difficulty inherent in “letting go” and enjoying yourself while the world burns. For me, I can’t. I get instantly assaulted with guilt, then shame, and then my brain tells me that if I just…| That Seems Important
I was interviewed! And by ‘interviewed’, I mean that I answered a bunch of online quiz questions and pasted them in here. (Written 2017-2018.)| Lulie
'Equality does not bring suffering but an equality complex can' - Thich Nhat Hanh| - [ Perspectiva ]
