Where Violence Begins
by Rachel MacNair The planetarium presentation, as usual, was beautiful. Yet there was a disquieting aspect to the language used. Stars were “dying.” Why not “being transformed”? These stars did something in a “desperate” attempt to prevent this. How can an inanimate object be desperate? One star taking material from another star was “cannibalizing.” …
Excerpt – Peace Psychology Perspectives on Abortion
Excerpt from the Introduction to Peace Psychology Perspectives on Abortion by Rachel M. MacNair Understanding Perspectives Back when I was in college, pursuing a major in Peace and Conflict Studies at Earlham (a Quaker college, I being a Quaker), several of us activists put together a program to educate about what was wrong…
Ancient Roots of the Consistent Life Ethic: Greece
by Mary Krane Derr The ancient Greek mathematician, musician, vegetarian, and spiritual teacher Pythagoras (580? BCE-??) taught a nonviolence ethic rooted in the kinship of all living beings. Pythagoras’ ethic did not exclude or denigrate women. Most unconventionally, Pythagoras defined only sexual misconduct, not intercourse itself, as polluting. He accepted women equally as his students….
Inconsistency Sabotages the Peace Movement
Reminder: The Consistent Life Network’s blog is for the airing of a wide variety of views connected to the consistent life ethic. Therefore, the views are those of the author and not necessarily of the organization. Political elections are especially likely to elicit sharply differing perspectives from consistent-lifers. On the Occasion of the 2016 U.S….
Varieties of Hawk: Clinton v. Trump on Foreign Policy
Reminder: The Consistent Life Network’s blog is for the airing of a wide variety of views connected to the consistent life ethic. Therefore, the views are those of the author and not necessarily of the organization. Political elections are especially likely to elicit sharply differing perspectives from consistent-lifers. by John Whitehead For an American…
Mourning After & Hoping for the Future, We Call for a Consistent Life Texas!
Mourning After & Hoping for the Future, We Call for a Consistent Life Texas! Thad Crouch (speaking of himself in the third person) offers this report: Mourning after the Supreme Court of the U.S. (SCOTUS) overturned two of four provisions of Texas law on medical regulations for abortion clinics —while also looking hopefully at…
“Seamless Garment” — Poem by Daniel Berrigan
The beauty of the “seamless garment” image! No one, not one exposed to the rude winds of the world, No one, however lorn or lost, out in the cold. No one rejected, no one unwanted! the unborn, the aged, ill, condemned, the expendable, “lives of no worth”- no matter the tag, everyone matters! If these…