April 2025
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COMPASSION AND CHANGE
Letting in the Fresh Air COMPASSION AND CHANGE Letting in the Fresh Air Bob, an artist friend, recounted a story to me about Cardinal Loris Capovilla, Pope John XXIII’s personal secretary. Father Capovilla told Bob that moments after being elected… Continue reading
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WHAT IS YOUR PASSION?
A REMINDER OF BEAUTY I received a newsletter from a dear friend, Terrill Welch, two days ago. Terrill is an artist residing on Mayne Island, British Columbia. The newsletter contained photographs of works in progress and photographs of the shoreline… Continue reading
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FEAR, DISSENT AND CIVIC UPRISING
A mutual acquaintance arranged our clandestine meeting. We left the lecture hall and entered the fluorescent hallway that appeared shadowy that night. He hesitated, glancing around. Then he motioned me to follow him. We came to a narrow, corner space… Continue reading
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THE SALT OF INDIVIDUAL ACTION:
PART THREE: THE POSSIBILITY OF ANSWERS THE SYNAGOGUE, THE CHURCH, AND THE MOSQUE I am a proponent of ecumenical dialogue. In the past, I participated in meetings, assisted others in preparing their conferences talks, and taught in various denominational settings.… Continue reading
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THE SALT OF INDIVIDUAL ACTION:
THE POSSIBILITY OF ANSWERS But what can one person do? I will not pretend to have all the answers to how to respond to the totalitarian regime that, in a few short months, has blatantly disregarded the law of our… Continue reading
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THE SALT OF INDIVIDUAL ACTION
PART ONE: THE QUESTION BEFORE US On the morning of 12 March 1930, Mahatma Gandhi began walking from his ashram in Ahmedabad towards the coastal town of Dandi on the Arabian Sea. The distance of 240 miles required walking twelve… Continue reading
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ONE VOICE IN A CHORUS OF VOICES
“A new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph” (Exodus 1:9). What are my obligations in these times of the emergence of a dictatorship, political discord, and economic chaos? I am merely one voice in a chorus of… Continue reading
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THE TIME HAS COME FOR AN AMERICAN SOLIDARITY MOVEMENT
April 5th marks the beginning of a Solidarity Movement here in the States. Those of us who are older remember the nonviolent struggle against the Polish authoritarian communist government. The movement was a coalition of union workers, students, intellectuals, farmers,… Continue reading
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DEMOCRATS AND THE MORAL MOMENT
To an independent outsider, the quarrel and discord between oppositional wings have made the Democratic Party appear obsolete. Neither the DNC leadership nor the operatives, those attached to the traditional role of polity, appear capable of recognizing who their constituencies… Continue reading
Charles van Heck's Woodhull Journal 