Dwelling in Possibilities of Life & Death – UPDATED

We have recently seen pro-life conservatives like Sarah Palin and Ed Morrissey admit that fear of the unknown, and the possibility of complicated outcomes, were brief temptations toward abortion, an option which they rejected, and rejections they pointedly do not regret.

Their acknowledged temptations are something most of us would understand. People want to feel sure of themselves and what is going on in their lives; they want an illusion of control.

An abortion performed at a Catholic Hospital and Medical Center in Arizona, and the subsequent excommunication of the Catholic religious and on-call administrator who approved of the procedure, leads us once again to examine the mystery of faith, the illusion of control, and how much value we place upon each.

On the First Things homepage, I take a look at the world broad possibilities within which we Catholics dwell. Yes, the question I dare to ask is provocative; it is meant to be.

You can’t say I’m boring!