Because of modern medicine, we live longer now than any time in human history. But as we grow closer to death, medicine fails to address our human needs and desires. Ultimately, it may do more harm than good. This is Atul Gawande’s grim conclusion in Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End. The author is a distinguished surgeon and public health specialist, and certainly believes in the importance of medicine. But he argues that, if medicine is to assist... Read more
The leaves are changing at Notre Dame. Autumn is the most beautiful time of year on campus: bursts of red and yellow are framed by a piercingly blue sky, and the sweltering heat of August fades to a brisk coolness. The desolation of autumn Autumn is a paradox. On the one hand, it is a period of desolation. As the green growth of summer decays and dies, the dry stiffness of the world tinges the soul with melancholy. As the... Read more
In the wake of any tragedy or misfortune, Americans tend to offer vague sentiments of empathy. “My thoughts and prayers are with you,” we say. I don’t believe this is an empty platitude, but a genuine expression of concern and positive wishes. But I still don’t think we should say this. Here’s why. 1. Thoughts and prayers should not be categorized together “Thoughts” may offer a secularized alternative to “prayers,” more palatable to the atheists in our midst. But thoughts are... Read more
Last week, climate scientists from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a special report on global warming (covered in Part I). With unprecedented urgency, these scientists urge us to take action against climate change. When asked about the report, Trump told reporters “I want to look at who drew it. You know, which group drew it.” Given that the leader of the free world thinks climate change is a Chinese conspiracy, and has ravaged American environmental policy,... Read more
On Monday, climate scientists from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a special report on global warming. Just another report on climate change, right? Wrong. If previous reports were like alarm clocks, this one is a nuclear warning siren. It cites more than 6,000 scientific papers, and fielded contributions from thousands of experts and government reviewers worldwide. The key message: we are already seeing drastic effects from a 1 degree C rise in global temperature, and if... Read more
I have something beautiful to show you today. And it’s a helpful metaphor for understanding your life as relationship, too. But first, we need some background on brain structure. The cells that make up your brain Brain tissue includes both neurons and glia. Neurons are the cells responsible for communication, while glia support their growth and function. Neurons transmit information through extensions of their membrane, called axons. Just like telephone wires, these axons carry electrical signals from one cell to the... Read more
Some days, God feels closer than the air we breathe, and he breaks into our reality with devastating love. And then there are days we gasp for breath, waiting in front of the tabernacle in desolation or despair. In the words of Psalm 13: How long, Lord? Will you utterly forget me? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I carry sorrow in my soul, grief in my heart day after day? Those days, God’s... Read more
Given the recent news about the sexual abuses committed in seminaries, I’ve been thinking a lot about elitism. It seems to me that these particular clerical abuses were not only the result of moral depravity, but also a thirst for power and status. In other words, they were about “the Inner Ring.” C.S. Lewis and “The Inner Ring” In 1944, C.S. Lewis gave the Memorial Lecture at King’s College, at the University of London. In this talk, he describes our... Read more
Why on earth would we celebrate Our Lady of Sorrows? How could the pain she felt at the foot of the Cross be a feast? This feast recalls the seven scriptural references to Mary’s great suffering. Not only did she bear enormous burdens, she “kept all these things in her heart,” (Luke 2:51) contemplating and reflecting on them. The Sorrowful Mother teaches us that a capacity to accompany demands a capacity to hurt. A powerful love goes hand in hand... Read more
You could describe me as a beauty junkie. I crave it, and seek it out out at any cost. Yesterday, I endured a grueling 18.7 mile hike in the mountains in western Montana just to appreciate the view from the summit. I need beauty because it places everything in perspective. In the words of Shakespeare, beauty reminds me that there is “more in Heaven and Earth” than I could dream. It is through beauty that the human heart is led... Read more
Synapses of the Soul
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