A mischievous friend once advised me, “always ask for forgiveness, not permission.” It was his way of justifying some of his adventurous antics that sometimes came at the (small) expense of local property owners. Don’t let trifle rules stifle a wild idea. How many of us desire something strongly, but, if we think about it,…
Category Archives: Death
The Nairobi Fly
This trip is my third to East Africa in the past 12 months. I love the adventurousness of it all, and the exotic nature that resides in East Africa. My wife, who is traveling with me, and I met a wonderful missionary couple yesterday. They work with the Pokot Tribe in Northern Kenya. From hearing…
What is the meaning of this?
I have been reading and enjoying David Stokes’ “Apparent Danger.” It retells the story of Pastor J. Frank Norris, the 1920′s lightning rod pastor of First Baptist Church in Fort Worth. I didn’t realize Fort Worth had such a national stage 90 years ago. It is a story about the coming to power of a…
Haiti Six Months Later
I believe the Haiti earthquake occurred on January 12, 2010. So we are approaching the 6 month mark. From the Antioch Community Church reports, I know that the relief efforts have shifted from medical to rebuilding. I had the privilege of being a relief worker one week after the earthquake. I was part of a…
What about death panels?
H.R. 3200 Section 1233 introduced by Oregon Representative Earl Blumenauer last year would reimburse physicians for holding end-of-life discussions with their patients. I have mentioned it only briefly in this blog, and I want to communicate a few thoughts about it. First, the conservative labeling of the bill as creating “death panels” is misleading. I…
Pastor: We need more funerals
An article in this week’s Christianity Today spotlighted pastor John Stoltzfus who noted, “Our church doesn’t have enough funerals.” His Mennonite community members often leave town to live with children when they become elderly and require more care. As such, the mentioned church’s senior pastor has performed only 10 funerals in 8 years. So why…
Receiving Hospice AND Curative Treatment
The new health bill sets up 15 studies to look at offering curative treatment to hospice patients. That sounds counter-intuitive, but there is a reason for the provision. Most of the time, there are no curative options for hospice patients. Good examples are emphysema patients that have exhausted all possible lung treatments. These folks need…
Living and Dying Wills
In October 1991, Gilbert Meilaender, who chairs the theology department at Valparaiso University, wrote an evocative essay on making decisions through living wills. The article appeared in First Things and is called “I want to Burden my Loved Ones.” Professor Meilaender makes the point that family members need each other to make it through life. …
William Wilberforce and End of Life
Many people saw the 2006 film, Amazing Grace, about the British slave-trade abolitionist, William Wilberforce. In summary, after his conversion to Christ as an adult, Wilberforce, a powerful member of Parliament, sets all his energies toward stopping the 19th century British slave trade. Despite many obstacles, and through decades of labor, he succeeds, and then…
Happiness Level Four
The Kansas City Star reported on a special graduation ceremony held for a terminally-ill high-school student: Connor Olson graduated from Tonganoxie High School on Thursday. He was the only graduate. He brought his parents, his grandma — and his hospice nurse. Connor has spent an exhaustive year fighting bone cancer, with one round of chemo,…
