By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div. I wondered. Why had she said that? How could someone make such a blatantly false assessment of a message of love and peace? Sure, the topic of my talk that evening was a premillennial romp through the apocalyptic literature of the Bible, making almost no distinction between theContinue reading “Beware the Mask of Fascism”
Author Archives: Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D.
Being Nice
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div., MFT “Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom.” Theodore Isaac Rubin One day, as I strolled across the campus, one of my students stopped me. She had a question, which I did my best to answer. As she andContinue reading “Being Nice”
“We the People”
Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., LMFT, M.Div. In a recent article, I read about a South Carolina school board that was considering banning a book taught in an AP Language course last February (The Daily Beast, “Ta-Nehisi Coats Crashes School Board…”). Apparently, Ta-Nehisi Coates book, Between the World and Me—an essay originally written for his son whoContinueContinue reading ““We the People””
Does Religion Bring Happiness?
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D. It takes moral courage to grieve; it takes religious courage to rejoice. Søren Kierkegaard, The Soul of Kierkegaard: Selections from His Journal Do we look happy to you? The other day I had a conversation with one of my Buddhist friends. During the conversation, he said something interesting. “If Moses,ContinueContinue reading “Does Religion Bring Happiness?”
Beliefs Have Consequences
by Harold W. Anderson, M.Div., Ph.D. Belief is powerful. It changes things and the more people believe it, the more things change. This, I suppose, is the lesson of systems. A singular belief can be something powerful for the person who holds it, but it may have little impact upon others. But a belief thatContinueContinue reading “Beliefs Have Consequences”
Faith…But Faith in What?
by Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., LMFT, M.Div. It is difficult to know what the word for faith in the New Testament means because all too often, the term is used without definition. One of the few biblical definitions is given in Hebrew 11:1, which states “Now faith is being sure of what we hope forContinueContinue reading “Faith…But Faith in What?”
Does Your Moral Compass Point North?
Jews, Arabs, Bedouins, Europeans, Easterners, Africans, Americans…Christian, Judaism, Islam, Hindu, Buddhism, Shinto…dark skinned persons, persons of color, white people…straight, gay, trans, nonbinary…poor, rich, middle, homeless. Some want to say all the people standing behind these labels are human beings and as such, should be treated with respect. Some want to say that none of thisContinue reading “Does Your Moral Compass Point North?”
Faithful Living and the Difference between Kerygma and Myth
by Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div by Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div It is impossible to use electric light and the wireless and to avail ourselves of modern medical and surgical discoveries, and at the same time to believe in the New Testament world of spirits and miracles. WeContinue reading “Faithful Living and the Difference between Kerygma and Myth”
When Death Is a Blessing: Living with Alzheimer’s Disease
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.Div, LMFT There is a moral task of caregiving, and that involves just being there, being with that person and being committed. When there is nothing that can be done, we have to be able to say, ‘look, I’m with you in this experience. Right through to the end ofContinue reading “When Death Is a Blessing: Living with Alzheimer’s Disease”
The GOP…Yuck!
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.Div., LMFT Ok, I have to say it; I intensely dislike the GOP. This is not to say that I dislike people who are Republicans, but I really loath the GOP. In my mind, the GOP is represented today by blood-thirsty fascists like Ron DeSantis, who is threatening to shootContinue reading “The GOP…Yuck!”