Separation of Chuch and State

I do believe that the church and its members should be helping people and fighting against social injustices towards others. But there should still be a separation of church and state.

Take a look at my website for more of my thoughts…
Blog post on marriage
Blog post on health care (link coming soon)

Where do you think that this line should be? What should the role of the church and government be in relationship to social justice?








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Is Global Heath Care the Real Solution?

Many people are looked down upon when they are opposed to government aid. A girl in one of my classes said that “people who are against health care are stupid and ignorant.” I disagree. This girl in my class could be seen as ignorant because it was clear, as she continued talking, that she had no idea what many people who opposed health care actually think or believe.

There are several reasons for being opposed to global health care (I am not necessarily opposed but I do see it going terribly wrong as it has in other countries). The main reason is that the church should be addressing grace issues. It is not the government’s job to involve itself in people’s everyday life. It is our job as individuals and Christians to be helping the people that don’t have health care.

There is a church in Spearfish, South Dakota, which had several doctors and nurses in their congregation. This church chose one night a week and opened the basement up for free heath care from these professionals for the entire community (not just the church). This is what we should be seeing everywhere. If a church has doctors, financial advisers, artists, tradesmen, mathematicians the church should be using these skills to be help people who can not help themselves.

Making health care a government issue could make situations like this illegal or greatly reduce them. The government could also start regulating more of our medical procedures. I have a friend who was a missionary in Mexico for a couple years. When she had her second child in Mexico the hospital forced her to take drugs that she had previously had the option to in the United States. This is just one example of how government control in our health care is dangerous.

I agree that it is not alright for people to be dying because they cant afford to go to the doctor and that something needs to be done. I do not believe that the government providing global health care is the best option. It may seem to be the most realistic at the moment, but if every one who supports global health care stepped up and helped someone, the need for the government may dissipate and be taken care of.

This is a challenge to the churches in America to start using their resources for people who need it.

The Child Should Come First!

This article discusses a 4-year-old girl being turned down from a private school (I think it is Catholic). The school’s reason for turning the child down is that the child will be learning values that are significantly different from those that her lesbian parents will be teaching and these contradictions will be confusing for the child.

I understand that this issue can be seem from purely a social justice perspective; however, what is best for the child needs to come first. 

The statement regarding possible confusion is true.  The conflict could be damaging. The parents would be faced with an extremely difficult task. They would have to help the child understand the contradictions taught to her by her peers, teachers and parents. If the child were older, I think that it would be easier to explain and dialog with the child about these contradictions in a way that wouldn't cause the child to become angry and bitter towards her peers and teachers. The parents would need to find a way to help the child balance the ideas of the family disagrees, the school and the child’s peers. At the same time helping the child gain a respect for her teachers and make friends with the other students. I am not sure that a 4-year-old is old enough to be in this situation.

I also understand the frustrations of the parents and assume that they are aware of the fact that they can not change the schools teachings. I can’t see the parents being happy with the teaching that the child will be learning. This could also lead to future problems between the parents and the school. It would then be the parents’ responsibility not to let these potentially negative interactions affect the child. 

I don’t think that the examples, in the article, for possible rejection are the same as this situation. I am not sure why agnostic or Muslim parents would want their children at a private Catholic school. I also think that the mentioned specific moral beliefs are smaller issues. The parents of a 4-year-old would probably not teach her about abortion, but a 4-year-old will realize that she has two same sex parents and that will surround her every day at school. People will ask her why she has two mommies and she will not understand (the same way I didn’t understand when kids asked why I had two white parents).  I would not have wanted to be in a school that taught interracial marriage was wrong nor would I want my parents to put me in this situation.  It would have confused me more than the contrasts I was surrounded by already did.  (Listen to my "I Believe in Stories" essay to hear about some of the very basics.)

From the given information, I do have to side with the school because the confusion could be damaging to the child; however, if the other school options in the are dangerous or are likely to cause more significant problems for the child, I would change my opinion. I could also be pursuaded if the other schools are significantly worse. But I do believe that the politics and the parents should not be the focus; the child needs to come first. As the child gets into high school a catholic school could be a much better fit. High school is a good time for kids to learn about social justice, finding who they are and to begin fighting for their beliefs.

I would love some responses as to why a 4-year-old would be better off in the situation (not why it is unfair toward the LGBT community, which I agree is is. The same a school rejecting me based on the grounds that I was the product of an interracial marriage).  There are a couple possible ideas that I can think of that definitely apply to older kids, but I want to hear them from you.

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