tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1807797510077851525.post8162409997992559765..comments2022-07-22T20:25:35.857-08:00Comments on Lox Populi: Shooting Ourselves With Blanks: The Lost Ammunition of Hormonal and Surgical SterilizationTiffany Borgeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03027802344101689023noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1807797510077851525.post-87230530180825038772012-05-20T10:24:55.444-08:002012-05-20T10:24:55.444-08:00MsB, I'm eager for practical and evangelical s...MsB, <i>I'm eager for practical and evangelical solutions for Christians of all vocations.</i><br /><br />I don't think "solutions", as such, exist. There are no quick fixes here. It took <i>generations</i> of slow, patient Catholic-based culture, family after family, to build a strong culture (think back to the outlawing of cousin marriages, for example). But it's been far easier to destroy than to build; witness what liberals have done to the broader culture in 50 short years. The "why" it is happening is easy too...as John Derbyshire says, <i>Life’s great law is that poverty and hardship build character; prosperity and security destroy it.</i> Or put another way: America never has quite understood Jesus' dire warnings of the danger of wealth.<br /><br />But while the culture cannot be simply fixed like a car or a chair can be, people can still save themselves and their families from the mess. And also witness to others by doing so. But this is no easy fix. No simple solution. Only the long, hard slog against the culture at a personal and only then at a family level. With great effort families can still be islands of sanity within the culture at large, setting an example that others can follow. Have not doubt, it's a powerful witness indeed to be seen gulping down water in the middle of a spiritual desert. Reminds me of that classic scene in <i>Jerry McGuire</i> when the player asks, after seeing what a real relationship looks like, "How come we don't have a relationship like that?". <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuL9NmeeIqs&feature=related" rel="nofollow">See 4:00</a>mdavidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1807797510077851525.post-40341051020419842422012-05-19T09:02:37.915-08:002012-05-19T09:02:37.915-08:00I think something that's often unspoken is the...I think something that's often unspoken is the way we have bought the idea that marriage has nothing, essentially, to do with either procreation or fidelity, and then we turn around and say "Gay marriage? That makes no sense--they can't procreate and they're notoriously unfaithful!" I think a lot of people out there are honestly confused, and the only way to unconfuse anybody is to start treating marriage as something that is essentially about faithful union and children. That will be hard, but I think it's providential that the HHS mandate has shoved birth control into the spotlight and kind of forced us to articulate how intentional sterility has not turned out to make us all as happy as it was supposed to.<br />DevraDevra Torreshttp://www.thepersonalistproject.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1807797510077851525.post-25549941948566040642012-05-19T07:01:33.901-08:002012-05-19T07:01:33.901-08:00Laura, sometimes the strangest things can turn out...Laura, sometimes the strangest things can turn out to be inspiring examples. As a kid, I saw my parents' life, and marriage, go through, and then recover from, all kinds of awful stuff, including drugs and infidelity and screaming fights that kept us kids up at night. They're going on 50 years, and now they're an inspiration in the "usual" way. But I think the whole thing has been more inspiring to me than if they had just been nice for fifty years!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1807797510077851525.post-6345821523146217332012-05-14T13:43:28.486-08:002012-05-14T13:43:28.486-08:00Good thoughts! Like Mother Teresa's acceptance...Good thoughts! Like Mother Teresa's acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize (did you see E. Foss quoting this today?) and being asked what we can do to work for world peace. 'Go home and love your family,' was her reply. Forgiveness and doing for the other is a shining example, Laura! Well, it's enough to inspire me.Tiffany Borgeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03027802344101689023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1807797510077851525.post-64541317784284570702012-05-12T21:22:53.386-08:002012-05-12T21:22:53.386-08:00I will say that having shining examples of marriag...I will say that having shining examples of marriage would be a great start. When so many of my generation experienced high levels of divorce, it is no wonder that they do not even comprehend what a good marriage would look like. <br /><br />Also, until more people realize that life is not all about them and their whims, we won't start seeing progress away from the abyss. Focusing on the glamorous wedding day and not the days and years which follow is an indicator of the 'me' mentality.<br /><br />And, for what it is worth, I do not have one of those brightly shining marriages for people to strive towards. However, we do our best to seek forgiveness when needed and move forward without holding grudges. Also, we are not focused on what the other person can do for us, but what we can do for them.Laura O in AKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16553515030417720783noreply@blogger.com