Pontification in a Good Way

The saints were not angels. They were sinful men and women whose "greatness was shaped by forgiveness." Forgiving others is easy to say when one is a disinterested observer; when one or one's family member is grievously wronged, it's very tough to forgive. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.

The New Testament does not conceal the errors, conflicts and sins of those whom we venerate as the greatest Apostles. Their greatness was shaped by forgiveness. The risen Lord reached out to them more than once, to put them back on the right path. Jesus never calls just one…

— Pope Leo XIV (@Pontifex) June 29, 2025

Regret: Making it Work for Us

(Illustration by Michael Glenwood/WSJ)

Now that I'm in the autumn of my life--and that's based on an optimistic timeline--the memories and regrets are mounting like the sand in an hourglass. There are people who I can never see again and choices that can never be unmade.

"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood," said the poet, "yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back." Few of us can go back, and fewer do.

The old wisdom was not to dwell on past failures. Do better next time, and push regrets to the side of the road. Sad memories are negative; they keep us from moving forward.

The new wisdom: human beings are "hard-wired" to feel regret. Because regret is unavoidable, we may as well accept it and have it work for us.

Regret is not dangerous or abnormal. It is healthy and universal, an integral part of being human. Equally important, regret is valuable. It clarifies. It instructs. Done right, it needn’t drag us down; it can lift us up.

So how can we control regrets so that they don't overwhelm us, yet ponder them regularly to improve ourselves?

One ancient remedy that seems to work: going to church. In the Eucharist there is "quiet time" to reflect on sins, ask forgiveness, and think about how to make things right. Just by paying attention to the words in the General Confession, we confront our past missteps:

Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; in your compassion forgive us our sins, known and unknown, things done and undone; and so uphold us by your Spirit that we may live and serve you in newness of life, to the honor and glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Simple, and in this humble blogger's case, sometimes effective.

Laughing Because It's The Dodgers

It's only a strike if the umpire says it is.

Whenever I fancy myself to be an ethical person, something comes along to remind me that I still have work to do.

On Thursday night the Dodgers were beating the Giants, 3-2, in the top of the 9th inning at Dodger Stadium. The Giants had the bases loaded and two outs, and Darin Ruf had a full count of three balls and two strikes.

The Dodgers thought Ruf swung and missed on the next pitch and that the game was over. Instead the umpires called a ball and a checked swing, and the walk forced in the tying run. Photographs showed that Ruf had broken his wrists, and my personal weakness stood revealed: I immediately cheered the umpires' mistake.

What was even more delicious is that the reprieve not only tied the game, but the Giants ending up winning with a score of 5-3. The fulminations by the Dodgers and their fans on social media made me laugh even harder.

I suppose I'll have to go to church tomorrow and ask forgiveness for my sins. Meanwhile, that's 24 hours from now and I'm still smiling.

Communion: Does Everyone Get to Go?

The Virgin Mary adoring the Eucharist (WSJ)

The Catholic Church has been roiled by an issue that most Protestants had resolved:

Should Catholics be allowed to share Communion, one of their church’s most sacred rites, with their Protestant spouses?

(Obviously from the Protestant perspective the above designations are flipped.)

There are two principal views of the Eucharist: the banquet ("a welcoming meal, often linking it with Gospel accounts of Jesus’ willingness to eat with outcasts and sinners") versus a sacrament for believers ("the traditional requirement of moral worthiness to receive Communion"). Some conservative Catholics want to screen out those who, for example, advocate abortion or remarriage after divorce, both of which are legal but contrary to official teaching.

The Episcopal Church opted for inclusion decades ago ("All baptized Christians are most welcome to receive Communion with us."), but before Episcopalians go all high-and-mighty over the retrograde Catholics, we have to ask ourselves, are there any circumstances under which we would refuse Communion to anyone? The Episcopal Church defines Excommunication as [bold added]

The disciplinary exclusion of a person from receiving communion by competent religious authority. It represents exclusion from the corporate life of the church. Excommunication was intended to encourage repentance and not meant to be a punishment. The Prayer Book Disciplinary Rubrics for the Holy Eucharist provide that if the priest "knows that a person who is living a notoriously evil life intends to come to Communion," the priest shall tell the person not to come to communion until the person "has given clear proof of repentance and amendment of life."

The key word here is "repentance," and most branches of Christianity would agree: the wayward person would be welcomed back if he or she repents of the "sin" and promises (tries?) not to commit the sin again, whatever it may be. So, my sympathies are with the Catholic Church as it struggles with the lines that its members may not cross; everyone has lines, though they may not want to admit it.

Note: the pre-1970 Episcopal Church would not allow me, who was baptized at one, to take Communion until I was confirmed at the age of 12. Also, tardy worshippers were not to supposed to take Communion if they arrived after the confession--yes, it's all about repentance--midway through the service.

Here's the 1928 General Confession, which I once committed to memory and is rarely used any more (I do like the cadences of the old-timey language):

ALMIGHTY God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, Judge of all men; We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, Which we, from time to time, most grievously have committed, By thought, word, and deed, Against thy Divine Majesty, Provoking most justly thy wrath and indignation against us. We do earnestly repent, And are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; The remembrance of them is grievous unto us; The burden of them is intolerable. Have mercy upon us, Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; For thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, Forgive us all that is past; And grant that we may ever hereafter Serve and please thee In newness of life, To the honour and glory of thy Name; Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Get This Story Out of the News, United

When we first saw the video of the passenger being dragged off of United Flight 3411 at O'Hare, we, probably like you, had three reactions:

1) he was brutally treated by the airline;
2) the passenger could have behaved better;
3) there were other ways the airline could have opened up a seat without reaching this point.

Modern journalism insists that we know more. The video will not stand on its own; we need to fill out the backstory. Was the passenger basically a victim or a partial instigator? (The answer does not change our judgment of the airline's actions, however.)

First reaction: he doesn't sound like a good guy. LA Times:

[David] Dao had previously been convicted of six felonies related to his medical practice in 2004, in which he was accused of illegally prescribing painkillers to a patient in exchange for sex.

He was given five years of supervised probation.

Dao surrendered his medical license in 2005

Second reaction: he was trying to turn his life around.

[Dao] applied for reinstatement, telling regulators it was a matter of “family honor.” In a 2014 letter, his attorney described Dao as "a grandfather, an active participant in his local church" who supports an organization that helps the homeless in his community, Elizabethtown, Ky.

Third reaction: he had mental challenges that the United police likely exacerbated.

Dao has a history of mental health problems, including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder, for which he has received treatment. A 2011 psychological evaluation of Dao concluded that he "lacked the foundation to navigate difficult situations, both inter-personally and in a complex profession.” [snip]

But another psychological evaluation administered in 2013 concluded that Dao “emotionally was free of debilitating anxiety, depression, or psychological turmoil to the extent that it would affect his ability to function in activities of daily living or manage the practice of medicine.”

Regulators cleared Dao to return to medical practice in 2015, in which he was initially restricted to working one day a week, supervised by another doctor.

From sin to repentance to making amends to a violent encounter with authority--a progression that resonates during Holy Week. Settle at any cost, United, and get this story out of the news.

Forgiveness is Divine

Terrible tragedies abound in the news, and we are used to hearing anger and accusations of blame that are often wholly justified. But on occasion we hear words of forgiveness, words that are unfathomable because we know we could never attain that state of grace.

In 2008 Dong Yun Yoon, a Korean immigrant to the U.S., lost his wife and two baby daughters when a Marine jet crashed into his house near San Diego.

Yoon, sobbing into a tissue at his destroyed house, also asked for prayer for the jet’s Marine pilot, who ejected safely from the F/A-18D Hornet after his training mission went awry Monday.

"I don’t have any hard feelings," Yoon, 37, told reporters. "I know he did everything he could."

Three months ago a white supremacist slaughtered nine members of Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Said the daughter of one of the victims:

“I forgive you. You took something very precious away from me. I will never get to talk to her ever again—but I forgive you, and have mercy on your soul … You hurt me. You hurt a lot of people. If God forgives you, I forgive you.”

On February 11th Oklahoma City assistant coach Monty Williams lost his wife, Ingrid, 44, when Susannah Donaldson, 52, drifted into her lane and hit her head-on. Both women died. In his eulogy on Friday Monty Williams gave a moving tribute to Ingrid, the mother of his five children, but the part that everyone most remembers is this:

I'm going to close with this and I think it's the most important thing that we need to understand. Everybody's praying for me and my family, which is right, but let us not forget that there were two people in this situation,and that family needs prayer as well. We have no ill will towards that family.

In my house we have a sign that says, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” We cannot serve the Lord if we don't have a heart of forgiveness. That family didn't wake up wanting to hurt my wife. Life is hard. It is very hard, and that was tough. But we hold no ill will towards the Donaldson family. We, as a group, brothers united in unity, should be praying for that family because they grieve as well so let's not lose sight of what's important. God will work this out. My wife is in heaven. God loves us. God is love.