Luther's Regard for Children
by Jane Strohl
In recent months I have had several conversations with colleagues in various aspects of church work about their experiences balancing family life and vocational obligations. [ read article ]

Honoring Children's Bodies
by Barbara Pitkin
One's initiation into parenting comes largely through the process of learning to respect and care for children's bodies, and concern for their physical well-being continues long after children have learned to manage a large part of their physical care on their own. And yet this theme rarely receives the attention that it deserves.  [ read article ]

Whither Childhood? Conversations on moral accountability with St. Augustine
by Martha Ellen Stortz
In his Confessions, St. Augustine tried in vain to understand where his infancy went. Today, adults rifle the self-help sections of bookstores in search of their inner child. A father and husband wanders out of a marriage and family to find someone he should have located decades earlier: himself.  Whither childhood?  [ read article ]

 
Rediscovering the Dignity and Complexity of Children:
Resources from the Christian Tradition
by Marcia J. Bunge
Certainly many people today are concerned about children in our midst and in our wider culture, and we all wonder: Are they being raised with love and affection? Will they have a sense of meaning and purpose in their lives? Will our children have faith? Will they live out that faith in service and compassion toward others? [ read article ]



Reflections on Martin Luther and Childhood Education
by Marilyn J. Harran
In a nation of extraordinary religious, cultural and ethnic diversity, does Martin Luther, writing in the far more homogenous culture of sixteenth century Western Europe, speak in a meaningful way to us about childhood education?  [ read article ]

The Christian Ethics of Children: Emerging Questions and Possibilities
by John Wall
Christian ethics of children – as opposed, say, to the study of children’s spirituality or faith formation – has traditionally asked profound questions about the larger meaning and purpose of child rearing and the relation of children to society. 
[ read article ]

Beyond Platitudes: Re-Igniting the Church’s Vision for Children and Youth
by Eugene Roehlkepartain
Strengthening the church’s engagement with young people and its commitment to their growth in body, mind, and spirit represents a neglected, but powerful opportunity not only to strengthen the church now and in the future, but also to live out the church’s responsibility to service in society and the world. [ read article ]


Journeying Together,
and Faithfully?
by Dennis Bielfeldt
While Bielfeldt believes Journey Together Faithfully: The Church and Homosexuality does fairly describe the different voices and positions within the ELCA on this controversial issue, he finds it neither helps readers arrive at justifiable views, nor effectively aids the institution of the ELCA in coming to a responsible and defensible position.
[ read article ]


This December 2003 collection of articles reflected on the ethical ramifications of genetically modified organisms.  [ view series ]

  
The Changing Public Discourse on Ecology
by Paul Santmire
No one can legitimately fault the National Religious Partnership for the Environment, the Advertising Council, and the Environmental Defense Fund for working together to encourage religious communities and their members to respect the earth, to "reduce, reuse, recycle" and to use energy efficiently, all for the sake of environmental justice. The rationale for this campaign seems to be fundamentally sound, too, biblically and theologically: "The earth is the Lord's. We are its stewards."
[ read article ]

Towards an Organic Womanism: New Contours of Ecofeminism in India
by George Matthew Nalunnakkal
Like any other progressive strand, 'ecofeminism' is also a 'movement', albeit a recent one, against a particular kind of domination. While most of the environmental movements impugn anthropocentrism for ecological crisis, ecofeminism would deem 'androcentrism' the root cause of the problem. 
[ read article ]



With this December issue of the Journal of Lutheran Ethics, we bring the second installment in our series of notes on books addressing genetic engineering.  For interested readers, the first of these columns appeared in the September issue.
[ read column ]



The wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 has been marked by approaches to law and justice on the part of the United States government which have the potential for profound adverse effect. Domestic and international legal orders; conceptions of human and civil rights; and the balance of relationships among states, citizens and international organizations within the rule of law for decades to come may all feel the impact.
[ read article ]

Report from the WCC/WB/IMF Encounters
by Pamela Brubaker
Two encounters between mid-level staff of the World Council of Churches, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund commenced this year. Representatives met seeking both a clarifying of respective philosophies and better understanding.
[ read article ]