What can a 13-year old do?

Aside from fathering, that is.

Here's what Dr. Amy Tuteur* has to say about it. The context is the case of Hannah Jones but the same is relevant to "Alfie" of UK.

"As a general matter, we do not believe that 13 year olds are capable of making any major decisions, let alone life and death decisions (as in the case of Hannah Jones). The reasoning ability of 13 years olds is constrained by limitations in cognitive ability and maturity and a lack of life experience. Young teens are not allowed to drive, to drink or to vote. They are not allowed to make their own healthcare decisions, even something as simple and obvious as consenting to a medically necessary appendectomy."

And so, one is left to wonder, "How is Alfie going to cope with the realities of life?"

What's going to happen when all the media attention he now basks in will have waned? He needs a lot of prayers for sure - not just him but the mother and child as well.

*Dr. Amy Tuteur is an obstetrician-gynecologist. She received her undergraduate degree from Harvard College and her medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Tuteur is a former clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School.

The Preeminence of LOVE

The world is its stage and canvas. You see it depicted everywhere and claimed to be expressed by everyone. LOVE.

The ancient Greek has four words for love:

STORGE - The kind of love parents have for their children
PHILIA - The love of friends
EROS - The love of pleasure (which includes sexual attraction)
AGAPE - The love of God

Of the four, EROS never made it to The New Testament.

The BIBLE plainly states that we would not know what true love is, unless we know God for God is Love. It further declares that we would not know how to express it unless we are recepients of God's love.

The Apostle Paul, in one of his epistles to the Corinthian christians, devoted a whole chapter describing the agape love and its preeminence. This is the love that we will only know when we know God.

HOPE, FAITH and LOVE. The greatest of these is LOVE.

Will Love Fade in 25 minutes?

Valentine's Day in this part of the world will soon be over. Will love stand still at 12:00 midnight? No, it will go on for as long as you and I continue to believe that there is no power on earth mightier than love.

Can you imagine a world without it? I can't. A world without love is a world filled with selfishness, confusion and anarchy. It's devoid of meaning and purpose.

We wait for another year to celebrate Valentine's Day but tomorrow will break forth with limitless opportunity to let love rule, but first let it reign in our hearts and minds at the dawning of another day and the next...and the next...

LOVE LISTENS

Paul Tillich says, "The first duty of love is to listen."

Love is expressed in most effective ways when its actions are prompted by what it hears. Hearing presupposes listening, and listening opens the gate to understanding.

Love is paralyzed unless it communicates itself. Love in action is preferred to love in speech, but love that listens establishes the connection.

Love is wasted when it stops to listen for then it may not show itself in an understanding manner. "Why don't you listen to me, don't you love me anymore?"
You see there's a natural link between listening and loving.

Now, do you hear me?

TRUTH Fears No Questions

Truth and Light are very closely related if not synonymous. Living in the Truth means living in the Light. Living in the light entails vulnerability, humility and courage.

Vulnerability requires the willingness to be subject to criticism or moral attack. Humility results in honesty – readiness to be known for what or who one really is. Courage is having the fearlessness to be vulnerable and humble. These virtues form a triumvirate which is de rigueur in truthfulness.

Truth fears no questions? You bet. Truth fears nothing for which it cannot or will not be entirely accountable. Light makes sure it is so.

Gems from my Inbox Part 6

"Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings."

--Jeffrey Immelt

"The measure of a life, after all,is not its duration, but its donation."

--Corrie Ten Boom

Beauty, Harmony & Diversity

An unknown author made the following observation:

"We could learn a lot from crayons:

Some are sharp;

Some are pretty;

Some are dull;

Some have weird names; and,

All have different colours.

BUT THEY ALL HAVE TO LEARN TO LIVE IN THE SAME BOX!"

We should celebrate our diversity and utilize it to create beauty and harmony.

A Special Greeting!

Three wonderful women who have impacted my life are celebrating their birthday today:

My Mom - whose love and prayers sustain me daily. Although oceans away I know she never fails to knock on heaven's doors for my welfare.

An associate at work - who makes me handle my day with less stress and laughter.

A churchmate - whose spiritual depth is inspiring and a reason to thank God for.

Happy Birthday, Ladies! May you receive God's best for you today and always.

Gems from my Inbox Part 5

A friend sent this to me. Anything on "Love" is always worth sharing.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. We must learn to live together as brothers, or perish together as fools.

-- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Response to Carah #1

Dear Carah Nee Won,

Allow me to address your postscript first. Like you, I hope so, too. Now to answer your question, do you know that Yahoo Search returns 43,100,000 links to a query similar to yours? That’s right – you are not alone.

I’m sure the question crossed your mind a few times before. Belief in God or Supreme Being is not taught but innate. In fact, one has to be “educated” to deny this awareness. One has yet to discover an atheistic tribe. Every tribe or community that has been discovered has some sort of belief in the Unseen or Invisible spirit.

That’s why you asked that question because within you is the knowledge or awareness of something or someone invisible. Someone said that there is a God-shaped vacuum within us that only God can fill. You also have a sense of right and wrong. I call that “Inner Witness” that God exists. Then take a look at the world around you – you see its beauty, complexity, immensity and grandeur. I refer to that as “External Witness” of a powerful Creator. So if it’s true that God exists, it’s not a “bother” getting to know Him but one of the wisest decisions you can make.

Regards,

Osteinz

P.S. Yes, I made a decision to be upbeat about things and to accentuate the positives because as you have observed, there’s already so much evil in the world. No, I don’t ignore evil at all and I hope I still see the “whole picture” as you put it. If you have read my blog parameters, you will see that I try to write within them.

Letter from Carah #1

I have recently received letters, one of which I want to reproduce here. I have permission and consent to do so.


Hi Osteinz,

I’ve read your blog. Funny, but I seem to regularly visit it now to check for anything new. You seem to be upbeat on things – no negatives, only positives. How could you? There’s so much evil around us that you seem to ignore. C’mon now. You won’t see the whole picture of the real world if you do.

Anyway, the reason why I write you.

You are a believer in God, I can tell from what I’ve read (from your blog, of course). Perhaps, you might want to answer a question for me? Osteinz, I’m young. Why would I even bother with the thought of God let alone believing in Him?

Carah Nee Won

P.S. I hope you post more often and regularly.

PASSION, POLITICS, POINT OF VIEW & PROGRESS

Last night I watched a talk show which, among other topics, discussed the case of a young mother in California who now has a total of 14 children after giving birth to octuplets! Although it started calmly and civily, it very quickly turned into a passionate volley of points of view. Questions about motives and whether or not this is tantamount to child abuse dominated the discussion. Politics - California style - was briefly touched from an angle of health and human services.

The two guests, both defense attorneys, and the host were very passionate as each make a case for and against reasons propounded. The interest on this story is high judging from the media coverage given to it, and appears not to be going away soon.

My point is: Passion, Politics & Point of View could have a happy mix when handled civily without resorting to personal attacks and name calling. I, for one, am interested in discussions aimed at bringing out the best of various points of view. In other words, let's look at the merit of the idea or ideas being proposed. We can debate, offer our critique and counter the ideas, and yes with passion but never hurl darts at one another. If we can do this, I'd call it Progress in our humanity.