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Ethics and Religion Talk: Help! My Husband Wants to Watch Me Have Sex With a Woman!

Submitted 03-15-2021 under OPINION

“Christine” writes: “I am praying for help and answers to keep my marriage. My husband and I have only been married 7 months and he wants me to have sex with a woman and watch. I am more outgoing than he is but am not comfortable...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: Do Animals Have Souls?

Submitted 03-08-2021 under OPINION

Linda Knieriemen, Senior Pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Holland, responds: “Christian scripture doesn’t weight in on this directly but indirectly I can deduce that yes, animals will have some sort of afterlife. In the early...

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Mental health disorders and stigma: Crossing the bridge to treatment

Submitted 03-03-2021 under OPINION

Mental health stigma is prevalent in our society and can prevent people from seeking treatment and help. This stigma can make people afraid to discuss their own mental health issues because these topics can be  neglected or frowned upon by...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: Is your religion based on Dogma?

Submitted 03-01-2021 under OPINION

Connor writes, “A word that often is used to describe religious teachings is ‘dogma.’ It's interesting that I tend to hear this word used in a pejorative sense so much of the time, as when someone is described as...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: What is the different between Happiness and Joy?

Submitted 02-22-2021 under OPINION

Janet H. asks, “The recent column on happiness/unhappiness prompts a further question: Is it happiness humans need, or is it joy? Happiness is fleeting, episodic, emotional.  Joy on the other hand is an internal baseline which can coexist...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: What is Wisdom Literature?

Submitted 02-16-2021 under OPINION

The Reverend Colleen Squires, minister at All Souls Community Church of West Michigan, a Unitarian Universalist Congregation, responds: “This question is at the very heart of understanding Unitarian Universalism. We are a faith that draws...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: What is Our Role in God's Plan?

Submitted 02-08-2021 under OPINION

Note from Rabbi Krishef: Have a question that invites responses from our interfaith panel of clergy? Come across an ethical dilemma lately? Ethics and Religion Talk needs your questions! Send them to me at [email protected]. The Rev....

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Ethics and Religion Talk: How to Counsel a Person Seeking Death, part 2

Submitted 02-01-2021 under OPINION

We began addressing this topic in last week’s column. Here are three additional responses. Linda Knieriemen, Senior Pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Holland, responds: “My counsel varies with the particular circumstance. It’s...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: How to Counsel a Person Seeking Death, part 1

Submitted 01-25-2021 under OPINION

Father Kevin Niehoff, O.P., a Dominican priest who serves as Judicial Vicar, Diocese of Grand Rapids, responds: “This question is complex. What is not known is if the author is referring to euthanasia or the decision to ‘discontinue...

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Ethics and Religion Talk: Church and Politics

Submitted 01-18-2021 under OPINION

Note from Rabbi Krishef: The Rev. Steven Manskar, pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church in Grand Rapids, wrote the following essay prior to last November’s election day, reflecting on a Christian’s responsibility to vote. We’re...

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