I felt uneasy when I found out that a well known attorney and elder at my church was running for public office. I had met William* a few times and had pleasant conversations with him, but something about a church leader holding public office made me uncomfortable. Will was a believer, a family man, a successful attorney, but still humble and approachable. He gave to the church and he and his wife were ready volunteers for church events and ministries. Confusingly, when I read his website I largely agreed with his views and opinions on the major issues, which made my discomfort hard to pinpoint. By all metrics, this is the type of person I would want to run for office. Where was my reluctance coming from? Separation of Church and state The concept of separating church and state was new for America’s founding fathers. The European governments they came from sourced their authority from the divine. Kings were crowned by bishops and popes to symbolize the true initiator of power. In many k...
To most people, the thought of taking a cold shower is anything but appealing. The shower or its sister the bath are places of comfort and warmth. True, they serve as a tool to clean oneself and perhaps in years past this trait was the primary focus, but today they are so much more. A place of solitude and free from the distractions of the modern world, the shower is a daily retreat from outside connection. Internet culture has even coined a phrase for the ideas that only come when the sea of chaos quiets in the mind: shower thoughts. As with most of these internet phenomena, reddit has formed an entire community based on the concept . Essential to this view and enjoyment of the shower is comfort. If the shower was not enjoyable, the individual would be incapable of slowing down or sticking around long enough to enter their social retreat. The shower would be fled from instead of fled towards. These benefits set aside, consider for a moment the benefits of a cold shower. Sel...