Sunday, November 27, 2011

Roman Missal



On November 27, 2011, The Roman Missal, Third Edition was implemented in the United States.


  • What is the appropriate role of written liturgy in worship?
  • Should worship take place in the vernacular, or in a sacral language unfamiliar to most worshippers?  Are there benefits to each?
  • To what extent is religious faith comprehended intellectually?  To what extent is it experienced?  Are these two modes of spiritual learning in tension, or are they complementary?
  • What role do politics and bureaucracy play in ecclesial organizations?
  • What effects, positive or negative, has the Protestant Reformation had on Western and global culture?  Is it healthy for the Christian tradition to have so many denominations?  Would it be preferable to have a unified Church?  Has such a Church ever existed?  To what extent does it, or could it, exist?

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Occupy Harvard

Harvard Yard has been closed to anyone without a university ID as occupiers continue to inhabit the space near the statue of John Harvard.
  •  Is there a difference between an "occupier" and a "protestor"?
  • Who are the 1%?  The 99%?  Which one would you rather be?  Can one move between these groups? How should we classify the student-occupiers at Harvard?
  • Are there any third parties who are adversely affected by the various occupations around the world?
  • How do the security staff and police officers at Harvard feel about guarding the Yard 24/7?
  • Who speaks for the occupiers?  What are their goals?  What outcome would prompt them to end their occupations?
  • Why are these occupations happening at this point in our nation's history? 
  • Why are many of the occupiers students?
  • How do you feel about the occupations, and why?
  • For what cause, if any, would you "occupy" a space?