An Introduction to this Series of
Essays
The famous
German Evangelical theologian, Karl Barth, was once asked how he prepared his
sermons. He is said to have answered that he sat down with both the Bible and a
newspaper on his table during his morning coffee and began to write.
While this
author is neither "Evangelical" (even in the German Lutheran sense of
that term), nor famous, still the same idea applies here. Only I try to draw
not only just on Sacred Scripture, but on the whole Christian, and especially
Catholic theological tradition and its history, as well as on what I know of
the thought of other religions and their histories for my theological and
ethical reflections.
Although a few
of the articles contained here may have had to pitch-hit for an occasional
Sunday sermon, the vast majority of them were written for the editorial page of
the Gaylord Herald Times, a local bi-weekly newspaper published here in
northern lower Michigan. Either that, or else they were emailed to friends --
now maybe ex-friends after they read some of my more controversial opinions.
Politics are the where the tires of religion and ethics meet the highway of
public or everyday life. Accordingly, these articles are not meant to be
particularly "inspirational". In fact, part of the deal with the
local editor was that they not be relegated to the weekly "Religion"
page. In turn, I was asked to try to limit them to 500-600 words in length.
Recently, about
120 of the articles, all but three written beginning in late 1999, were chosen
to be published by Rowman & Littlefield (Lanham, MD) in their Lexington
Books division in a volume titled Views from a
Hermitage: Reflections on Religion in Today's World. As a result of
copyright restrictions, these particular essays (those marked with an asterisk
*) have been removed from this website. However, those not chosen for the book
remain, as well as new essays added to this site since the book went to press.
The reader will
probably note, as he or she looks down through the index of articles, beginning
with the latest addition on down to the very first article back in 1999, that
the same topics occasionally are revisited. Here the reader might detect an
occasional change or shift in perspective over the years. The reader may also
see the same topic (for example,
In this latter
respect, writing these short pieces has been a real test. Trained as an
academic, it takes real discipline and occasional ruthlessness to force myself
to say what most needs to be said in that small of space. This often means
leaving aside all that which might also be included, often about matters that
are quite complex.
Whether or not
any of these newer essays will be reprinted in book form remains to be seen.
But I would invite the reader to submit further titles or topics for possible
inclusion, as well as call to my attention any typos or grammatical -- or even
factual -- mistakes.
Although
copyright law is generally interpreted as permitting quotations up to 300 words
in length without getting the author or copyright holder's permission, I would
appreciate it if anyone desiring to reproduce any of these articles for further
distribution would notify me first. Who knows? -- I might also wish to alter my
opinion, or write still another piece on the subject!
R.
W. Kropf
May
8, 2008
rtwintro.doc.htm 8/5/10