Weekly Newsletter from Christian Vegetarian Association CVA - October 12, 2017
From Christian Vegetarian Association (CVA)

  1. The October Issue of “The Peaceable Table” Is Now Online
  2. Original Sin, part 10
  3. This Week’s Sermon from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman

1. The October Issue of “The Peaceable Table” Is Now Online

Contents include:

  • Part II of the Editor's Corner Essay, "On Wounding and Healing Among Activists," discusses Secondary Traumatic Stress Disorder and the importance of the healing of those afflicted if they/we are not to pass on to others the trauma we may suffer in our work.
  • No fewer than 74 rabbis have signed a statement, based on traditional Jewish principles, encouraging their fellow Jews to move toward a plant-based diet. See the NewsNotes.
  • Subscriber Maru Vigo presents a Special Report from Lima, Peru, about spay-and-neuter campaigns for companion cats and dogs among economically deprived residents.
  • The October Pioneer is Benjamin Lay, a radical Quaker of the early eighteenth century, who denounced human slavery in dramatic actions, and who, because he considered animals as well as humans to be indwelt by God, refused to exploit them in any way.
  • A Children's Television Review by Benjamin Urrutia describes the animated program Dinosaur Train for preschool children. It exemplifies values of species diversity and tolerance, while educating viewers about the prehistoric periods visited by the time-traveling train.
  • The Recipe for Gracia Fay's Cheatin Chili will enable a busy cook pressed for time to stir up a really tasty and nutritious dinner.

Gracia Fay Ellwood, Editor

To check out this issue, go here.

2. Original Sin, part 10

In prior essays, I have discussed how the need for self-esteem and the desire for “attractive” mates undermine the development of peaceful, harmonious communities. Communities stay together when conflicts arise over competition for “success” (in the common pursuit of self-esteem) and or attractive mates by blaming one or more scapegoats. As René Girard astutely observed, a common contempt for and hatred of scapegoats generates and maintains communities.

This, I think helps us understand “Original Sin.” Augustine thought that humanity was burdened with original sin because sexual intercourse transmitted sinfulness from the beginning of time starting with Adam and Eve until the present. Modern science doesn’t give much credence for this theory, and I think we should think of Original Sin differently. Original Sin reflects human nature, which includes flaws that tempt us to sin. Adam and Eve’s sin was a consequence, not the cause, of Original Sin.

Humanity needs to be saved. Without salvation, we will always have violence and scapegoating. And, with the capacity of individual humans to cause more and more destruction, the need to transcend these human tendencies has become more urgent. In future essays, I will explore how we might be saved through Jesus Christ.

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.

3. This Week’s Sermon from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman

Making Idols before God

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