The June 16 death of Daniel Ellsberg again brings to the fore the morality of his release of the top-secret Pentagon Papers during the height of the Vietnam War. Did Ellsberg perform a morally good action in releasing documents detailing a long history of American deceit, lies and self-deception about a war which took the lives of up to three million Indochinese and 58,000 Americans? Or should he have upheld his oath to maintain the secrecy of confidential information?

The recent kerfuffle regarding the Los Angeles Dodgers honouring “The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” at Dodgers Stadium got me investigating the bad Sisters. I knew very little about them, except that they would often show up on the news in full nun regalia (over-the-top garish and even ghoulish, akin to the horror film The Nun) to receive accolades for their “charitable work.”

I had the opportunity recently of joining a dynamic inter-faith panel to discuss the issue of social justice and the environment here in Vancouver. My fellow panelists included an Imam from the local Muslim association, a Rabbi from the local synagogue and a representatives from the Mennonite community. This was followed by panel discussions from public health officials, government representatives and even an unscheduled visit by David Suzuki.

The indefinite suspension of 16-year-old Josh Alexander from St. Joseph������Ƶapp High School in Renfrew for opposing male access to female changing rooms and bathrooms appears to have snowballed into a rather vigorous campaign by parents across Ontario to halt the spread of gender theory and LGBT Pride in the classroom.

When we were young many wanted to do great things — end global poverty, help usher in an era of lasting peace, develop a cure for cancer.

In the last few years, I have developed an increasing reluctance to use the word “God.” It������Ƶapp not that I have stopped believing in God or that I no longer like God or that I would rather not discuss God.

A Quebec funeral home has renovated one of its rooms for doctors to end the lives of patients who qualify for euthanasia or “Medical Aid in Dying.” With Canada������Ƶapp ever-expanding criteria for euthanasia — including, potentially, advance directives and mental illness — we are nearing the day when we can decide when our lives are “complete” and plan an end-of-life party involving lethal injection, funeral and burial. And funeral homes can be the one-stop-shop. 

On a recent visit to Rome as a member of the Canadian Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts of the Vatican Museums, I had the opportunity to visit a number of galleries and historic art projects, many of which were completed through the generosity and the work of the patrons and their supporters. This included the Hall of the Liberal Arts, the Scala Sancta or Holy Stairs and the Bramante Courtyard. The artistic and cultural artefacts owned by the Vatican are so numerous that they can only be accommodated in 54 museums, ranging from the Gallery of Maps to the Gregorian Egyptian Museum and the Gallery of Statues.

I did not expect a marching band, or a ticker tape parade, but the evening was a significant one for the ministry of the Church on the Street. It was 17 years to the day that I first walked these streets. I looked up at the sky and thanked Mother Nature for looking kindly on the anniversary by providing a warm evening which bade farewell to an extremely harsh winter.

Stabbings, beatings, swearing: this is not the description of a crime series on Netflix but a series of dangers students and teachers are increasingly being subjected to in Ontario’ schools.