Justice
"Judges are like umpires. Umpires don't make the rules; they apply them. The role of an umpire and a judge is critical. They make sure everybody plays by the rules.
A white woman is raped by a black man in North Carolina. During the assault, she studies his face, determined to bring him to justice. She later identifies a suspect both in photos and in-person line-ups. Only she's wrong.
Only God would open up an opportunity for a Catholic from San Francisco to speak prophetically to the Prime Minister of Australia, at the Anglican Centre in Rome, on behalf of Cambodians about to lose their land in Phnom Penh. God cares that much about the poor.
I've been following the news story of New Zealand Olympic hopeful Logan Campbell. If you haven't heard, he's the taekwondo athlete who said he was forced to open a brothel to cover his training expenses for the 2012 London Olympics.
The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
"I do the work of justice not out of a disdain for the privileged but out of a love for Life." - Womanist Theologian Dr. Kelly Douglas Brown
What lessons do we take away from the Jena 6 story? Six young men won't be dragging a felony conviction into adult life. That's reason for rejoicing, but as this saga approaches its third birthday, it's fair to ask if we have learned anything.
Melissa Roxas is someone I am proud to call a friend. When I met her three years ago, I was struck by her deep desire to return to the Philippines to provide volunteer services to impoverished communities.