The Separation of Church & State - Part I

Dear Pod, 

There are people who through their actions would impinge your freedom of conscience, muzzle your self-expression, violate reason, and stifle others' imaginations and innovations.  To prevent these people from ever having the authority to perpetrate this great violence upon American democracy, the separation of church and state is essential.

We are not people to casually cast aspersions.  We do not hate blindly or reflexively.  We form opinions of people - individuals and groups - over multiple exposures to their beliefs, attitudes and intentions as revealed through their statements and behavior.  I have heard and seen enough of the beliefs, attitudes and intentions of religious extremists of several faiths to know that they pose a severe threat to us all.  This is an issue that you need to be knowledgeable of - no problem-solver, no leader of women and men in your generation will achieve anything without understanding the perils of religious radicalization, at home or abroad.

In the American context, the chief violators of the separation of church and state are conservative evangelical Christians.  Before proceeding any further, it is of the utmost importance that you understand the limits and sensitivities of using stereotypes to judge all people belonging to one identity group.  There are no doubt multitudes of cheery, well-behaved people who believe the Earth is roughly 6,000 years old, that all life was cut out of whole cloth by an all-mighty creator (with humans in that creator's image, of course), and that all of humanity is soon entering an "end-times" in which the truly righteous will be whisked to eternal salvation, while the rest of us who actually seem to care about each other and this world will be "left behind" to endure the apocalypse.  No doubt many such lovely, thoughtful human beings exist.  All other things being equal, it would serve no point to casually group all such believers together and publicly disparage them.  But when the matter at hand is whether children ought to be taught how to think critically and scientifically through exploring the empirical history of life, the universe, and everything OR taught instead that Jesus really loves them and God made them just the way they are ... and not to worry about the panda's thumb, or mitochondrial DNA, or any of those silly little rocks - it is by all means acceptable to stereotype these people negatively.  Holding such a negative stereotype in these circumstance neither darkens your character nor reduces your credibility.  

When dealing with people whose perception of the world is so radically skewed from empirical reality, you must not fear political correctness.  There is no equivalency between not hurting their feelings and letting them erect their little-god-centered idiocracy.  When their insouciance is at its most loathsome - ridicule them for being bigoted, parochial, vengeful, and just plain ignorant.  You may also choose to ignore them, but that won't change anyone's mind.  If they really believe what they espouse, then they must wish suffering and death upon the overwhelming majority of human beings alive.  And that is a wish unforgivable.

If you catch many of the same unflattering views of the religious right that I have seen, then you might conclude that they are parochial bigots fighting a rear-guard battle against the efflorescence of human life and potential - writ large.  Many decades ago men started to come around to the idea that woman are no less intelligent or capable in life than they are.  Not since before my birth was it acceptable to espouse and practice racial bigotry.  Homosexuals still battle the powers of prejudice and disapproval for fair treatment.  As each of these injustices has been slowly - and happily sometimes briskly - eroded, a bulwark of dogmatism has stubbornly withstood all temperate and better counsel.  It is still acceptable in many peoples' consciences to automatically discriminate based upon religious belief - or its absence; both options seem to be the primary animating forces behind conservative evangelical Christians.  It doesn't seem to be what they believe that is all that important; since most of it is demonstrably false and at least some of them, deep in their consciences, must know it.  What seems to be important is that YOU believe something other than theirs or that YOU don't believe any of the pre-packaged, previously sanctioned options.  In a nutshell - other religions and the option of disbelief.  I'll let you finish the thought of what's just so terribly wrong with this state of affairs.

There is no doubt that American society will remain religious for generations to come.  This is a source of strength - but as the struggle for a form of governance unladen by religious confusion shows, it is also a complication.  We tend the separation of church and state to mediate this inherent tension in our society.  The most egregious threat to the delicate balance maintained by this elegant maxim of governance is the religious right, which I described in rough but sufficient detail above.  Whether you choose to focus more on one side of this tension or the other - strength or complication (or if you're a perfect heir to my congenital indecision, and thus not a little thought or your own on the matter) - just remember that American religiosity and the separation of church and state are bountiful subjects for exploration and, yes, even some modest commentary.  

Pets

Dear Pod, 

Pets are wonderful!  They teach us so much and make our lives more enjoyable.  Pets teach us that we all need someone to look after us from time to time ... that we all need attention and affection on a regular basis ... that for those special creatures in our life (human, canine, or otherwise), love is unconditional and never taken for granted ... that good food is one of life's true joys ... and that taking naps is most civilized and, indeed, essential for respectable living.  

The best thing about pets, though - and here I am thinking about dogs in particular - is that they help you understand that there are many different ways to experience our world.  Dogs are sentient creatures.  They perceive the world in much the same way that we do - they see, hear, feel, and smell (particularly smell!) their environment.  And in observing dogs perceiving and reacting to the world - be it the bustling around of the neighborhood, or the sights, sounds, and smells of the woods, or a strange and irresistible sound from outside - you begin to empathize with them - you begin to understand that our way of knowing the world is not the only way - that other, perhaps many others exist.  Like many simple and obvious things about life, this realization has profound spiritual implications.  Like pets, many wild animals are sentient beings, some of them possessing cognitive abilities similar to our own!  I believe that this realization reveals quite a lot about our human nature and implies much about being good stewards of these other species and their unique way of perceiving our shared world.

What it reveals about our nature is that we are indeed animals - creatures of this Earth.  We all share a common ancestor deep in the history of Earth and over time we've each evolved to perceive the world in a way that defines what we are and what we're capable of.  And here is where human exceptionalism - and by extension our solemn responsibility - becomes clear .... every other species, sentient or not, lives within the bounds of nature.  Their populations are limited to the available resources of their immediate ecosystems.  Humans alone have transcended this ecological constraint.  This truth is obvious but it implies that we have a very important responsibility to be good stewards of those wild species with which humans now compete for resources like land and water.  Not doing so with enough resolve - as continues to happen every day - predictably leads to tragedy:  wanton destruction of life, some of which perceives our world in a unique way!

Extinction is forever.  Human-induced extinction means that either we couldn't or wouldn't make room and accommodate other forms of life with which we share this Earth ... or that we were not even aware that our actions were snuffing out unique forms of life.  Pod, you will live in a world where meeting basic human needs - particularly those of the very poor - and leaving enough resources for wildlife to sustain itself will intensify.  Wildlife doesn't vote and generally the "constituency" for wildlife conservation is dwarfed by the constituency that stands to benefit in the short-run from a few more widgets or another gallon to guzzle.

So pets can be a bridge to the larger world of wildlife.  Throughout your life - wherever you are, whatever your circumstances - try to keep a pet with you.  It will help you make connections with other life on Earth that so many of us silly humans never seem to achieve - or if we do, manage to somehow let slip for something more immediate, more gratifying, and ultimately less meaningful.  By making such connections, you might just be inspired to defend a wild creature that really does need your protection and advocacy.  And this is to say nothing of the unbridled exuberance for life that pets can inspire in you - and often do!

Work

Dear Pod,

Whatever you choose to "do" with your life, always remember that the opportunity of having had a choice is a luxury and a privilege.  If your life turns out to be anything like mine, you'll get a decent education - but you won't really begin to learn the important things about life until you take it upon yourself to seek them out.  Just remember that such learning can take place in a classroom, so don't take this as license to blow off your studies!  And just so you won't get the wrong impression - when it comes to the "important things in life," please don't think that there are answers out there waiting to be found, a path already blazed, an eternal truth revealed.  In a sense there are some such paths and ready-made answers - but they are merely academic until you experience them, until you discover them, and others, for yourself.

With luck, you'll stumble upon golden opportunities to find out what you're good at, what interests you ... what you want to "do with your life."  If you're anything like me, you'll probably bumble a few of these - but that is alright.  Perhaps those unexplored paths would have turned out to be dead ends - alternative lives better left unlived, or perhaps for another.  It's also likely that other chance opportunities will divert you from one path to another.  All to the good.  Follow wherever the sum of your mind, heart and soul lead.

Before I continue on the topic, I have an important diversion to share with you ... If I had not bungled a few of my earlier opportunities, then there would be no you.  There would almost certainly have been a child with whom I would have shared letters such as these - a child I would have loved no less - but it wouldn't have been you.  This was the same thought I had very early in life - if my mom and dad hadn't had me, then ... what about me? Would I just have been out there, floating somewhere in the ether, in space? - I remember thinking on my bed, in the old house.  It puzzled me about as much as a young boy ought to wonder.  I know now that if I'd not been conceived by precisely my mother and father at precisely the time I had been, and if a million other things didn't work out just as they had, then I wouldn't be me.  There are an infinity of lives to be lived - a fact that in no way devalues the uniqueness and worth of your own life, son.  Indeed, knowledge of this should make living even more special - you're the only person who's ever going to live your life.  There are no other yous out there floating, waiting to be born, waiting for their chance.  Carpe diem!

And as for navigating those necessary failures and chance opportunities and figuring our what "to do" with your life ... I'll leave that entirely up to you.  What? You thought I'd have sage advise on potentially lucrative emerging industries (one word  - "plastics") or moving words on how to save the world from itself?  Well, I'm not giving all of the answers away for free!  But I do want you to know that the work you choose should help to make others' lives better, and certainly not worse.  Also,  while starting out, it's useful to know that it is possible to do good for the world while doing well for yourself.  Since you won't be getting an inheritance, I suggest find a career that does.    

And one last parting word on the subject ...

Remember - when we speak of a path in life - it is metaphorical.  An actual path on Earth implies a beginning, middle, end -- starting and ending points.  Don't think of your life in such terms.  You came into existence at a distinct point in time.  One day you will no longer exists except in memories, however recorded.  Connecting these two points in time is the metaphorical path we're calling life.  Just don't think it has to be all that straight and narrow - and certainly not all "work."  A few purposeful detours - a deviation or diversion, even - might well lead you to what you'll decide is you life's work ... and maybe even your own little world of life and love, besides. 

The Human Condition

Dear Pod,

The human condition is both sublime and base, soaring in its possibilities and tragic in its realities ... it is also just a bit humorous, when you get to know it well enough.  We are staggeringly complex creatures, each unique, each capable of creating and experiencing beauty, joy, and love, yet each also capable of hatred, bigotry, and the callous indifference to suffering possible only through ignoring others' humanity.  You must learn to recognize these tendencies in your heart and mind.  Tend towards the former when you can.  And seek to inspire the same in those open to your influence.

The conditions of life on this earth grind many of us into a miserable physical existence.  And even for those of us who are materially better off, the widespread misery and apparent hopelessness of so many causes psychic damage.  Yet almost all of us - including those least able and most disadvantaged - continue living, often with great zest.  This begs some explanation - a mere fragment of which I am able to understand myself and share with you.

Surrounding our whole predicament is an aching, inescapable burden.  Intelligent and informed people who are honest with themselves know it beyond any reasonable doubt.  For them it can be a wellspring of energy, curiosity, even purpose but also a terrifying, engulfing, annihilating void.  Many others likely suspect its existence and could discover it with more curiosity.  A host of others are either oblivious to it or in denial, certain of a revealed purpose and order, and a lot of other nonsense besides.  

The burden is a simple, fundamental, perhaps imponderable, question - why.  The question takes varying forms: why not nothing? Or why this particular something?  Or why me, today? As common and seemingly banal as these might seem, they are not trifling questions.  Because we are conscious of the world and ourselves as we actually exist, underlying each of us and all we do is a chasm of maddening darkness - it is where that spark of self-awareness that makes you human escapes to when you decide there is no purpose in life.  Most of us manage to ignore it or convince ourselves that its not there - some genuinely don't entertain the possibility that such an abyss exists.  But it is there - and it cannot be ignored if you are to make the most of the life you have to live as a human being.

Perhaps, it is fear that the void is all too real and inescapable that pushes us, that moves us further forward, upward, outward.  Perhaps, it is the knowledge that maybe there could be no ultimate purpose, that we are inconsequential, accidental, floating adrift with nothing of permanence behind or ahead, and with only our seamy, chaotic life churning all around, that inspires us to inquire, learn, improve, and then do it all again.  Perhaps, it is all that keeps some of us interested in life - and indeed, alive.  Strip away you, your mother, everyone and everything of significance to me - a loss that would be incalculable - strip away this all, and I would still flee from this maddening darkness, I would still seek meaning, though I would have lost the most precious source of meaning I had ever known, son.  I would not succumb to that darkness.  Do not ever let yourself succumb.

Perhaps this will help you to understand ...    

Imagine you see yourself standing on Earth - anywhere.  Your view can zoom out, away from yourself and take in progressively larger perspectives, progressing to encompass the whole of the Earth ... then on to the Solar System, our local neighborhood in the Milky Way, our entire Galaxy, the local cluster of galaxies, the Universe, everything that has ever existed.  Zooming back into Earth, you are aware of the lives of those you know personally and you can empathize and come to an intellectual understanding of the lives of those whom you don't know, but exist all the same. You can imagine life as our ancestors lived it, not just those recorded in history, but also our deep ancestors.  You reach back towards the boundaries of early human experience.  You also peer ahead, and you can wonder at what might be. 

 

You can never be everything to all people, you can never go to all of these cosmic places, and you can never know all that there is to know, but from the icy stillness or warm intimacy of the perspectives you choose you can grasp a few important things about YOUR life, about YOUR world, and about YOUR kind that are indispensable to an examined, fulfilling life.  You will know in a visceral way goodness,  fairness, what it means to do something in the public good, what it means to be altruistic ... you will know empathy ... you will also understand the narrowness and parochialism of so many people's actions, and you will understand why they don't see the world like you do, like I have, like everyone can.  And it will move you to do great things. 

Consilience

Dear Pod,

One person can learn and experience only so much.  If each of us had to go out and learn as much as we could about the world and how it worked and how we fit into it, then none of us would get very far in life.  Thankfully, we are pretty good at sharing knowledge with each other.  

When it comes to the natural world and human behavior, we do science.  It's been awesomely effective at describing in increasing detail how things work in ever greater isolation from the rest of the world.  But as scientists learn more and more about their particular subjects, they begin to lose perspective for the bigger picture.  There is little to tie together their disparate insights into a unified whole.

Consilience is the idea that this extensive base of knowledge we've developed about the human condition and the rest of the world through scientific inquiry should be unified in a way that explains who we are, where we've come from, and suggest where we're going based on different choices that we make.

I would be immeasurably proud as a father if you helped us all grasp more of the meaning there is in life by making some contribution to this, the work of many earnest monkeys.

The Diversity of Life on Earth

Dear Pod,

It's a very simple idea - and probably one of the most spiritually significant ones you need to understand about yourself, every person you will ever meet, and every living thing you will ever know.  You and every other living thing on this Earth are deeply related - you're from the same stuff, part of one whole!  If you ever find yourself searching for meaning, just remember that you are the stuff of this Earth come to know itself, to explore the world, and ultimately to care for what and those you find.

Welcome, Beautiful

Dear Pod,

Born under a blue moon, only days before or after other auspicious celestial and secular events, you could not have avoided being special - but as someday I hope you will understand, neither can anybody.

I have so much I want to share with you.  I am not old, I do not consider myself wise, but I think I have learned a few things about being human and living on this earth.  I want to share them with you, to help you learn how to get along, to learn how to enjoy life, to understand it to the extent you can, and maybe even to help a few others along the way to do the same.  I don't think you'll be ready for all of this at once, and not for a quite while yet, but I wanted to put these things in writing while you were young - just in case I wasn't there when you were ready to learn.    

If you remember just one thing from these letter, Pod, I want you to remember that I love you, just like my father loved me, and his him, and on back through the generations into the twilight and then the darkness and then the first, brilliant light from which we all and everything emerged.