Recent Compassion Commentaries

Featured image for “The Meaning of Memorial Day”
The Meaning of Memorial Day
Note: I will return Friday. On May 30, 1868 Ohio Senator James A. Garfield gave the first address to a crowd of more than 5,000 at Arlington National Cemetery. The event, known then as Decoration Day, was organized to honor those who died during the Civil War. However, five years before Garfield’s address another political figure stood to deliver a...
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May 25, 2020
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Duty, Courage, Sacrifice
Those are the three words that come to mind when I think about military in the field. They’re also critical when they’re not in the field. The aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt carries 4,800 men and women, all sailors trained to perform specific jobs that ultimately ensure the safety of Americans at home and abroad. However, Captain Brett Crozier never expected...
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April 24, 2020
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Prayer is Not Enough
In “Finding Hope,” a special report by TIME magazine (April 27-May4), the editors asked a variety of notable individuals to offer their perspective on handling the effects of Covid-19 have had on us all. See if you can identify the common thread in the collection below. Basketball star Stephen Curry on individual actions: “I was the first NBA player tested...
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April 20, 2020
Featured image for “How Do We Restore America’s Integrity?”
How Do We Restore America’s Integrity?
We have survived crises before. However, the events we are now facing have brought about an unimaginable chain reaction. This is not the America many of us grew up with and loved. We’ve faced down bullies before, but these current threats come in a different form: deceit, corruption, unreason, and disease; not just disease from a deadly virus, but an...
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April 13, 2020
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One Soldier’s Story of Faith
During his thirty-five-year career in the Marine Corps, General Charles Krulak served two tours of duty in Vietnam and rose through several command and staff positions to become Commandant of the Marine Corps and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. At a Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics in January 2000, General Krulak opened the meeting with the...
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April 10, 2020
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The Power of Faith
During these extraordinary times, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with anxiety and fear. Will I be safe? Will my family be safe? How will I pay for food, rent, mortgage? When will it end? In his ground-breaking book, Man’s Search for Meaning, holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl describes his heartbreaking loss in a letter to friends after his liberation from Auschwitz....
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April 8, 2020
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Hero Story
Heroes come in all forms: fire, police, paramedics, even everyday citizens. During this worldwide pandemic afflicting millions, we need heroes more than ever. As the top expert on infectious disease, Dr. Anthony Fauci has been praised as the most trusted man in the country due to his straight talk about the spread of the coronavirus which has now infected more...
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April 1, 2020
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How Do They Make That Call? – Conclusion
On Friday I wrote about the painful decision-making confronting physicians throughout the world who are not only facing a tsunami of coronavirus patients, but a shortage of critical supplies including ventilators, devices that provide air to those who are unable to breathe on their own. Ethical decision-making goes back as far as Chinese philosopher Confucius, who advised, “What you do...
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March 30, 2020
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Through a Lens, Clearly
“If [the people are] given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts.” – Abraham Lincoln Every day this health crisis grows more critical. Every day we hear conflicting information. Every day people are dying for lack of medical support, some of which is sitting in...
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March 25, 2020
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Remembering a Friend
Considering the skill and dedication of thousands of doctors, nurses and emergency workers battling a virus that continues to expand throughout the world, this story is yet another remarkable example such individuals perform every day. It’s a story worth reading. U.S. Army Major John N. Baldwin (Ret.) was one example of someone who has contributed to my life. As a...
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March 23, 2020