In high school, the distinction between right and wrong—more or less—appeared clear. Catholic high school made it unambiguously clear. Thanks to the good brothers of Salesian, you either learned the right path quickly or you were firmly corrected (accent on firmly.) Which brings me to a long-remembered poem whose last lines are frequently quoted. Two roads diverged in a yellow...

…and spot Donald Trump holding court. Curious, they approach and begin a conversation. Socrates: Tell me, sir, what is the nature of leadership? Is it to serve the people or to serve oneself? Trump: Great question. I get a lot of great questions. And let me tell you, nobody knows leadership better than me. People love me. I’ve been very...

In Monty Python’s Life of Brian, there’s a brilliant moment that underscores how easily miscommunication can lead to false assumptions, even in the most profound of circumstances. During the Sermon on the Mount, those standing at the back of the hill strain to hear Jesus’ words. Instead of, “The meek shall inherit the earth,” they misheard it as, “The Greeks...

There doesn’t seem to be a lot of character these days; the kind of character where individuals choose principle over expediency; who stand up for what’s right rather than give into fear or worse, silence. What we know of the Greek philosopher Socrates comes from his greatest student, Plato. Socrates believed that “to know the good is to do the...

Hope is not only the light that can be found at the end of the tunnel. It is also the light, faint and flickering, though it may be, that can help us navigate the darkness of our times.  – Archbishop Desmond TuTu I recently read two essays by Daisaku Ikda whose background as peacemaker, Buddhist philosopher and educator has been...