Lent

April 8, 2017

The Empathy Switch

Whenever I give a closing argument to a jury, I include comments about the importance of empathy. I tell the jurors that while the law does not permit them to have sympathy for my client, it does permit them to have empathy.

March 26, 2016

Women Who Showed Up The Men

Women in the ChurchWhen Georgette and I got married in June 1980, I told her I wanted our first four children to be boys. The reason was that I wanted to form a barbershop quartet with them. While I was in high school, I organized a barbershop quartet, and while I was in college, I formed another quartet.

March 19, 2016

The Real Story of the Young Messiah

The Young MessiahA new movie, The Young Messiah, was recently released and is currently being shown in theaters. The movie was adapted from the novel, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, which was written by Anne Rice.

March 21, 2015

Eradicating Weeds

Week BookIn the early summer of 1975, one of my cousins decided that he wanted to try his hand at gardening. For the purpose of this article, I’m going to call him “James.” At the time, James and I were both 18 years old. I knew quite a bit about gardening because I had been in charge of taking care of our large family garden for the previous five years.

February 28, 2015

A Ritual Worth Considering

ritual-de-havanaLast week, one of my clients asked me if I would say some prayers for her and her family. For the purpose of this article, I’m going to call her “Julie.” After asking for prayers, Julie said that she’s been having problems at home with her teenage daughters.

March 13, 2014

Controlling your Mind, Emotions, and Body

Mind Body SoulThe spring semester of my junior year in college (1978) was the best semester I ever had as a college student.  It was also the most challenging.  I had a full load of 300-level classes in accounting and business and competition among the students was very tough.

March 8, 2014

Ash Wednesday and Philip Seymour Hoffman

Philip Seymour Hoffman - Plutarch Heavensbee in Catching Fire

Philip Seymour Hoffman – Plutarch in Catching Fire

February 20, 2014

A Legacy Worth Talking About

Veronica VeilImagine you are driving on University Street in Peoria and in the distance you see a large crowd of people gathered in a parking lot.  As you drive closer to the crowd, you see a man who you have met before tied to a telephone pole.  To your horror, you see two young, well-built men taking turns at beating the man with leather whips that have sharp pieces of metal attached to the ends of each whip.

March 23, 2013

Modern-Day Goliath Crushes David

David-GoliathLast month, a “David vs. Goliath” case was argued before the Supreme Court of the United States.  The “David” in the case is Vernon Hugh Bowman, a 75-year-old farmer from Indiana.  The “Goliath” is the mighty Monsanto Company.