Spiritual/Political/Philosophical Blog on the Nature of Truth and Falsehood and Heaven
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| Sunny Days in Heaven Spiritual/Political/Philosophical Blog on the Nature of Truth and Falsehood and Heaven |
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Saturday, September 04, 2004 Bill Clinton's Heart Having suffered a serious heart attack myself, I have a little insight into the experience of getting things fixed. From what I hear, Bill Clinton did not have a heart attack although he may have been having chest pains that triggered learning of his condition of heart disease. I'm sorry that Mr. Clinton did not have a heart attack in one sense only -- as an old priest once told a man: "When people know they are going to die, they only think of two things -- there relationship with God, and of the people they love, their family." I know that's factual. In the midst of my heart attack, I found that I was right with God and had no fear of him, nor any fear that there was no heaven to come. My second thought was for my family; to tell them I loved them. But the aftermath of my recovery is what really shook me up spiritually. I spent perhaps two years trying to understand God and life better. I had to explain the paradox of a God who dearly loves and cares for me with a God who is completely unhelpful (or indifferent) to me in a moment of extremity and awesome pain. I had known God's true and incredible love for me and all his children and creation before; but since that time, I had not experienced such a sense of loss and abandonment as I did in the midst of the heart attack. There was nothing gracious in the moment. Anyway, I had to search and rethink what I had known of God's nature and my own. It was a painful wandering and lookout. I think I have come to better conclusions about God than I knew before which gives me the equanamity to persevere now. But I fear that Clinton, who might have profited from a serious moment of unmitigated mortality, has not had that benefit. I do not wish him ill, but in fact wish him truth, clarity, insight, and the suffering that leads to wisdom and repentance. We will see if this event becomes something he shrugs off, alters his perceptions, or starts him on a real crusade for his soul and wisdom, but my expectation is that this will be of little present consequence to him or his family. In an article on present thoughts about Dualism (the mind/body problem), the author writes: "President Clinton, one of our most scientifically literate presidents, was at a town meeting ten years ago, and he discussed abortion. He described the controversy as a reasonable disagreement among moral people." (My emphasis) By that same reasoning, one can easily say that 150 years ago that slavery was an issue of disagreement among moral people. For the Southerners were very moral otherwise in their lives, and good, God fearing citizens. In fact, it turns out that in the ancient world, slavery was a merciful turn from total annihilation of an enemy (though it certainly proved to have economic value to owners of slaves, too). The author of the quote above then adds: "Nobody doubts the preciousness of human life. What they disagree about is an empirical issue: Precisely when does the soul occupy the body?" This can never be a scientific question as the author supposes, nor as Mr. Clinton seems to aver to. How can I imagine that my neighbor is truly a moral man simply because he obeys other moral laws (against murder, rape, theft, and so on) while violating the life of an unborn child? I would like to quote Jesus as favoring my perspective when he said, "Blessed are those who know God's will and do it." But the problem is Bill Clinton and others claim to be moral and doing God's will as they see it by allowing abortion. It takes a powerful experience of God, to be reborn, for many to have the scales drop from their eyes. I would hope Clinton's recent episode with his body might induce such a desire and need, but I'm skeptical. Not of God, of course, but of Clinton's willingness to submit to instruction from the only One who can truly inform a soul of its moral duties. posted by Mark Butterworth | 4:16 PM | |
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