As part of the membership meeting in June, 2010, I asked members to remember two incidents this past year that stood out for them in the life of our Ethical Society -- one that they enjoyed, and one that they didn't enjoy so much.  I also asked that they try to boil down to one word the quality of life that they were wanting -- a quality of life they found in the moment they enjoyed, a quality of life that they found wanting in the moment that they didn't enjoy.  Out of those words, I created this word cloud:

As Memorial Day approaches, I remember that the day was initially created to honor the dead on both sides of a major conflict – the American Civil War – and in that remembering, to re-unite the nation that had nearly split in two. It was not to glorify war, or to justify the rightness of either side, but to mourn those who’d died and honor them as people, and to move forward in unity. (more on that: Memorial Day Origins)

Some of the topics which are discussed on the platform of the Northern Virginia Ethical Society are controversial topics.  Unless otherwise specified, the opinions expressed are those of the speaker -- even when I, as Leader, am speaking.

Ethics, in the view of an Ethical Society, is not about a list of rules or commandments. It's about a process of thinking for ourselves, and developing that ability over our lifetimes.  How many of us feel exactly about all ethical issues at age 30 as we did at 20?  At age 40 as at age 30? and so on.  Ethics is a lifelong exploration, and not everyone will come to the same conclusions.

Many of the other Ethical Societies have, somewhere on their building and often near or above the area where the platform speaker stands, some version of the Felix Adler quote, “The place where people meet to seek the highest is holy ground.”  (Felix’s original words actually were about “men” but he did seem to mean that in the inclusive sense.)  The reference is to the idea in many religions, and especially in the Hebrew scriptures, that there is some space that is especially holy — a place set aside, a place to be especially respected.  Adler’s idea was that it was not the place that was holy; it was the act of taking seriously high ideals together, as a community, that created “holiness.”

(guest article by Steve Goldstein)

What a concept! Solicit funds from well-intentioned people from around the world to make small, low interest, loans to small entrepreneurs who want to begin start-up businesses in third-world countries. How have they fared? To date, over 675,000 lenders from 192 countries have made some 170,000 loans. These loans totaled over $121 million dollars with the average loan amounting to just $399. The rate of repayment is over 98 percent.

Due to the snow, which is expected to continue to accumulate into January 31 and remain on the ground, producing dangerous driving conditions, we are cancelling the platform meeting and Sunday School meeting for Sunday, January 31.

Living in a state where "race" is still a box to fill in on marriage licenses, I'm often reminded how parallel today's marriage equality issues are, legally speaking.  Some of the same arguments are even used (see "Why the Ugly Rhetoric Against Gay Marriage Is Familiar to This Historian of Miscegenation").  How simple to allow marriage, regardless of the race or gender of the partner!

Certainly the issue cannot just be procreation.  We do not dissolve marriages automatically if the partners cannot procreate, nor do we require procreation of married couples where the partners are different sexes or genders.