“Man is not made better by being degraded…”
-Dorothea Dix
Dorothea Lynde Dix (April 4, 1802 – July 17, 1887) was an American activist who overcame an abusive childhood and chronically poor health to become a crusader for poor and imprisoned people struggling with disabilities and mental illness.
At the age of 19, Dix opened a school that catered to the wealthy families of Boston, but also began educating poor children out of her home. Due to health issues, however, she was forced to leave the school after three years. For the better part of two decades she wrote devotional and children’s books, and travelled to England where she was mentored by a Quaker community that deeply influenced her thinking about social reform.
Back in the United States in 1841, Dix returned to writing and teaching, and also began going to the jail in East Cambridge Massachusetts to lead a Sunday school class. It was there, one Sunday, that she witnessed a group of shivering, mentally ill people being herded into cells like animals. When she expressed concern, she was told not to worry about those patients since they could not feel the cold.
And an activist was born!
Dorothea Dix, outraged at this inhumane treatment, began her own statewide investigation. She discovered that most towns and cities would contract out the care of indigent mentally ill people not imprisoned to the private sector, where there were no regulations and generally poor funding. These conditions led to widespread abuse.
To build her case for national reform, Dix began travelling throughout the United States, studying and documenting the treatment of these terribly vulnerable members of society. And because of her findings and her passionate lobbying of state legislatures and the United States Congress, new laws were written to protect the indigent mentally ill. Additionally, special hospitals were built in fifteen states and Canada.
Except for the Civil War, where she served as the Superintendent of Army Nurses for the Union Army and distinguished herself by her compassionate attention to Union and Confederate soldiers alike, Dix continued to champion the cause of proper care for poor people struggling with disabilities and mental illness until she was eighty.
Those dismissed by too many as “throw-aways” were seen by this exceptional woman as precious, and worthy of respect and care.
“If you’ve done it to the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you’ve done it to me...”
Dorothea Dix did more than hear the words of Jesus, she lived them. And humanity is nobler because of it.
She is a hero you should know.
To learn more about this hero, you might consider:
The Life of Dorothea Lynde Dix, by Francis Tiffany
Angel of Mercy; The Story of Dorothea Lynde Dix, by Rachel Baker
Breaking the Chains: The Crusade of Dorothea Lynde Dix, by Penny Colman
1,000 years, 1,000 People, by Agnes and Henry Gottlieb and Barbara and Brent Bowers
Friday, June 29, 2012
Friday, June 15, 2012
Heroes you should know: Lucretia Mott
“If our principles are right, why should we be cowards?”
-Lucretia Mott
Lucretia Mott (January 3, 1793 – November 11, 1880) has been called “the first voice of American women.” She was a Quaker, an abolitionist, a minister, a women’s rights activist, and a social reformer.
Her activism was first ignited by her discovery that male colleagues at the Nine Partners Quaker Boarding School she taught at were being paid three times what females doing the same work were paid. In protest she left, along with her future husband James, and moved to Philadelphia.
There she would marry, raise six children, and become a Friends minister. She also travelled and spoke extensively on issues of justice and human dignity, led a boycott of cotton cloth, cane sugar, and other slavery-produced goods, and co-founded the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society.
And she was utterly fearless.
As an angry mob began destroying the building where the Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women was being held in 1837, Mott defiantly linked arms with black and white delegates and led a procession out of the hall and through the street. And when the mob found where she lived, and threatened to burn her house down as well, Mott calmly sat in her parlor and called their bluffs.
Before and during the Civil War, she also hid runaway slaves in her home.
Mott demonstrated courage as well in confronting her own abolitionist community. In 1840 she was one of six women elected to be delegates to the World’s Anti-Slavery Convention in London, England. But before the convention began the men voted to exclude the women from participating, and forced them to sit in a segregated area. The excuse given was that abolitionist leaders didn’t want the issue of women’s rights to distract from the issue of ending slavery. Still, Mott had enough of an impact to earn the nickname “the lioness of the convention” by journalists present.
Fundamentally Lucretia Mott understood that one justice issue could not in good conscience be separated from another. And she would spend the next forty years challenging inconsistencies and prejudices in political and religious circles alike. Her list of causes included full citizenship and voting rights for blacks, women’s political, economic, and marital rights, and the peace movement. She also served as a mentor to Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton (with whom she founded the American Equal Rights Association).
Like few before her, and few sense Lucretia Mott practiced what she preached. And this country is a far better place for it.
She is a hero you should know.
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Heroes you should know: Jerome Lejeune
"A society that kills its children has lost its soul and its hope..." -Dr. Jerome Lejeune
Dr. Jerome Lejeune (June 13, 1926 – April 3, 1994) was a French pediatrician and geneticist, renowned in the field of medicine for discovering a link between intellectual disabilities and chromosomal irregularities.
In the early 1950’s Lejeune began researching Down syndrome in an effort to find its cause. He first discovered that children with Down syndrome have anomalies in their fingerprints, and the lines on their palms. From there, studying tissue samples, he confirmed that these irregularities were due to chromosomal “accidents.” And by 1957 Lejeune had demonstrated that these children have an extra chromosome.
His discovery revolutionized the field of genetics, and paved the way for new therapeutic treatments. Lejeune went on to identify several other syndromes related to chromosomal abnormalities as well. For his trailblazing work, he was celebrated internationally, and in 1964 Dr. Lejeune was named the first chair of human genetics at the Paris School of Medicine.
He always saw research and treatment as inseparable, and his ultimate goal was to alleviate suffering while celebrating the dignity of life. Thus, Lejeune was mortified to see that his genetic discoveries had slowly begun leading to the termination of pregnancies involving special needs children. In critiquing his own profession, he wrote:
“They brandish chromosomal racism like the flag of freedom…. That this rejection of medicine—of the whole biological brotherhood that binds the human family—should be the only practical application of our knowledge of Trisomy 21 is beyond heartbreaking….”
Dr. Lejeune’s answer to what he considered the grave misuse of his findings was to become a passionate advocate for the dignity of all human beings, born and unborn. He would dedicate the rest of his life, and his immense genius, to speaking, writing, and organizing in support of a culture of life.
Jerome Lejeune died on Easter Sunday 1994.
The Catholic Church has opened his cause for canonization as a saint, and given him the title “Servant of God.”
Dr. Jerome Lejeune was a groundbreaking doctor and scientist who was profoundly committed to supporting human life, in all its complexity.
He is a hero you should know.
Dr. Jerome Lejeune (June 13, 1926 – April 3, 1994) was a French pediatrician and geneticist, renowned in the field of medicine for discovering a link between intellectual disabilities and chromosomal irregularities.
In the early 1950’s Lejeune began researching Down syndrome in an effort to find its cause. He first discovered that children with Down syndrome have anomalies in their fingerprints, and the lines on their palms. From there, studying tissue samples, he confirmed that these irregularities were due to chromosomal “accidents.” And by 1957 Lejeune had demonstrated that these children have an extra chromosome.
His discovery revolutionized the field of genetics, and paved the way for new therapeutic treatments. Lejeune went on to identify several other syndromes related to chromosomal abnormalities as well. For his trailblazing work, he was celebrated internationally, and in 1964 Dr. Lejeune was named the first chair of human genetics at the Paris School of Medicine.
He always saw research and treatment as inseparable, and his ultimate goal was to alleviate suffering while celebrating the dignity of life. Thus, Lejeune was mortified to see that his genetic discoveries had slowly begun leading to the termination of pregnancies involving special needs children. In critiquing his own profession, he wrote:
“They brandish chromosomal racism like the flag of freedom…. That this rejection of medicine—of the whole biological brotherhood that binds the human family—should be the only practical application of our knowledge of Trisomy 21 is beyond heartbreaking….”
Dr. Lejeune’s answer to what he considered the grave misuse of his findings was to become a passionate advocate for the dignity of all human beings, born and unborn. He would dedicate the rest of his life, and his immense genius, to speaking, writing, and organizing in support of a culture of life.
Jerome Lejeune died on Easter Sunday 1994.
The Catholic Church has opened his cause for canonization as a saint, and given him the title “Servant of God.”
Dr. Jerome Lejeune was a groundbreaking doctor and scientist who was profoundly committed to supporting human life, in all its complexity.
He is a hero you should know.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Heroes You Should Know: Liviu Librescu
“If you are limited, then you miss the freedom. And I—I would like to be fluid. I would like to be free as a bird and fly everywhere.” -Liviu Librescu
Liviu Librescu (August 18, 1930 – April 16, 2007) had faced death many times before his final minutes of life on the campus of Virginia Tech University. He had survived the Nazis, the Holocaust, and relocation to a labor camp. And he had endured over thirty years of Communist oppression in his native Romania. In between, he'd earned a Ph.D., and become a scientist and research professor in the area of aeroelasticity and aerodynamics.
Because he refused to swear allegiance to the Communist party, Librescu’s career stalled in Romania. But in 1978 he was finally allowed to immigrate to Israel with his wife and two sons, where he continued to teach Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering. In 1985, Dr. Librescu left for Blacksburg, Virginia on a sabbatical, accepting a teaching position in Engineering Science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech University. He would eventually decide to make this move permanent, and for over two decades his professional life continued to blossom. Dr. Librescu lectured, conducted research, had hundreds of articles published, along with scores of book chapters and monographs, and served on the editorial boards of numerous scientific journals. He was reknowned internationally, and was a beloved teacher and a devoted family man.
On the morning of April 16, 2007, crazed student Seung-Hui Cho entered the engineering building where Dr. Librescu was lecturing. As gunfire and screaming echoed in the hallway, Librescu ordered the students to exit the room through windows. Meanwhile, he headed for the door, and threw his body in front of it just as the gunman was attempting to enter. By blocking the entrance to the classroom, the professor kept Cho out long enough for twenty-two of his twenty-three students to escape without harm. Librescu was shot five times in the process, and died on the scene.
Ironically, the Virginia Tech massacre occurred on Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah). But perhaps there could be no more fitting day for Librescu’s martyrdom.
Dr. Liviu Librescu is a model of courage, of industriousness, of generosity, of love---and worthy of study. He lived a life of significance, which his death only confirmed.
He is a hero you should know.
Liviu Librescu (August 18, 1930 – April 16, 2007) had faced death many times before his final minutes of life on the campus of Virginia Tech University. He had survived the Nazis, the Holocaust, and relocation to a labor camp. And he had endured over thirty years of Communist oppression in his native Romania. In between, he'd earned a Ph.D., and become a scientist and research professor in the area of aeroelasticity and aerodynamics.
Because he refused to swear allegiance to the Communist party, Librescu’s career stalled in Romania. But in 1978 he was finally allowed to immigrate to Israel with his wife and two sons, where he continued to teach Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering. In 1985, Dr. Librescu left for Blacksburg, Virginia on a sabbatical, accepting a teaching position in Engineering Science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech University. He would eventually decide to make this move permanent, and for over two decades his professional life continued to blossom. Dr. Librescu lectured, conducted research, had hundreds of articles published, along with scores of book chapters and monographs, and served on the editorial boards of numerous scientific journals. He was reknowned internationally, and was a beloved teacher and a devoted family man.
On the morning of April 16, 2007, crazed student Seung-Hui Cho entered the engineering building where Dr. Librescu was lecturing. As gunfire and screaming echoed in the hallway, Librescu ordered the students to exit the room through windows. Meanwhile, he headed for the door, and threw his body in front of it just as the gunman was attempting to enter. By blocking the entrance to the classroom, the professor kept Cho out long enough for twenty-two of his twenty-three students to escape without harm. Librescu was shot five times in the process, and died on the scene.
Ironically, the Virginia Tech massacre occurred on Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah). But perhaps there could be no more fitting day for Librescu’s martyrdom.
Dr. Liviu Librescu is a model of courage, of industriousness, of generosity, of love---and worthy of study. He lived a life of significance, which his death only confirmed.
He is a hero you should know.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
An aerial view: The virtue of humor
"Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it."
-Bill Cosby
When we ask mapquest for directions, why do you think we’re provided an aerial view of our search? Why aren’t we just given a read-out of the streets and freeways we’ll be looking for? Afterall, we’re driving or walking to our destination, not helicoptering.
Why do you think we get the sky-cam view of the action when watching a movie, or the news, or the nature channel? Isn’t it sufficient to see things from ground-level?
It’s about perspective. There’s something centering, even comforting, about seeing the big picture of where you are, and where you’re headed. Perspective is not just helpful, it’s life giving.
And it’s also a good place to begin understanding humor as a virtue.
Humor as a virtue is the ability to see the big picture, the aerial view of life, and then translate it into a message that is both enjoyable and illuminating. It can take the form of a reflection or joke, or it can be as simple as a word, a facial expression, or even a sound. (My grandfather, when he sensed that he’d gotten a bit preachy, would make a noise that sounded like hot air being released from a balloon.).
Humor as a virtue opens people up.
Humor as a virtue reveals what is true, but in a way that unburdens.
Humor as a virtue encourages people to grow up by not taking themselves too seriously.
Humor as a virtue uses laughter and levity to transcend pain, not cause it.
Humor as a virtue grows from humility, wisdom, and charity.
But humor is rarely considered as even a potential virtue.
Part of this is due to the fact that it’s commonly mistaken for silly-ness. And although there’s a time and place for silly-ness…for clown noses, cartoons, and The Three Stooges…it hardly qualifies as transformative.
However the greater obstacle to seeing humor as a virtue and utilizing it’s positive potential is that too often it’s used as a weapon. A person will gain perspective on the human condition, on the woundedness and weaknesses of others, and then attack for popularity, for influence, or for revenge.
What a wasted opportunity.
"Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it."
Life is difficult. It’s full of pressure, and disappointment, and struggle. Even the most fortunate have these realities to contend with. The virtue of humor makes life lighter…more enjoyable. It gives us perspective and insight about what we can change, what we can’t change, and how to find life in laughter whatever the circumstances.
We need to take it seriously.
Questions for reflection:
Do you think humor is more often used as a virtue or a weapon?
Who models the virtue of humor for you? How?
What is one thing you can begin doing to practice the virtue of humor?
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Mothering Day
"The mother's heart is the child's school-room."
-Henry Ward Beecher
Mother's Day is a holy day indeed, a blessed day, a precious day. It is a day we should all celebrate if for no other reason...and there is not a more fundamental reason...than that our mothers chose life. We can and should be forever grateful for this. There is no greater gift.
But on Mother's Day I believe we should also celebrate ALL women who mother, for motherhood is certainly more than a physical act. We miss the true essence of motherhood if we reduce this sacred role to something wholly explained by obstetrics.
Those who mother bear hope.
Those who mother invest in the future.
Those who mother protect innocence.
Those who mother guide the vulnerable.
Those who mother teach about all that really matters.
Those who mother sacrifice for the Good.
Those who mother love and let go...and still love.
Happy Mother's Day, Happy Mothering Day, to all women who carry life, birth life, and nurture life in every way. "Thank you" is a good starting point, but not nearly enough!
Question for reflection: Who has mothered you?
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Becoming a hero: The virtue of courage
“The world's battlefields have been in the heart chiefly; more heroism has been displayed in the household and the closet, than on the most memorable battlefields in history.”
-Henry Ward Beecher
Clark Poling (a Dutch Reformed minister), George Fox (a Methodist minister), Alexander Goode (a Jewish rabbi), and John Washington (a Catholic priest) became fast friends in 1942 while attending a training school for Chaplains at Harvard College. In January 1943 all four men embarked for England together on the USAT Dorchester, along with 900 soldiers.
On February 2nd, the Dorchester was torpedoed by a German submarine and immediately began to sink. The four chaplains worked as a team to try and get the soldiers into life jackets and onto lifeboats. When the life jackets ran out, the four chaplains took theirs off and gave them to soldiers waiting, but kept working to get the men off the ship. Within 27 minutes of being hit, the Dorchester sank, carrying 672 men down with it. It was reported by survivors that the four chaplains were last seen together on the deck, arms linked, praying as the ship went down.
Here is a jaw-dropping example of the virtue of courage. And this story, as do all stories of extraordinary heroism, shakes us and reminds us of who we can be. Obviously this is worthwhile. But there is also a risk in telling the kind of stories that inspire books, and movies, and songs. They can leave the 99% of us who will never find ourselves on a sinking ship or a bloody battlefield, or in a burning building, or a hijacked airplane with a distorted understanding of courage---and heroism.
“The world's battlefields have been in the heart chiefly; more heroism has been displayed in the household and the closet, than on the most memorable battlefields in history.”
We must recognize that there is the extraordinary in the ordinary!
If we wait for epic moments to begin practicing courage, and to reveal the hero in each one of us, this great big world of ours is going to go ahead and finish falling apart. Because there is no goodness, no “doing the right thing,” without courage.
Courage is about withstanding hardships for the greater good, resisting temptation for the greater good, and then taking positive action for the greater good. It challenges you to be bigger than you’d otherwise be, and to en-courage others to step up as well. It is found at the testing point of every virtue.
Yes, soldiers, and first responders, and martyrs can be wonderful examples of courage and heroism. But so too can:
-Parents who resist the temptation to stop parenting prematurely
-Teens who resist negative peer pressure, and do what’s right instead of what’s popular
-Children who choose to not bully, and then stand with the one being bullied
-Employees who choose not to gossip
-Spouses who choose to remain faithful in good times and bad
-Friends who are willing to speak the truth in love to one another
Each of us has the ability to practice courage everyday, in little and big ways. We don’t have to go looking for opportunities either, we just need to be paying attention
Because in those opportunities each of us has the chance, no the responsibility, to be a hero.
Questions for reflection:
Do you want to be a hero?
Who models the virtue of courage for you? How?
What is one thing you can begin doing to practice the virtue of courage?
-Henry Ward Beecher
Clark Poling (a Dutch Reformed minister), George Fox (a Methodist minister), Alexander Goode (a Jewish rabbi), and John Washington (a Catholic priest) became fast friends in 1942 while attending a training school for Chaplains at Harvard College. In January 1943 all four men embarked for England together on the USAT Dorchester, along with 900 soldiers.
On February 2nd, the Dorchester was torpedoed by a German submarine and immediately began to sink. The four chaplains worked as a team to try and get the soldiers into life jackets and onto lifeboats. When the life jackets ran out, the four chaplains took theirs off and gave them to soldiers waiting, but kept working to get the men off the ship. Within 27 minutes of being hit, the Dorchester sank, carrying 672 men down with it. It was reported by survivors that the four chaplains were last seen together on the deck, arms linked, praying as the ship went down.
Here is a jaw-dropping example of the virtue of courage. And this story, as do all stories of extraordinary heroism, shakes us and reminds us of who we can be. Obviously this is worthwhile. But there is also a risk in telling the kind of stories that inspire books, and movies, and songs. They can leave the 99% of us who will never find ourselves on a sinking ship or a bloody battlefield, or in a burning building, or a hijacked airplane with a distorted understanding of courage---and heroism.
“The world's battlefields have been in the heart chiefly; more heroism has been displayed in the household and the closet, than on the most memorable battlefields in history.”
We must recognize that there is the extraordinary in the ordinary!
If we wait for epic moments to begin practicing courage, and to reveal the hero in each one of us, this great big world of ours is going to go ahead and finish falling apart. Because there is no goodness, no “doing the right thing,” without courage.
Courage is about withstanding hardships for the greater good, resisting temptation for the greater good, and then taking positive action for the greater good. It challenges you to be bigger than you’d otherwise be, and to en-courage others to step up as well. It is found at the testing point of every virtue.
Yes, soldiers, and first responders, and martyrs can be wonderful examples of courage and heroism. But so too can:
-Parents who resist the temptation to stop parenting prematurely
-Teens who resist negative peer pressure, and do what’s right instead of what’s popular
-Children who choose to not bully, and then stand with the one being bullied
-Employees who choose not to gossip
-Spouses who choose to remain faithful in good times and bad
-Friends who are willing to speak the truth in love to one another
Each of us has the ability to practice courage everyday, in little and big ways. We don’t have to go looking for opportunities either, we just need to be paying attention
Because in those opportunities each of us has the chance, no the responsibility, to be a hero.
Questions for reflection:
Do you want to be a hero?
Who models the virtue of courage for you? How?
What is one thing you can begin doing to practice the virtue of courage?
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