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“A Celebration of Life” – This phrase is above the photo of a smiling young man with pulled-back hair parted in the middle, wearing dark-framed glasses. He is shown wearing a moderately-heavy jacket over a white tee shirt. A closer look leads the eye to note the small, oblong-shaped earring that hangs a quarter of an inch below his left earlobe. His sideburns are cut sharply off at a point some half inch above the lowest portion of the ring. He is smooth shaven save for a small “tickler” under his lower lip. The first impression is that this is a warm, friendly open guy who enjoys life. If one read no further, that is the way it would be. The words printed under the picture change everything. Mark Christian Ashworth August 28, 1967 – April 10, 2014 Pacific Union College Church Angwin, California Sunday, April 27, 2014 April 10, 2014, is the day Mark took his life.[1] Suicide is the ultimate statement one can make that he or she is dissatisfied with some aspect of his or her life. Suicide is the last desperate attempt to make a statement that when done ends debate. Those who survive are left to deal with the remorse, the loss, the questions. For a parent, family members and others close to the one who has chosen to end life by suicide, the act defies one’s ability to comprehend. Logic fails. The deepest stirrings of the soul are violated, and we are left to struggle with a closure that will not close. The mind will not allow a final placement; a border that will hold the event in check. Our inclination is to push back, repress, ignore and talk around. “It was a sudden, unexpected death.” Mark’s memorial service did not fall within this tradition. The family made it clear: their son; their brother; their friend took his life. They made it clear to us that they wished to acknowledge the reality of this act and the life-choices that had a powerful effect on Mark’s life. (Disclosure: Carolyn Ashworth, Mark’s mother, is my wife’s cousin. I did not know Mark. When he was a pre-teen, we may have casually met on one or two occasions. Warren Ashworth, Mark’s father, was for many years a member of the PUC religion faculty.) The family members recognized that for Mark, their return to the United States from Argentina, where the parents had been in mission service, was traumatic. Mark became less willing to fit into anyone’s mold. He was a free spirit. He enjoyed music, art, and dance. He had his core of friends, but this core did not always include family. At some point in his high school years, Mark began to experiment with various mind-altering substances. In his early twenties, he broke away from his roots and set out on a journey that would take him and a “soul mate” about the United States in a VW squareback decorated with technicolored art and unique statements. His life-journey would eventually take him to Talkeetna, Alaska. Here he found a community that accepted him as he was and allowed him to struggle with his demons. His substance abuse became more pronounced, his estrangement from family more pronounced. He stayed in Alaska most of 19 years. In August of 2013 Mark called his parents and asked if he could come home. The family welcomed him, so grateful to have him home. It soon became apparent to the family that Mark was struggling with a deepening depression. Consultations with medical professionals informed the parents that Mark’s frontal lobe was not working well and many of his neurotransmitters were destroyed. Perhaps in two to four years, the medical personnel opined, he might see things more clearly. Until that time, the remedies of choice were prescribed medications combined with acceptance, patience, support and love. And so it was, until the day Mark’s sister found him in his parent’s home. The family might well have done as others who have known the shock and embarrassment of a child or family member who has chosen suicide. The Ashworths chose an alternate. They asked an Adventist minister, Pastor O. Kris Widmer, to conduct the memorial service. The family knew that he had addressed suicide in a Sabbath sermon. They requested that he share his personal and biblical insights on the subject of suicide and that he describe what people should look for that indicates a person may be considering suicide. In his homily, Pastor Widmer addressed questions that are raised when suicide occurs: Is suicide the one unpardonable sin? No, said the pastor. He gave powerful expression to the biblical hope that is essential to the Christian faith and gave assurance, based on St. Paul’s statements, that nothing, absolutely nothing, can separate us from the love of God. And “nothing” includes suicide. [The above has been extracted from a longer article that was written by Larry Downing on May 28, 2014, and published in Adventist Today. You may access the entire article from the following link.] https://atoday.org/a-death-like-no-other/ The additional material contained in the article above address the various views as to what the Bible is thought to say on this subject. In addition, it speaks to family issues. It is well worth reading. The link below will take you to the Memorial service, at Pacific Union College, conducted for Mark Christian Ashworth, who died on April 10, 2014 https://livestream.com/pucchurch/markashworth/videos/49291765

(N) 2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Freedom, Justice, and Decolonization is a book written by Lewis Gordon. The following links take you to individual chapter reviews of the book, which were written by various Adventists. More links will be added to his post as they are published. In short, they suggest how the chapters of teh book may speak to us. https://spectrummagazine.org/culture/books-film/africana-thought-adventist-philosophers-on-gordons-freedom-justice-and-decolonization-1/ https://spectrummagazine.org/culture/books-film/re-imagining-liberations-adventist-philosophers-on-gordons-freedom-justice-and-decolonization-2/ https://spectrummagazine.org/culture/books-film/the-problem-with-justice-adventist-philosophers-review-freedom-justice-and-decolonization-3/

On a personal basis, I consider it important to consider also the book by Steve Heinrlchs, Unsettling the Word: BIibical Experiments in Decolonization. https://jbtsonline.org/review-of-unsettling-the-word-biblical-experiments-in-decolonization-edited-by-steve-heinrichs/

The Oxford Handbook of Adventism is a 605-page book developed by Oxford University Press and is a part of some 1,600 such handbooks. Its normal retail price is $178, but may be purchased on Amazon for $161. The following is a review of this book which is both positive as well as suggestive of places where it could have been improved. https://spectrummagazine.org/culture/books-film/does-the-oxford-handbook-of-seventh-day-adventism-accurately-represent-the-faith-community-a-review/

The Supreme Court has overturned the Chevron Doctrine, shifting power from federal agencies back to the courts and Congress. This landmark decision reshapes the balance of U.S. governance and signals a major shift in administrative law. #SCOTUS #Chevron #Law #PoliticsView the full article

Adventism Today: The following is a listing of Amazon books that may be of interest to Adventists. I do not believe that all books available on Amazon are listed. I am not suggesting that I favor all of the books. I do think that some may be of value and I am therefore providing the listing. https://www.amazon.com/sk=adventist+today&i=stripbooks&adgrpid=1345802795530142&hvadid=84112913835795&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=43794&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvtargid=kwd84113015631819%3Aloc190&hydadcr=22534_13494416&msclkid=c72da75de0031a487c2ec1e3fcb5abea&tag=mh0b-20&ref=pd_sl_go8tk59lg_e

This was one of the issues in the discussion over the author of Hebrews: Some verses sounds like the temple has fallen and other verses may be understood as the temple as still in operation.

Adventist Families: In the following article, the fiction of the typical Adventist family is examined. It is well worth reading. https://atoday.org/the-search-of-the-perfect-adventist-family/

The landmark Keeler v. Superior Court decision sparked controversy and legislative action in 1970, redefining California's murder statute.View the full article

Walter Veith is an interesting person in Adventism. For one view of him, see: https://spectrummagazine.org/post-archives/dark-fantasy-world-walter-veith/

The legislation, signed into law in July by Governor Mike DeWine, requires all Ohio public school districts to adopt policies that "reasonably accommodate the sincerely held religious beliefs and practices of individual students." A key provision allows students to take up to three "religious expression days" per school year without academic penalty.View the full article

At the Reagan Library, Justice Neil Gorsuch discussed his book "Overruled," highlighting the dangers of excessive laws and regulations, emphasizing their negative impact on ordinary Americans' lives.View the full article

Setting aside the wisdom of reinventing the Supreme Court, the political feasibility of enacting these reforms is dubious.View the full article

Phil Donahue, whose pioneering daytime talk show launched an indelible television genre, has died https://apnews.com/article/phil-donahue-dead-337b3630524a576407c1119f590d1dd4?