Author: Daniel E. Lee

Daniel E. Lee teaches ethics at Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois, where he is the chair of the Department of Religion.

Christianity and Violence: Coming to Grips with the Bloody Threads in the Garment

Daniel Lee explores violence between religious communities in recent years and the Christian view of violence. He draws upon the wise words of peaceful leaders to bring a message of hope and a path to peace.

Two Concepts of Forgiveness

[1] Each year at Augustana College, a faculty committee selects a book which all first-year students are encouraged to read over the summer prior to beginning their college careers. The book chosen for the 2007-2008 academic year was The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness, an extended essay written by Simon Wiesenthal with […]

Living Together Faithfully in Community While Disagreeing

[1] I have great appreciation for the work that the Task Force for Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Studies on Sexuality did as they wrestled with some of the most excruciatingly difficult issues of our time. I particularly like their recommendation that we concentrate on finding ways to live together faithfully in the midst of […]

Social Security: Some Ethical Issues

[1] As the debate about privatization Social Security takes center stage, there are all sorts of political analyses and economic analysis to be found in newspapers, journals and elsewhere. There is a glaring shortage of ethical analyses, however. Perhaps this is an area where those laboring in our corner of the vineyard can help out […]

What are the Forgotten Issues of this Election?

[1] A substantial number of the forgotten issues in this election involve questions of intergenerational justice. Consider the following: Both the Hospital Insurance part of Medicare (Part A) and Social Security are headed for bankruptcy-Medicare Part A in the next few years, Social Security a few years down the road. Both are financed by taxes […]

Should We Forgive Osama bin Laden and Members of Al-Qaida?

Originally published in The Dispatch, Moline, Illinois, January 20, 2002. Used with permission. [1] In Mere Christianity, a widely-read book published shortly after World War II, C.S. Lewis suggests that we should forgive everyone, even the Gestapo, Hitler’s hated secret police viewed by many as the most wicked of the wicked. [2] For many today, […]