C.S. Lewis on Christian Politics

Image via Time magazine

Thanks to a post by Pastor William Weedon on his Facebook page, I discovered The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment by C. S. Lewis.

Here's a great quote from Lewis...

The practical problem of Christian politics is not that of drawing up schemes for a Christian society, but that of living as innocently as we can with unbelieving fellow subjects under unbelieving rulers who will never be perfectly wise and good and who will sometimes be very wicked and very foolish.

Click here to view/print The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment.

This quote from Lewis should be balanced with the words of St. Paul...

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.

Troy Zoning Board of Appeals - May 2015 Meeting Recap

City staff has posted the video recording of the 5/19/15 Troy Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) meeting to YouTube. At the bottom of this post is the video. (The meeting actually starts shortly after the 35 second mark of the video.)

Click here to download the entire Agenda Packet from the May 19th meeting.

There were two items on the agenda:

1. A variance for 3151 Helena (in order to construct an addition to the home). The ZBA approved the variance. I voted "yes" to approve the variance.
2. A variance for 2352 Lanergan (in order to construct an addition to the home). The ZBA approved the variance. I voted "yes" to approve the variance.

Also, congratulations to Glenn Clark and David Eisenbacher. The ZBA voted to re-elect Glenn as Chairman and David as Vice Chairman.

2015 Troy Foundation For Educational Excellence Innovator of the Year

Approximately a year ago, I was invited to apply for a Trustee position for the Troy Foundation For Educational Excellence (TFEE). Fortunately they accepted my application.

As stated on the TFEE website...

For more than 20 years, Troy Foundation For Educational Excellence has devoted its energy and funds to support the Troy School District. Funds raised through donations and fundraisers are used to enhance learning experiences through the use of innovative projects and activities that teachers host themselves.

Annually, we recognize a school grant applicant as TFEE Innovator of the Year. Below I've embedded a Troy School District video that recognizes the 2015 honoree, the Wass Canvas Night. Click here to read more about the Wass Canvas Night on the School Life Troy website.


2015 TFEE Innovator of the Year from Troy School District on Vimeo.