This husband and wife had been separated for four years, due to bureaucratic red tape. The two other women (one of whom is out of the frame, save for her hand) were friends from a church in Ft. Worth Texas. It was they who worked long and hard to make this moment happen.

The value of going to church has been much maligned in our time, but there is great value in it. Yes, there can be doctrinal issues, and doctrinal bullies, but the benefits are not to be overlooked… and I’m not referring to the belief aspects.

In church, people spend an hour per week, thinking about ultimate issues… about actually being good, about working for the good… about improving themselves and their neighbors. A great deal of good comes of this. Humans, after all, are tremendously capable creatures: when they try to help one another, they very often succeed.

* * * * *

So, if you have a church or synagogue you like, make it a point to go: spend time thinking about goodness and love, about blessing your family and your neighbors. And if you think church is too problematic, start working on a replacement for it: a place that can bring people into weekly consideration of the most important aspects of life and the most important actions of life.