Author Archives: abfifer

Soccer Captain Apologizes for Criticizing Fans

Lindsey Horan, the captain of the US women’s soccer team, gave an interview to The Athletic, published earlier this month, in which she expressed her frustration with American soccer fans. She observed that most of them “aren’t smart, they don’t know the game, they don’t understand.” Apparently she was widely criticized for those remarks, so […]

Mark Zuckerberg Apologies to Families Spontaneously

I’ve noted in these blogs how difficult it is to make a public apology. Yesterday Mark Zuckerberg offered an apology that was not only public, it was spontaneous – and compelled (at least, I presume he did not see this coming). Mr. Zuckerberg was testifying in a Senate child safety hearing attended by family members […]

Federal Court Refines Claims Subject to “Ministerial Exception”

The “ministerial exception” to laws governing employment relationships in the U.S. prevents courts from considering employment-related legal claims made by church employees, or former employees, who meet the definition of a “minister.” Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, 140 S. Ct. 2049 (2020); Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, 565 U.S. 171 […]

For Whose Benefit is an Apology?

There are two main parties to an apology: the offender (the one who apologizes) and the victim. There may also be a third party, an indirect victim of the offense. So when the offender apologizes, who benefits? In a Pittsburgh court a few years ago, two men were sentenced after pleading guilty for their roles […]

Have You Really Forgiven?

Forgiveness is challenging. One of its challenges is that people think that they have forgiven, when they really haven’t. Christians know they’re supposed to forgive, so they convince themselves that they have, but their heart is still unforgiving. The problem is that then they stop working on forgiveness, telling themselves they’ve already taken care of […]