Three Semi-Random/Semi-Connected Thoughts

Thought Number 1 -- from Mass:

The priest in his homily somewhat clarified my wonderings of last night by pointing out that these readings aren't a call to drag someone out into criminal court; rather, they are about calling to correction out of an attitude of love. Made me realize that there's a way to point something out to someone without thoroughly condemning them, and a way to do it out of love and not out of "I'm better than you."

Thought Number 2 -- from Morning Prayer:

Psalm 93:3-4
The flood has raised up, LORD; the flood has raised up its roar; the flood has raised its pounding waves.
More powerful than the roar of many waters, more powerful than the breakers of the sea, powerful in the heavens is the LORD.
Especially interesting to consider the New American Bible's footnotes about it: "In the ancient myth that is alluded to here, Sea completely covered the land, making it impossible for the human community to live. Sea, or Flood, roars in anger against God, who is personified in the storm. God's utterances or decrees are given authority by the victory over Sea."

Thought Number 3 -- from Social Justice class:

The kids were discussing how it's all the poor who were still stuck in New Orleans, and their comments were leading me to discuss the idea of a "throwaway society" ... that, in terms of people, it refers to those who appear to be non-contributing members of society, that we value those only useful or beautiful to us. Something that one of them said (that I can't remember now) lead me to the question: If this happened in Appalachia, would we have the same response? I'm not denying the sheer devastation that has occured, but .... how come we're only hearing about New Orleans? Mississippi was already top of the poverty rankings, and they've had whole towns disappear, lost their entire Gulf Shore tourism and gambling industry. We hear about landslides in Los Angeles, but the several floods each summer that wipe out parts of the mountainous Appalachians ....?

What does our society value?