Religion Dispatches
…entirely derivative. “One of Us” The American Center for Law and Justice’s Jordan Sekulow, a conservative evangelical and Republican activist who touts Tea Party victories, tweeted on election night that Rand Paul’s victory in Kentucky was one for “constitutional conservatives” because “he is one of us”—meaning one of those people who believes the Constitution was a divinely-inspired document and that government shouldn’t legislate rights beyond w…
Read More…o intervene are somehow on the rise. Yet the only source for the story was Jordan Sekulow, the ACLJ’s Director of International Operations. “The media didn’t want to report this,” Sekulow asserted, claiming they feared being called Islamophobes or bigots if they reported that the CMSA was hosting terrorist speakers. “When we started talking about this,” said Sekulow, “immediately the left and the kind of pro-Islamic world immediately cries bigot a…
Read MoreYesterday the Washington Post announced that Jordan Sekulow, a Republican activist and lawyer with Pat Robertson’s American Center for Law and Justice (led by Sekulow’s father Jay), would be blogging for its On Faith section on the religious right. This is not, of course, like hiring a reporter to cover the religious right. Sekulow is the religious right, and deeply embedded and committed to its ideology and causes; giving him a blogging platform…
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…he OCA, the Synod of Bishops have the authority to restrict their right to free academic speech and thought. Academic freedom, which was arguably founded in Medieval Christianity, has always been subject to institutional affiliation. But the OCA document doesn’t specify who might be at risk. Does it pertain to OCA lay members employed at institutions and/or writing academic articles for publications unaffiliated with the OCA? There is (or at least…
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…sonally, I appreciate and enjoy the radically liberal American approach to free speech, including the right to blaspheme—which is of course not to say that to do so is always wise or tasteful. But, as retired history professor Anthony Edmonds of Ball State University used to quip in the classroom, a historian’s favorite hand is “the other hand.” For better or for worse, I am professionally trained as a historian. Thus, despite my respect for Ameri…
Read More…ght legal firm Alliance Defending Freedom, claims “the future of religious freedom depends on a free pulpit to communicate fundamental, biblical principles to congregations across America” and urges pastors to “join a growing movement of bold pastors preaching Biblical Truth about candidates and elections from their pulpits.” In AU’s letter, executive director the Rev. Barry Lynn argues that “it would be detrimental for our country and the democra…
Read More…e law—neither the Torah nor the laws of the Roman Church. The Christian is free from condemnation, free to obey God joyfully, and free to make individual choices about earthly matters—even including usury (lending money at interest). So thus far it may seem that Calvin put his stamp of approval on the market free-for-all that’s so popular with bankers, business owners, financiers, and Brat voters. In her post on RD Julie Ingersoll helpfully sums u…
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…a community everyone can enjoy and which also enables people to express different opinions,” said a YouTube spokesperson at the time. “This can be a challenge because what’s okay in one country can be offensive elsewhere.” International human rights treaties guarantee all citizens freedom of thought and freedom of expression. But these treaties are binding on states, not on the media corporations that enable the exercise of such freedoms. It rema…
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…se, whether the editors of Teen Vogue really did make a pact with Satan to promote sodomy. We’ll get to that, I promise. There are a few important things that have to be said first. In case you missed this latest episode of U.S. religious debate, the facts are pretty simple. Earlier this month, Teen Vogue posted an article on anal sex under the heading “Sexual Health & Identity.” (Deep breath! Yes, you have just read the phrase “anal sex” and not…
Read More…for Marriage Chair John Eastman to rail against the Obama administration’s promotion of LGBT rights overseas. Eastman defended Uganda’s notorious anti-homosexuality law and said he hoped it would come back “in short order.” Randy Berry, a special US envoy for LGBT rights, will visit Uganda next month, according to the Washington Blade’s Michael Lavers. This past Monday he began an 11-day trip to Latin America and the Caribbean, a trip whose schedu…
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