Religion Dispatches
…History, distant lands; studios and cafes: you can occupy them. And, as a bonus, families can get reunited in life after life—“we come into lifetimes often with the same people,” Weiss explains—so there’s a wholesome message here, too. Reincarnation is the rare topic that provokes both scientists and the Southern Baptist Convention. But, as quack-ish doctors and bold religious repackaging goes, Couric’s reincarnation episode doesn’t seem so bad a…
Read More…ly—well, one begins to wonder whether you’ve thought even one step ahead. Bonus tip: When your dad asks you, three times, what happened at your friend’s house, and when he prefaces the third time with “I’m going to give you one last chance,” the jig is up, and it’s time to confess everything. 3. A large vocabulary is an asset. If a family member has just confessed something regarding her sexual history, and you’re surprised by the news, search yo…
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…battered by Muslims and Marxists, in which to make his stand. As an added bonus, he can defend the Catholic faith in a national church. The Orthodox communion is governed through a highly decentralized, synodical system in which 15 self-governing churches—traditionally organized along national/ethnic lines—act with autonomy. While this system of ecclesiastical governance predates by centuries modern concepts of race and nationalism, for a nationa…
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…permanent; I’d like to call this error “Kardashianism,” which as an added bonus sounds like confusionism, giving my argument an impressive and solipsistic coherence. (You’re not really surprised, are you? I’ve argued that Jersey Shore, appreciated anthropologically, affords us an unparalleled etiology of the Arab Spring.) Look at this picture, worth 1,000 foreign policy words. It’s Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkish Foreign Minister and global thinker, on…
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…tional response, laughter being the emotional response, a form of weeping. Bonus: An Interview with Ultra Spiritual JP Sears Ultra Spiritual JP, is there an inherent conflict between religion and science? There’s no scientific basis to back up science. The fundamentalist scientists haven’t been willing to prove how science is actually scientific, because of their dogmatic beliefs. Wait, are you implying that science is a religion? Science is perha…
Read More…ntion is getting ready to double down on its anti-gay message. As an added bonus, their condemnation has gone all inclusive as they take special aim at the transgender community, who, up until now, had been largely ignored by the conservative Protestant denomination. As members gather this week in Baltimore, Md., for their annual meeting, Albert Mohler Jr., president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, has already fired the opening salvo…
Read More…eryone else involved should be polishing their resumes, while the rest of us hearken to the death knell of a venerable American brand. Bonus: Sammy Davis Junior for Manischewitz….
Read More…hear, WBC members sang: Your hearts are turning hard God smacks this world of ours He’ll tear it all apart You think you’re superstars God hates who you are! Your proud and Bible dumb Your consciences are numb In God’s eyes you are dung You think you’re superstars God hates who you are! Bonus! Turns out the WBC has literally dozens of parodies you can listen to on its website, everything from Rogers and Hammerstein to Miley Cyrus. What strikes you…
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…yer. Just as no one can tell an employee how to invest a salary or spend a bonus, neither can anyone prevent the use of money for birth control that is mandated by law. At the heart of the matter, as I read it, are two fundamental issues. The first is that the concept of religious freedom takes on new meaning in an increasingly secular society. This is the bishops’ nightmare, but it is simply a fact that more people are religiously undecided—wheth…
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…said. I’m just starting to read around in that literature. It’s great fun. Bonus Question: With a diversity of religion in the United States, what common ground is there for a common or universal ethic? This is an enduring dilemma for ethicists. Habits of the Heart suggests that our culture has a deeply rooted “expressive individualism” that can be an alternative to the utilitarian individualism which they find both widespread and destructive. I t…
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