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A Post-Christian America? Not Quite—Though Devoutly to be Wished

By Peter Laarman

…nny. This morning I awoke with two thoughts in relation to Meacham’s piece: 1) There’s got to be a connection between the smaller number of people, especially young people, wishing to claim the name “Christian” and the cultural prevalence of toxic forms of Christianity in recent years—and there’s growing anecdotal evidence to support such a connection; 2) If conservative Christians are losing adherents and losing cultural power, why are the Democr…

Obama in Copenhagen: From an Embarrassment of Riches to a New Earth Ethic

By Peter Laarman

…cy for action on climate change. In addition, the administration’s made-up number is embarrassingly modest; far more modest than the radical reduction timetable that climate-change science and the “decent opinion of mankind” (the old Jeffersonian standard) both now call for. None of this, I want to stress, is the president’s fault. The reality and reputation of the United States as an energy hog goes back centuries. Seventeenth-century European co…

Life as a Game Show: Reading Slumdog Millionaire

By Paul Courtright

…ery Indian film faithful to the Bollywood aesthetic formula. It produces a number of rasa, “tastes,” in the viewer: heroism, humor, disgust, eros, fear, and tranquility. The final dance scene on the train platform pays homage to the familiar Bollywood genre. The musical score crackles with energy. There are any number of reasons why Slumdog has emerged as one of this year’s favorites among American audiences. Perhaps the Oscar nominations reflect…

Catholic Leaders Offer Criticism, Support to Boxer Pacquiao After Anti-Gay Comments…

By Peter Montgomery

…, the most significant of which are the Church of England Empowering Act of 1928, and Te Pouhere , the Constitution of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, which came into force in 1992. The working group report acknowledges that the group’s believe “that the proposed liturgies do not represent a departure from the Doctrine and Sacraments of Christ” will be controversial, “a crucial matter for debate.” Italy: Senate Passes C…

The Abortion Debate, Texas Style

By Dhawn Martin

…ing began. Procedures were briefly outlined, and we were informed that over 1600 individuals had registered to testify. That number was quickly growing, even with testimony set to end at midnight. It was gonna be a long day, and over a thousand Texans would not get to voice their opinion. After the main elements of the bill were highlighted by its author, the games commenced. Democratic lawmakers deployed stall tactics and asked probing questions;…

The Fretting About Whether Democrats Are “Friendly” To Religion

By Sarah Posner

…9% of Catholics go to church more than once a week; 33% attend weekly. But 19% attend only once or twice a month; 20% only a few times a year, and a combined 19% seldom or never. That would mean that a good chunk of Catholics probably didn’t receive the bishops’ bulletin insert on abortion in the health care bill at mass. Moreover, only 19% of Catholics believe “there is only one true way to interpret the teachings of my religion” while 77% belie…

Demonized and Demonizing No More.

By Joanna Brooks

…d between atheists and religious communities. Of course, there are still a number of people who are, if not entirely resistant to the ideas in the book, at least deeply suspicious about or don’t see much value in them. One thing I find valuable about Faitheist is that it moves atheism away from the kind of polemic that ends up focusing on truth claims in a very literal way and so mirrors the religious fundamentalisms it would like to dismantle. A…

When God and Gender Mix: New Book Examines the Southern Holiness Movement

By Colin Chapell

…ge how they understand their own identity. If academic achievement and the number or type of initials after your name is the most important thing in the world to you, then it will change how you view your own masculinity and femininity. Similarly, if having children matters most to you, then you can only be truly “manly” or “feminine” if you have kids. Is there anything you had to leave out? Historians always want to include every interesting anec…

Why Anti-Gay Bullying is a Theological Issue

By Cody J. Sanders

…y computer screen as news stories continued to appear about the suicides of 13-year-old Asher Brown, 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, 13-year-old Seth Walsh, and 19-year-old Raymond Chase. Today, it is very clear to me that profound sadness and stunned silence is no longer a suitable, appropriate, or adequate response. From Lamentation to Indignation My sadness began to change into something different with each successive news story about another gay t…

More Than Big Hair and Money: Jim, Tammy Faye and the Media “Holy Wars” of the 80s

By John Wigger

…the Bakkers flaunted their wealth. Bakker raised about $158 million between 1984 and 1987 from his “lifetime partners,” but still managed to leave the ministry teetering on the edge of bankruptcy when the scandal broke. But there was more to it than just big hair and money. Before PTL could become a front-page scandal it had to have an outsized presence in American culture. That largely happened through innovation, including the Christian televisi…