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Newsweek’s Strange Faces of the Christian Right List

By Sarah Posner

…se” movement, it missed much of what makes it tick. The people on the list represent a visible slice of the Christian right (or don’t represent the Christian right at all) but it’s precisely because the movement is diffuse that the list doesn’t offer much in the way of illumination (and indeed offers much in the way of inaccuracy). Where are the Pentecostals and charismatics? Where are religious Tea Partiers? Finally, Lisa Miller’s piece, which I…

Loving Uganda to Death: The Global Reach of Far-Right Christian Hatred

By Peter Montgomery

…es much of God Loves Uganda, authored Politicial Research Associates’ 2012 report, “Colonizing African Values: How the U.S. Christian Right is Transforming Politics in Africa,” which among other things examines the African activities of the American Center for Law and Justice, the legal organization established by Pat Robertson and run by Jay Sekulow with the assistance of his son Jordan. A more recent article by PRA researcher Jandira Queiroz dis…

From Licking Floors to Praying for an Inept Government, Churches React to C-19

By Daniel Schultz

…ciety, among the most physically intimate, and likely include the greatest number of vulnerable people. Even single members of large congregations can have a dramatic effect on how coronavirus spreads or doesn’t, as South Korea found out the hard way. While many aren’t meeting at all or are streaming services, some churches that do meet feel like they need to support those who need it, in worship or otherwise. My mother’s congregation in Madison,…

Diplomatic Suckerhood: Why Israel Is Fighting Toward its Own Demise

By Ira Chernus

…ness, confidence, and pride. On the contrary, Israeli political life seems dominated by anxiety. So, for example, the fear of an Iranian nuclear bomb (even just one, against Israel’s two hundred or more) makes headlines in Israel nearly every day, like this one from the Jerusalem Post: “Iran Could Build Bomb Within a Year”; even though, as the article clearly states, the Israeli government “currently believes that worst-case scenario is not likely…

What Do ‘The Christians’ Believe? Easter Reflections from a Non-Christian

By Gary Laderman

…arges in the long run, his recent homily referring to the “petty gossip of dominant opinion” glossed over the seriousness of this scandal and what role, if any, he had in how the situation was mishandled at the Vatican, reminding his followers about the true mission of the church and to focus on Jesus Christ. What do the Christians believe? The recent health care debates surfaced the radical differences that exist among Christians about health and…

An Unholy Holy Week: Is the All-Male Rule of the Roman Catholic Church Self-Destructing?

By Anne Eggebroten

…rce of the problem: canon law, which does not require cases of abuse to be reported to the police. Instead, a culture of extreme secrecy has prevailed, codified in Vatican norms issued in 1962 requiring secret investigations and prohibiting any report to civil authorities. Will Pope Benedict XVI set in motion any change to canon law? Will he step down or ask any complicit bishops to resign? Will he even order a Church-wide investigation? Unlikely….

The Year of the Abusive Priest

By Anthea Butler

…has called for the Pope to provide answers. No doubt about it, this is perhaps the second biggest crisis in “Christendom,” outside of the Reformation. It may even cause another one. It remains to be seen if the Catholic Church, starting with the Pope, is up to shouldering the blame, making repentance and providing full restitution, or if it will continue on with its reprobate behavior towards children. Somehow, I don’t think so. If the Pope can ar…

American Christianity Is Changing Fast: Five Stories to Watch in 2016

By Richard Flory

…en politics, culture and what people are looking for in church, this shift represents a failure on the part of most churches to provide a message and organizational structure that will both attract and retain church members. This will likely continue, but will churches adapt by figuring out what people want in church, or will they continue to stagnate and decline? On the other hand, what alternative forms, if any, of “church” might people be formi…

Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife

By Lisa Miller

…desires. After death, the soul was set free to ascend to God and attain wisdom. This vision may work better in a world defined by science and rationality, but it fails to trigger passion and imagination in the same way that a physical vision would. Third, who’s up there and what do we do? Our most commonly held notion of heaven is that when we die, we’ll see our beloved parents, grandparents, spouses, friends. Our songs and our dearest hopes are b…

Top Five (Less Sensational, But More Dangerous) Things to Remember About Pat Robertson (1930-2023)

By Mark Hulsether

…Their Side (New Press, 2004), Esther Kaplan estimated that in 2002 the NCR dominated the Republican organizations of eighteen states and controlled at least a quarter of Republican committees in forty-four states. True, this does not eliminate a tug-of-war among the NCR, neoconservatives, and old-time Wall Street Republicans. However, the image of Robertson as president is a good way to focus our attention on how non-Robertsonite Republicans are i…