Religion Dispatches
…an scriptures, the 21st century would be a deeply troubling place, and the list of legitimised social oppressions would be disturbingly long. Slavery would still be regarded as normal, as political constituencies around the world, like the pre-civil war American south, continued to invoke the New Testament injunction that “slaves be obedient to your masters” as their justification. Not to mention the derivative political theologies that provided r…
Read More…how they tried to refashion a ninth-grade science curriculum; but as a novelist I found myself interested in their attempt, and in their sad plight after the judge handed down the decision. What’s the most important take-home message for readers? That we all believe what we need to believe to get through our lives. For some of us (many of us?) it’s that a supernatural deity is watching out for us. For others, it’s that a supernatural deity crea…
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…thing they get is only an act of Israeli generosity. The speech goes on to list Rohani’s duplicity and the danger of Iran, topped off with a tragic story of Netanyahu’s grandfather and great-uncle being pursued and beaten by anti-semites somewhere in “the heart of Europe,” gesturing to the Nazis but extending beyond them. The finale proclaims that “biblical prophecies are being realized,” supported by a quote from the prophet Amos that the Jews “w…
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…esus-as-Messiah—even more curious as to how that question made it onto the list. (And yes, we’re working on that story as we speak.) But in the end, we decided to go above our own heads and ask an eminent group of writers, scholars and activists to respond to the brief prompt: “So what?” Their answers, linked below, tease unexpected meaning from Pew’s results. ________________________ Good News For Bad News Addicts J.J. GOLDBERG Once again we obse…
Read More…g on. He must believe that once he’s no longer with the group, people will listen to him. Heck, they may even buy his “I was once an anti-Muslim extremist” book (which happens to fit well into the growing niche of the “I was once a Muslim extremist” category). Two serious questions remain for Robinson and for Quilliam, which facilitated his departure. First, will Robinson’s message really change? Just because he’s no longer with the EDL and claims…
Read More…aneously maintain and subvert the rule. The Epstein case is obviously an extreme example, but I’d love to hear about others in the comments – maybe they’ll inspire a list of the most interesting ones in the near future. (But please, let’s not talk about the “Mormon Soak”)…
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…lf is most likely no true believer in the law, but rather pragmatically using widespread popular Russian homophobia in pursuit of specific domestic and foreign policy goals—to placate hardline Orthodox believers and to keep the more radical, nationalist right at bay at home, while sending a clear message to the West that Russia won’t be pressured into adopting liberal norms. Like this story? Your tax-deductible $5 or $10 will help us pay writers,…
Read More…predicted on a van parked in a shopping center parking lot near Columbia, South Carolina months ago, so I suppose I’m already behind in my preparations. I count myself among the scoffers of second coming date-setting since Jesus himself said we won’t know the date or the time of his return. Evans is prepared with his answer to me and others who laugh off their efforts: “Sadly, only eight people survived the flood in Noah’s time,” he said. “The nu…
Read More…contribute ‘a lot’ to negative perceptions of gay and lesbian people.” The Southern Baptists in South Carolina are even urging their pastors to preach even more negative messages about homosexuality. We may see the results in those efforts in next year’s hate crimes numbers. Burroway also notes that to keep the numbers in perspective we have to consider population size as well. For example, African Americans make up about 12.4% of the population a…
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…other sexually transmitted infections than is an exclusive focus on condom promotion. Regrettably, however, many scientists, HIV prevention educators, and AIDS activists are so fixed on condom promotion that they do not give due attention to the risk avoidance that is possible to achieve through abstinence outside marriage and mutual, lifelong fidelity within marriage.” Who, one asks, are these scientists who believe in the “exclusive focus on con…
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