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The Sacred and the Dead: Three Ways to American Beauty

By Aaron K. Kerr

…ty by way of sound, and pursuing what had been the norm of civilization for 1700 years prior to the modern period— an openness to mystery and the transcendent, consulting the spirits and exorcising the demons of the times: individualism, instrumental reason, and conformity. The corporate machinery of modernity persists in its seduction, as has its attendant impulse to war and violence. Perhaps we need to continue to explore linguistic alternatives…

Colonialism and the Crisis Inside the Crisis of Catholic Sexual Abuse

By Kathleen Holscher

…It has formed New Mexican Catholicism since the arrival of Spaniards in the 16th century, and colonialism came to form Catholicism—and Catholic sex, and Catholic sexual violence—anew with the arrival of Americans in 1848. For a century and a half after the U.S. annexed New Mexico, layer upon layer of Catholic life developed with and from the ongoing processes of U.S. colonization. Some of these developments in turn laid the groundwork for clerical…

Spiritual Unplugging, Or What to Do When There is Wifi at the Ashram

By Matt Hamilton

…the community at-large. The latter just felt more honest. Coming back to a spiritual community felt familiar, yes, by which I mean dishonest, delusional, disingenuous. But I kept those reservations at bay. I meditated at dawn for 90 minutes. I heeded the silence imposed during breakfast. I dutifully attended lectures on meditation and ayurvedic healing. And during yoga, I stretched and breathed in step with the yogi. The schedule gave me structure…

By the Way: Fractured Religious Right Endorses McCain

By Randall Balmer

…of discussion, and to no one’s surprise, the group decided to shelve their reservations about John McCain and endorse him in the fall campaign. “The alternative is so bad,” Phyllis Schlafly declared, “we must support John McCain.” The meeting was called by Mathew Staver, dean of the law school at Liberty University. Those in attendance included Phil Burress, president of Citizens for Community Values in Ohio, Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther Ki…

Profits Over Principles for Romney?

By Joanna Brooks

…tern Europe has increased dramatically. For example, Carter reports that in 1992 “only 7 percent of Russian women smoked,” whereas that number “has more than tripled” (to 22%) since then. Further, according to Matthew Meyers of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, “Russia is facing a true public health crisis… [Big Tobacco’s impact on Russia] is directly correlated with skyrocketing smoking rates among young people…The impact is direct and potentia…

How the Catholic Church Changed the Movies

By Patricia Miller

…Goes To The Movies.” Among the films to be screened are Barbara Stanwyck’s 1933 classic Babyface, 1956’s And God Created Woman, the film that launched “sex kitten” Brigitte Bardot, 1953’s The Moon is Blue, and 1948’s L’Amore. This last movie led to an historic Supreme Court ruling known as the “Miracle Decision” that found that motion pictures were a form of artistic expression protected by the First Amendment, not, as the church asserted, a powe…

Thoroughly Modern Mormons

By Joanna Brooks

…ass. A stranger, upon learning that I don’t have one of the highly-coveted tickets to the Sunday Conference sessions, spontaneously offers me his last extra. Mitt Romney would blend right in amongst the crowds here. But so would Marco Rubio. Or Antonio Villaraigosa. Or any clean-cut man in a white shirt and tie, any woman in Sunday dress with a baby stroller. I try to strike up a conversation with an African woman dressed in a pagne. “Where are yo…

Evangelicals Struggle With the Role of Churches in Society

By Omri Elisha

…rns for the welfare of society, many conservative evangelicals harbor deep reservations about supporting any programs that seem to deprioritize evangelism or run the risk of becoming too liberal or too secular. Socially engaged evangelicals counteract those concerns by insisting that faith-based activism can ideally be a vehicle for greater evangelism, not a distraction from it. But they often face strong ideological resistance and logistical cons…

What if Israel Were in Germany? An Alternate History

By Haroon Moghul

…America, a country on the Eastern Seaboard that had nothing to do with the 11/9 attacks. America is swiftly defeated, and the Arabs set up a Green Zone in Washington DC to oversee what they hope will be a brief occupation. Six years later, when the main story begins, the troops are still there. Putting Israel in northern Europe was, I have to admit, quite surprising. And Israel’s alliance with an Arab superpower actually reflects how much of Jewi…

Russian Attack on LGBTs at UN Rejected; Gay Cake Controversy Rages in N. Ireland; Bishop Calls for Marriage Referendum in Puerto Rico; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…fined 7,000 Turkish lira (£1,830). Being gay has been legal in Turkey since 1858, but the country is still largely conservative on the issue, will no legal rights or protections for LGBT people. Many people – including a 13 year old boy – have faced legal trouble for insulting President Erdogan. Sweden: Gender neutral pronoun officially joines Swedish language The Swedish language now official contains a gender-neutral pronoun – “hen” – in additio…