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American Civil Religion is Dead, Long Live American Civil Religion

By Peter Laarman

…stically repellent beyond belief), I want to propose that there is still a way forward for this country: an alternative to the descent into raw tribalism. I believe we can reinvent American civil religion in a way that fully acknowledges the abomination that Dan euphemistically refers to as the Founders’ “rejection of a role in the political body” for African Americans—not to mention a wide range of other foul crimes against people of color, inclu…

What’s Wrong with Wright’s Words

By Andrew Murphy

…ntury, and the nation’s first movements westward. Nor did the jeremiad go away after the founding era. Time and time again, critics raised their voice in the name of founding American principles, lamenting the continuing obstacles standing in the way of their full realization, and calling Americans to reform their practices and claim the nation’s foundational promises. Frederick Douglass told an audience on July 4, 1852, that “[t]he principles con…

Kirk Cameron’s Monumental Reveals Subtle Influence of Christian Reconstructionism

By Julie Ingersoll

…y to ancient Israel and biblical law: The true roots of America go all the way back to the ancient Hebrew republic. You can trace those roots at Jamestown back to Europe as well. This is the trail of freedom that leads us all the way back to the ancient Hebrews under Moses where he first delivered those laws of liberty—when he told them to elect leaders, men of character that you willingly submit yourself to, to self-govern rather than have a king…

“Love Them As Yourself”: God’s Words or IKEA Instructions?

By Marcia Pally

…ts a law whose force is of a universal nature, because it derives from the way the world itself was made.” While the ritual aspects of the Mosaic code aimed at guiding the Israelites, the theological, ontological, and ethical principles, continued into the Second Testament, aim at guiding all. The human task is to grapple with those principles—to discern how they promote our flourishing—and to further them secondarily, as co-creators. Why is such…

The Bible Is Not a Diet Plan

By Rob Goodman

…on their own uncomfortable terms, Warren pulls exiled, bewildered Daniel away from the king’s table and demands, “Tell me the secret to controlling your carb intake!” Warren reads the story of Daniel turning away from the king’s sumptuous table and sees a diet. I see a young man turning his back on poisoned luxury in order to save his soul; holding himself aloof from a feasting court and eating a poor man’s food alone in order to let it be known…

The Risks of Remaining Neutral on Egypt

By Haroon Moghul

…bly. But in supporting the government or remaining equivocal, we point the way away from Turkey—which, in the long run, is the best possible example for a religiously Muslim society to turn to—and we may even potentially empower Iran. Really. If the people of the Arab world feel that America is not behind them—or worse, is actively trying to hinder their democratization—it’s all too easy to imagine them falling for more radical narratives: a large…

A Long History of Blaming the Jews

By Gordon Haber

…is unexplainable without that deep history of thought.” But is that not a way of explaining inevitability? On the question of determinism, Nirenberg is right: it is better for the historian to be “reflective” rather than “dogmatic.” But is it dogmatic to point out the frequent connections between murderous rhetoric and genocide? Describing the world in anti-Jewish (or anti-Tutsi or anti-Armenian) terms does not always lead to violence, but such r…

End-of-Life Lessons from The Walking Dead

By Ann Neumann

…atharsis?” “Maybe just a little gratitude.” “Gratitude? I wanted to die my way. Not torn apart by drooling freaks. That was my choice. You took that away from me, Dale. All I wanted was to get out of this endless horrific nightmare we live every day. I wasn’t hurting anyone else. You took my choice away, Dale.” Monsters Appear when Boundaries are Blurred Zombies are a rich metaphor for a host of modern fears. An early 20th century product of Haiti…

Cafeteria Christianity in the Age of Social Media: What’s Old Is New Again

By Kate Blanchard

…ed in the modern era. But most traditions have at least some who take a my-way-or-the-highway approach and have particular shibboleths upon which no compromise is possible. (What would mainstream religion coverage look like without them?) Nevertheless, despite the best efforts of those who would make their traditions an all-or-nothing proposition, human beings have gone on picking and choosing, if perhaps never quite as unabashedly as young Americ…

The SBC Sexual Abuse Scandal is a ‘Success’ Story of the Theological Vision and Social Structure of the ‘Conservative Resurgence’

By Diana Butler Bass

…controlling women. And there’s nothing mythological about that. It is the way patriarchy always works. * * * Southern Baptists may like the myth about saving their church from liberalism. But there’s something Baptists don’t like: creeds. Oddly enough, a “creed” plays a central role in this story of the Fundamentalist takeover of the Southern Baptist Convention. Since their beginnings in the 17th century, Baptists have emphasized freedom of consc…