Religion Dispatches
…ntual and inevitable effects. If you were to pump out, day after day, anti-Russian sentiment on the news networks, and only ever focus on the bad things Russians do, and never the good, then I imagine eventually you would create an outcome that included violence against Russians and thundering political rhetoric warning us of the threat within. What I mean to say is, even after the September 11th attacks no politician dared discuss the kinds of pr…
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…tol Police Department’s calls for assistance after their officers were overrun by Trump’s mob. As a result of my efforts that day I was severely beaten, struck numerous times with a taser, and suffered a heart attack as well as a traumatic brain injury. One police officer died, and several others took their own lives in the wake of that barbaric day. It is not just that Trump’s lies and political rhetoric sparked an uprising at our nation’s Capito…
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…hus even though the Catholic group ‘won’ its suit in some sense, the court ruled on secular, not religious, grounds. This attempt to sanctify the legal domain by ruling in the matter of offense to the sacred―blasphemy―became instead the profane offense of “damages awarded for the suffering of individuals.” So what seemed to be a victory against secularization only deepened secularization since the court quietly passed over blasphemy in the all-imp…
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…ict and hostility based on passionate dislike for the other—are staples in news media. Additionally and beyond the news, so much of popular culture is fueled by depictions of hate and difference overcome by cruel violence. Whether it’s the cowboys killing the savage Indians, the space hero destroying the ruthless aliens, or the soldier slicing the enemy’s throat, hate is elemental in the entertainment industry. Do we even need to bring up shooter…
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…ep consonance alive. Also, Caliph SRK is a great, friendly acronym for TMZ news and US Magazine. Considering politics, religion, and entertainment are natural bedfellows (only after marriage), SRK would summon a gamut of emotions and characters on demand: from heartbroken romantic lead (Devdas) to ridiculous action hero with six-pack abs (Ra. One) to endearing, melodramatic protagonist prone to crying (every SRK movie). He has already sought mutua…
Read More…a thing? For a start, the American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer, Fox News’ Mike Huckabee, and David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network’s The Brody File. Since yesterday’s awful news, each has claimed that God’s absence from our schools and the lack of concealed gun carry permits for teachers and school administrators allowed this carnage to happen. I am sure there will be others who decide to preach sermons along this line from pulp…
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…ion. He reports that the country’s minister of institutional relations instructed ruling party senators to hold the bill until after next year’s presidential election. The bill was read last week in the Committee for Human Rights despite attempts by evangelicals to have senators boycott the meeting. “According to reports, Minister Salvatti acted under the instruction of President Dilma Rousseff to prevent this from happening.” Evangelical leaders…
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…ally and locally? Wedding Bells and Decriminalization And yet, not all the news is depressing. Not even all the news at the intersection of AIDS/HIV and religion is depressing. American governments and courts are hard at work legalizing same-sex marriage which, despite the cynic in me that thinks marriage equality involves joining the conservatives in valuing a very limited form of family, is still a move toward inclusion for some. And, meanwhile,…
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…ploaded to iTunes. Only a handful of segments on an even smaller number of news and opinion shows on mainstream media from the historical network channels to the cable news networks actually call on the academy for trained theologians to offer their view on the social issues of the day. This is, in many ways, a slap in the face to academic theology—those same networks would never call on a law school drop out to comment on the legal ramifications…
Read More…i-Putin protest in 2012.The LGBT-friendly Russian Open Games, scheduled to run February 26 to March 3, struggled to open in the face of bomb threats and attempts by some politicians to shut them down. In a bit of good news, a Russian court reportedly dropped charges under the anti-gay “propaganda” law that had been brought against the creators of an online support group for gay teenagers. The Washington Blade reported this week that activists fear…
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