Religion Dispatches
…zing in humility that “we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror” (1 Cor. 13:12). In other words, when it comes to policies and politics, we could be wrong. We must be ever mindful of the language we use and the spirit of our communication. Arrogance and boasting are indeed sins, and violent language can create a poisonous and dangerous public atmosphere. We must take care to not paint our political adversaries as our mortal enemies. (emphasis…
Read More…t by the Church distance itself from the hard-line tactics instituted by SB 1070 author Russell Pearce (R), who is LDS. Last summer, Latino Mormons in Arizona publicly raised their voices to decry SB 1070 as a contradiction to core tenets of the faith, including the Mormon emphasis on the sanctity of the family. Some sources credit the large number of LDS men and women who have served missions in Latin America with creating greater empathy among U…
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…personally know 26 of them. Out of those 26 people, I personally know that 17 of them are very LGBT affirming. Out of those 17, NONE have spoken up to defend the LGBT community in opposition to Sojourners and Jim Wallis since this gaff happened. UPDATE #8: On its Facebook page, the Beatitudes Society writes: In the spirit of Jesus who invited ALL God’s Children to the banquet, please join with our colleagues at Believe Out Loud and join the Milli…
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…n life in the twentieth century, and through the epochal court cases of the 1940s through the 1970s. The Christian Nation “debate” is not really an intellectual contest between legitimate contending viewpoints. Instead, it is a manufactured “controversy” akin to the global warming “debate.” On one side are purveyors of a rich and complex view of the past, including most historians who have written and debated fiercely about the founding era. The “…
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…ies haven’t been redeemed. Crime and Punishment Let me explain. Back in the 1990s I was deeply involved with the Alternatives to Violence Project, an organization committed to offering experiential workshops, mainly in prisons, aimed at teaching nonviolent conflict resolution and communication skills, building communities of trust, and cultivating a spirit of nonviolence. Going into prisons as much as I did, my academic research naturally gravitat…
Read More…ll of its killing reflects the brokenness of our world. That is the proper spirit with which to greet this news. And, in a move in which he unmistakably distances himself from the saber-rattling of many of his more apocalyptically-minded fellow evangelicals, Gushee goes on: We also now have the opportunity for national reflection on how our broader military and foreign policies—including the placement of our troops throughout the largely Muslim Ar…
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…racism, ignorance, misogyny, homophobia, tribalism, and fear. To find any spiritual truth within any religion’s holy books, we must mentally edit them by the light God has placed in each of us. As Anne Hutchinson put it at her trial, “The Lord knows that I could not open scripture; he must by his prophetical office open it unto me.” Those who wish to live as Christians, Jews, Muslims, agnostics, or atheists by following the humble thread of what…
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…nited Nations are as American as apple pie: they are to some extent in the spirit of a diverse range of American voices that led to the pioneering Endangered Species Act of 1973 signed into law by Richard Nixon. Yet today, those who call themselves conservative are generally hostile to environmentalists, often considering them to be politically or spiritually dangerous socialists or pagans. Unless one is beholden to an absolute truth (only a pure…
Read More…y Democratic Massachusetts Senate candidate Martha Coakley during a January 14 radio interview to falsely claim that Coakley said “devout Catholics” should not “work in emergency rooms.” In fact, as the context of Coakley’s remarks makes clear, she was discussing individuals who would refuse to provide certain emergency medical procedures and treatments — including emergency contraception — to patients on the grounds of their religious beliefs, no…
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…legal restraints” against homosexuality. Engle, and his cohorts engaged in spiritual warfare, prophecy, and preparation for when God will make America a place free of the “Antichrist” spirit, are hardly a fringe part of the religious right; they are sought after and glorified by religious right elites. I covered the Women, Weapons of Warfare conference last summer in Henderson, Kentucky, because its founders, Lisa Bourland and Zimbabwean preacher…
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