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American Christianity Is Changing Fast: Five Stories to Watch in 2016

By Richard Flory

…ncis effect” that will draw Catholic church dropouts back, or even attract new converts. I have my doubts that a newly resurgent Catholic Church will result from the Pope’s influence. There is just too much institutional inertia in how the Church is organized and a charismatic Pope, however inspiring his message may be, is unlikely to change that. Will there be a larger “Francis effect” that results in bringing religion into the public conversatio…

Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife

By Lisa Miller

…eaders matters a lot, especially in religion. I recently wrote a piece for Newsweek about a debate at Harvard about how much religion to require undergraduates to learn. I passionately believe that if we knew more about each other’s religions, we would be less fearful of each other. I hope also to give readers pleasure—especially by showing them ideas of heaven that work for me, personally. What alternative title would you give the book? I love th…

Haiti and the Push for Theological Questions

By Paula M. Cooey

…nine on the Richter scale. It devastated the population. Estimates of the number of people killed range from 10,000 to 100,000. At the time the quake struck, worshipers filled the churches honoring their dead. The churches, the worshippers, and the city around them were effectively destroyed. Not long after the major quake hit, a tsunami followed that killed those who had rushed to the beaches in fear to avoid the havoc of the earthquake. The cat…

Aasif Mandvi on Islamophobia, Acting, and the Long Shadow of Jon Stewart

By Haroon Moghul

…out? Anything to make a social impact?” I had been on the Daily Show for a number of years at this point, and spoken to a lot of Islamophobes, people who had a lot of misinformation about Islam and Muslims. It was a personal thing to me, and it was an issue I thought I could lend my voice to in a satirical space. Were there any particular misconceptions or fears you wanted to address? There was a lot of stuff about Shari’ah Law, the protests again…

Another Manufactured Outrage: Rep. Ilhan Omar Did Nothing Wrong in Listing Hamas, Israel, and U.S. Together

By Joshua Shanes

…more effective if it were honest. And perhaps that would have lessened the number of death threats and other vile correspondences she has received. Second, others have said that she deserved the criticism for its political harm, that this hurts the Democratic party. Perhaps, but that doesn’t make much sense either, because the manufactured outrage made it worse. If a Democratic leader had privately contacted her and said, “Ilhan, you have to clari…

The 17th Century Roots of Roy Moore’s Refusal to Concede the Election

By Karen E. Park

…hn Winthrop, first Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony did. Winthrop knew that the Puritans were the new Israel, chosen by God for a special “errand.” His famous “City upon a Hill” language, itself taken from the Gospel of Matthew 5:14, and later cribbed by Ronald Reagan, comes from a letter he wrote on the ship Arbella just before coming ashore in New England. This letter was not a document touting the religious freedom and democracy the new…

Loving Uganda to Death: The Global Reach of Far-Right Christian Hatred

By Peter Montgomery

…of it. Dominionist Lou Engle describes Africa as a “firepot of spiritual renewal and revival,” and be believes Uganda has a special prophetic destiny. Engle has tried to distance himself somewhat from the infamous “kill the gays” bill that is pending in Uganda’s legislature, but here he is on film, at his TheCall rally in Uganda, standing with speakers calling for passage of the bill. Engle tells the crowd he was “called” to encourage the Ugandan…

An Unholy Holy Week: Is the All-Male Rule of the Roman Catholic Church Self-Destructing?

By Anne Eggebroten

…and procession to find a few confused and pitifully human old men at microphones still trying to send out impressive puffs of smoke. Within 20-40 years, we will have women priests ordained with the blessing of canon law (not outside canon law as at present). This will happen sooner than previously expected because each act of abuse or cover-up weakens the power of the male hierarchy. Their convoluted reasons for why only men can represent Jesus C…

‘Pro-Life’ Theater, Open White Nationalism, and Virility Fear — Day 3 of NatCon

By Annika Brockschmidt and Ben Lorber

…Ancient world: Let me tell you what I see on the horizon at the dawn of a new chapter, as we embark on a rebounding, what I like to call the New West, a vision of a sprawling global empire, but of a collection of nation states working in concert, borne together by shared culture and common values. Philosophy, Roman law, and the values of the Holy Bible. This is what we mean when we say ‘Western civilization’. “Pro-life” theater Catholic Universit…

Death With Dignity: Combatting Religious Opposition to Physician-Assisted Suicide

By Krista Kapralos

…The debate has largely focused on spirituality and ethics, but experts say new medical technology that has opened the door to the practice leaves religious organizations in a bind. Catholic leaders have long been supportive of pain-management measures, up to and including high doses of morphine that slow a patient’s respiration to the point of death, said Courtney Campbell, a professor of religion and culture at Oregon State University, and an exp…