Search for "cheap airline tickets .com phone number 1-800-299-7264"

New Reports Reveal Global Persecution of Nonbelievers

By Austin Dacey

…ome of these cases, the governments even threatened to prosecute those who commented on, or “liked” or re-tweeted, the offending comments. In May, the Pakistan government went so far as to block all access to Twitter in the country because of objections to “blasphemous content.” The IHEU reports being contacted by an increasing number of secularist groups organizing on Facebook, including groups in Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, I…

Americans Say Religion is “Losing Influence”

By Diane Winston

…9/11, the significance of religion—its association with social stability, community cohesion, and traditional values—raised appreciation for its influence. The upshot? The perception of increased religious influence on American society is just a cataclysm away. Religion’s saliency for political machinations, cultural inspiration, and social movements is a separate reality from the growing number of nones. Both need coverage. But the Gallup data r…

Sacred&Profane: The Living Dead

By Gary Laderman

…er horrible pressures, but they do not erase memories of body bags, fallen comrades, and those martyrs missing in action who may be lost forever or whose remains find their way back to the states for final burial. The prospect of Barack Obama as the first president of the United States with African American ancestry is a thrilling possibility for so many, yet also cannot be disassociated from America’s shameful slaveholding past and the ghosts of…

The Real Goal of Pro-Life Movement Support for Scott Brown: Kill Health Care Reform

By Sarah Posner

…the woman in consultation with her doctor, I believe we need to reduce the number of abortions in America. I believe government has the responsibility to regulate in this area and I support parental consent and notification requirements and I oppose partial birth abortion. I also believe there are people of good will on both sides of the issue and we ought to work together to support and promote adoption as an alternative to abortion. Apart from t…

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

By Karen E. Park

…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 colony would soon enjoy, but a description of the Puritans’ covenantal obligations to God and the wrath they could expect from this God if they disobeyed his strict and holy will. Moore worships the sam…

UPDATED: Religion Has Been Framed; Covering the Aga Khan’s Visit

By Hussein Rashid

…it must always be presented that way. When a man who leads a large Muslim community, is believed to be descended from the Prophet Muhammad, and who derives his authority from that claim, comes to the United States it should be a major news story. Unfortunately, his message of tolerance, peace, pluralism, and education do not fit in the conflict framework. I see people who have much smaller constituencies and less of a legitimate claim to leadersh…

Change v. Change at NPR

By Warren Throckmorton

…who accept their sexuality but live in such a way to honor their religious commitments then why interview a guy who promises that gays can change? This is complicated. Wyler’s stated reason for wanting to change was to fit in better with his Mormon faith (Spiegel and Schumacher-Matos incorrectly identifies Wyler as “evangelical Christian”). However, the “identity therapy” (more completely sexual identity therapy) does not promote change of orienta…

U.S. Bishops Reject Pope Francis’ Priorities

By Patricia Miller

…George Murry, won for the not terribly consequential post of chair of the Committee on Catholic Education. Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput beat another Francis pick, Bridgeport, CT, Bishop Frank Caggiano, for chair of the Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, which is responsible for promoting the church’s teaching regarding hot-button issues like family and contraception (or the lack thereof). Msgr. J. Brian Bransfield was…

In a Powerful Statement Black Presidents and Deans Say: No More Stolen Black Lives!

By Pamela R. Lightsey

…tted to the Kin-dom of God and to the creation and thriving of the Beloved Community know that this reality cannot come to fruition in the absence of justice for Black people in the United States and around the world. We cannot and will not be silent while threats are continuously uttered by the highest political leadership in our country, nor will we watch the ongoing murders of Black people by police officers whose chief duty is meant to be “to…

Orthodox Jews Begin to Reckon with Sexual Abuse

By Paul Berger

…munity’s reliance upon beth dins is one of the central stumbling blocks to combating sexual abuse. Typically comprised of three rabbis, they rule on family and business disputes such as divorce, inheritance, and contractual disagreements. Small Jewish communities usually have a single beth din while larger communities, like those found in New York and New Jersey, may have many. These include beth dins that specialize in sexual abuse, though they a…