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Neuroscience Says Evil is “Over”: Not So Fast…

…stion, we’d be in for a workout. Because “what science says” is limited in ways that are not easy to understand. Responsible scientists know this, and they are marked by their reticence on non-scientific issues. There are those, however, who insist that what science says is obvious. But they’re selling something, something like atheism or creationism or some other extra-scientific bill of goods. The real question is twofold: “What do scientists sa…

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Conservative Christians Insist the Toxic Theology Portrayed in the Duggar Family Doc is ‘Fringe’ — But is it Really All That Different?

…ffering and mistreatment by saying ‘it’s not my responsibility. That’s not my community.’ We’re all each other’s community. I made this documentary because I’m my sister’s keeper…. I couldn’t turn away without hazarding my own soul.” As for what Stern hopes viewers take away from the documentary? In an extended Q&A session on Reddit, Stern answered: “Don’t be evil.”…

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Do iPads Cause Religious Experiences?

…basal ganglia, and other brain regions have been proposed to accomplish a number of specific functions.  Imagine, for example, working intently on some task until you notice that your stomach is rumbling and that the daylight has shifted. You think back to when you last ate, gauge how long you’ve been working, and give yourself five minutes to finish up before having a light snack, so as not to ruin your dinner. An MRI scan of this thought proces…

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How the Study of Evangelicalism Has Blinded Us to the Problems in Evangelical Culture

…ew essay from each editor that seeks to steward evangelicalism’s future by way of its past. Marsden and Noll argue that growing evangelical movements in Asia, Africa, and Latin America prove that the faith has not totally lost its way, while Bebbington explores the recent history of British evangelicalism in order to highlight the peculiar nature of the American scene. Evangelicalism is now a global phenomenon, the editors conclude, and the troubl…

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New Pope Accused of Conspiring in Kidnapping

…Bergoglio noted disapprovingly in a 2007 speech. Meanwhile, an astounding number of women in Argentina, women without access to or education about contraception, die annually as victims of botched abortion procedures carried out in secret.  If we do dig a little deeper into Bergoglio’s past, we find that he was accused of participating in one of the numerous human rights violations committed during Argentina’s Dirty War (which ended up resulting…

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Turn On The News: This Isn’t a Split, It’s a Tiny Sliver of Conservatives Walking Out the Door — Introducing A New Media Criticism Column

…true citizens participate in the mutual work of understanding, speaking in ways that give good and fair arguments to the best of one’s ability and listening in ways that likewise seek to understand as much as possible. Journalists can rightly assume that their audience will participate in the listening part of that work. Nobody needs a willfully obtuse reader. But in trying to understand their sources, journalists often forget the first part of th…

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Catholic Church is Lucky it’s Just Same-Sex Marriage

…y 20 years ago. Students went around the table introducing themselves. Halfway through, a young woman said,  “Hi. I’m so and so, and I’m a lesbian.” Then she paused. “Well, I used to be a lesbian,” she added, “but my partner had a sex-change operation, so now I’m not exactly sure what I am.” And that was just the beginning. Next there was a newspaper article about women Olympic athletes being eliminated from competition because tests revealed that…

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Speaking with Palestinian-American Republican Who Confronted GOP at Debate

…“turncoat” at the first “sign of adversity.” Good for him. Refusing to go away is the best way to fight bigotry. It would be easier to disappear, and a lot more troublesome to demand that the GOP consider that it could have a bigger tent if it stopped playing to such a narrow base. One day, sooner or later, I’m sure they’ll see the benefit in that. For now, both Romney and Gingrich, and the Republican establishment, would do well to note that ther…

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Supreme Court Rules Religion is Special… This Time

…he one thing that they got right in this case. The U.S. has on the books a number of valuable laws against discrimination in the workplace, and all organizations (businesses, nonprofits, schools, governments) are expected to abide by these laws. Except religions, or so it now seems. According to the Tabor ruling, religious groups get a pass on the law when it comes to employees who are considered “ministerial.” The right to the free exercise of re…

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The Threat to Democracy Runs Deep, But Mathematics Could Address the Abominable State of Representation and Voting

…hanging the civic infrastructure that powers our democracy would go a long way in mending it. Mathematics is a clear-eyed guide that can suggest which processes need updating or replacing. From this perspective, there’s no question that ranked choice voting (RCV) is superior to winner-take-all and that we should be using it in all elections. This would encourage participation and increase political diversity. Using popular vote in primaries and pr…

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