Search for "airline tickets cheap from msy to north palm springs phone number 1-800-299-7264"

Protests Force Torch Detour in San Francisco

By Lygia Navarro

…es them to violence.” Watching the streetscape from the base of a towering palm tree was a group of actual Tibetan Buddhist monks from San Jose. “The Dalai Lama always says don’t be violent,” said monk Sangyal Dhondub through a Tibetan interpreter. But those protesting Chinese treatment of Tibetans must not be judged too harshly, he continued, even if they disrupt Olympic activities: “As human beings, they cannot control their emotions.” “I’m in s…

Dining with Dawkins in the Humanist Bosom

By Edward J. Larson

…ut how thrilled they were to hear him. Some said they came to conference—a number of them from quite far away—primarily because Dawkins was going to speak. It was something akin to the excitement that I once noted among participants at an evangelical conclave before a sermon by Billy Graham. An appearance by the Pope must arouse similar feelings among Catholics. Too bad secular humanists don’t do healings or alter calls because it was the type of…

Running Against the Devil: Trump’s Conspiracy-Laden Fight Against Powers of Darkness

By Carmen Celestini

…Obama humorously responded to Jones’ allegation at a rally in Greensboro, North Carolina sniffing for the sulfur he was said to exude. Conspiracy theories, normally relegated to social media memes and uncomfortable conversations at family gatherings, have become a focus of the 2016 Presidential election. The catalyst to this mainstream attention is the Republican nominee, Donald Trump. For years, Trump has promoted conspiracy theories via his Twi…

Does the Historical Jesus Matter?

By Peter Laarman

…to like JC again. After this past weekend, for example, I finally get the Palm Sunday joke: Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey because a pompous Roman emperor would have ridden in on a charger. And it becomes a matter of some charm that Jesus never asks anyone for blind faith. In answer to the question put to him by John from prison (“Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”), Jesus responds to the courier: “Go and tell…

The Ultimate Dirty Politics or Bipartisan Opposition to the Tea Party?

By Julie Ingersoll

…cy Polling (described as a Democratically-oriented polling firm) tests the numbers in a two-way race with Rubio facing either Crist or Meek. Rubio still beats Meek, but a hypothetical contest between Crist and Rubio is a dead heat. The Crist campaign denies having any part in trying to coax Meeks to withdraw. But yesterday Crist added to the list of Democrats who have defected from supporting Meek when he secured support from the Palm Beach Democr…

Woe is Me (“Ya laytani”)

By Amina Wadud

…r’an says: “And when the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of a palm tree, she said, “Woe is me. Would that I had died before this and had become a thing of naught, forgotten!” This now famous Maryamic cry is referred to by men and women when faced with an overwhelming situation. In other words, what happens exclusively to a woman has become a model for what happens to any human being in an overwhelming situation. But a woman in labor s…

A Real-Life Truman Show?

By Lauri Lebo

…Rosemary Beach is part of a long-stretch of high-end resorts, connected by palm-tree lined roads. On Sunday, this stretch had not yet been touched by the BP oil spill disaster and one arriving here straight from a cave would have no knowledge that anything bad could be headed its way. But then Rosemary Beach is designed to keep out the bad elements of reality. The private beach is only for those who own homes here. To get through the gate leading…

Satan May Provide a Comforting Story in Times of Crisis, But it Comes With a Price

By Reyhan Durmaz

…s, announced on Facebook, while refusing to practice social distancing for Palm Sunday. This is, of course, nothing novel. Fear and uncertainty make a great concoction to bring the Devil back to life. Anywhere, anytime. Human history is a continuum of moments when the Devil takes the stage, and our moment is no exception. Since the drastic escalation of Covid-19 cases worldwide in the past three months, the media has been invaded by invocations of…

WikiLeaks Strikes the Vatican, a Camel in the Pews, and Luke Skywalker Tolerance

By Michael J. Altman

…ew York’s Iona College. She worked in the school’s finance office. In West Palm Beach, Florida, a camel fell into pews full of spectators during a church nativity play. No people or animals were injured, though the camel will not be part of the Christmas pageant when it opens this weekend. A donkey and sheep will still take part. Elsewhere in Florida, a dispute in Boca Raton is raising questions about whether or not a menorah is a religious symbol…

Election Reporters: Here’s Why Simply Descriptors Like ‘Christians’ Can Have Enormous Consequences

By Daniel Schultz

…dent Donald Trump addressed the Turning Point USA Faith Conference in West Palm Beach, Florida last month. Political reporters who covered the event might be forgiven for simply calling the conference attendees “Christians.” Not only do few journalists understand all the varieties of Christianity, but in addition the event organizers call themselves Christian, the vast majority of attendees were almost certainly Christians, and Trump himself said…