Religion Dispatches
…id you don’t even have to become more religious or believe more, just accept that you are accepted and allow that to transform you. I’ve found that to be true. I’ve learned to trust God in these situations and I’ve seen the power of grace….
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…ober Jones has gone silent on theology. When she did talk about God to the New York Times, President Jones sounded to my ears like a prosperity gospel preacher. Union’s faculty and students care deeply about how theology applies to tough moral dilemmas like Union’s finances and future. The Board should honor this foundational commitment by basing all discussions about the project in sound theology. I would propose that such a process could begin w…
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…never homosexuality. Jeremiah 23:14: I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem a horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none returns from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. Amos 4:1-11: Hear this word, children of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to…
Read More…al punishment. I mean, let’s face it; it is pretty hard in today’s complex world to ascribe the word “wanton” to any one action. But what is happening in the cry for a return to shari’ah (also mistakenly taken as Islamic law, when what people really mean is fiqh, Islamic jurisprudence — since shari’ah is more abstract than law). In Pakistan or Nigeria an overinflated interest in penal codes, or the hudud ordinances, has left women to face the brun…
Read More…n if it means that people will die. What gives me hope is that, unlike homosexuality, bigotry is a learned behavior that can be unlearned. Part 1: Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Part 2: Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy…
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…in Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer’s “Stop the Islamization of America” crusade launched to prevent the building of the Park51 community center in New York, as well as in blatant public displays of anti-Muslim bigotry. Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, who at the time was slated to be the leader of Park51, was, and still is, routinely portrayed as a covert radical jihadist, largely because he represents a more liberal view of America, one which the right…
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…ns is not a history lesson, nor an appeal to specific verses, but a calm perusal of the newspaper. How can the Arab world, for example, technologically progress when its most populous state was kept under our thumb for decades? It is easy for Americans to forget that we supported Egypt’s dictator for thirty years, and happily welcomed Qaddafi back into ‘civilization’ when he realigned his policies with our own—not in the area of human rights, but…
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…park visitors like VanBoskerck by presenting WDW as a refuge from the real world, a literal fantasyland in which all your dreams come true. Within this fantasy, you—the capital-G Guest—are the star of the show, evil is clearly defined and easily defeated, and the past is celebrated as a source of comfort and inspiration. And while this ideology makes for happy guests and healthy profits, it also has deep affinities with the worldview that white ev…
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…nother VHP of America affiliate, Vibhuti Jha, also ran for state office in New York in 2022 as a Republican, and has become a close associate of the infamous anti-Muslim ideologue Robert Spencer, who is a recurring guest on his popular talk show, and has found in the Hindu far-right a pathway to renewing a flagging audience. As a consequence, Hindu supremacist positions are increasingly taking on a partisan hue. The VHP of America’s advocacy wing…
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…own on freedoms of assembly, association, speech and information. Vatican: New Cardinals, New Geography, Same Old, Same Old? Pope Francis named his first group of cardinals this week; they will be formally appointed next month. Pew notes that more than half of the 90 cardinals selected by Francis’s predecessor, Benedict, were European. But just eight of Francis’ first 19 are from Europe; six of them are from Latin America and the Caribbean. Fernan…
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