Religion Dispatches
…id you have a specific audience in mind when writing? The book is aimed at Western Christians, particularly mainline Protestants, social justice Roman Catholics, progressive and emergent evangelicals. But I hope it invites anyone who is might be willing to give Christianity a second look—those who are “spiritual-but-not-religious” and the “church alumni club.” And those who might be completely post-religious and just want to read a good story abou…
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…f men and women” as the highest human right to which other rights (such as freedom of religious expression) would be subordinated. From the initial indications from the government concerning this legislative initiative, in May 2013, through a noisy publicity campaign launched in September, to televised public hearings over the winter, and culminating in the stunning electoral defeat of the governing Parti Quebecois on 7 April 2014, the Charter of…
Read More…values: “In healing the leper, Jesus does not harm the healthy. Rather, he frees them from fear. He does not endanger them, but gives them a brother. He does not devalue the law but instead values those for whom God gave the law. Indeed, Jesus frees the healthy from the temptation of the ‘older brother’ (cf. Lk15:11-32), the burden of envy and the grumbling of the labourers who bore “the burden of the day and the heat” (cf. Mt 20:1-16).” Let me be…
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…n’s dying, like all deaths, as the shedding of a worn-out jacket. The soul freed of its tattered covering moves on to another life. That is somewhat but not entirely consistent with the Catholic teaching on death. As I mourn the death of this extraordinary man, whom I see in the famous photo smiling and more free than most, maybe, in handcuffs, smiling. I think of the Christ and the body. I think of how expert and deliberate Berrigan was in using…
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…ren’s participation in public school system sex education programs. Campus Free Speech Act—Based on a Wisconsin Senate bill, “Campus Free Speech Act,” which was introduced in 2019. The playbook acknowledges that it “substantially follows a model bill proposed by the Goldwater Institute.” The Goldwater Institute is a business/libertarian think tank affiliated with the State Policy Network, which parallels the Christian Right Family Policy Alliance,…
Read More…tive legal and religious groups that the agency is attempt to stifle their free speech. Through efforts such as Pulpit Freedom Sunday, pastors openly flout the law. Enforcement of the rule, and the revocation of a participating church’s tax-exempt status, though, could trigger a constitutional challenge to it. The rule against politicking, though, isn’t aimed at suppressing free speech but at ensuring that taxpayers don’t subsidize political activ…
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…nality.’” Of course, Richard Dawkins himself wasn’t sitting around writing code and coming up with reasonably civil responses to hypothetical religious proclamations for Atheos (although some less famous but equally antagonistic thinkers like David Silverman did contribute to the app’s content). And for many atheists, even those not prone to Dawkins’ venomous outbursts against religious people, his name lends the app credibility. He remains a figu…
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…nce of certain Ideas & Principles upon which this nation is built—Liberty, Freedom of Conscience, Equality.” Turning Point’s video suggests that the church’s program promotes “disunity” and “segregation.” But here too, there’s no evidence to support the claim, and plenty that refutes it. As Edgerton told the Chicago Sun Times, “You don’t fast from things that are despicable. … You don’t fast from things that are ugly,” he said. “You fast from thos…
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…or religion. It’s a matter of rights. Charles E. Cobb, an African-American journalist and author who served as a field secretary for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in Mississippi between 1962-67 seems to have the right perspective. While recently promoting his new book On the Road to Freedom: A Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail he offered his thoughtful opinion. “Gay marriage should be treated as any other civil right,” h…
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…7% of Australian Christians believe all federal parliamentarians should be free to vote on same-sex marriage as soon as possible. It found support for a free vote is strong across all Christian age groups, but strongest among millennials (aged 18-34) at 86%. It also asked about civil celebrants’ right to refuse to marry same-sex couples. At the moment, wedding service providers such as civil celebrants, or businesses such as florists or caterers,…
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