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Why I Won’t Leave the Mormon Church Alone

By Holly Welker

…my early life. I grew up in a tiny community in Arizona so Mormon that activities at the public school were often held at the Mormon church, and vice-versa. Most of my classmates, virtually all my friends, and much of my family were Mormon. At church I was commanded to keep a journal, examining my life for the narrative threads that guide my choices and determine my character. I will never shake this habit, no matter what. Truth be told, if the L…

Another Book Burner Lusts for Attention

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…te your computer unless your idea of a good time is Amazing Grace on an infinite loop), they encourage other churches to hold similar book burnings, or book “tearings” if local laws prohibit open fires. If all else fails, you can send your blasphemous material to Grizzard who will do the deed for you at their annual event. The church apparently burned books and other materials last year on Halloween. Grizzard does not give a specific date for this…

Gay Black Church: An Interview with Bishop Yvette Flunder

By Lisa Webster

…g at the podium, a fine wooden pedestal that gives the altar a hint of traditional “church.” It was her grandfather’s pulpit, and now she’s raising the roof amidst shouts from the congregation: Say it, Bishop! Tell it! Possessing a world-class gospel voice she punctuates her preaching with spontaneous singing as she preaches about what it means to be a “radically inclusive” congregation—to be a church for everyone. It’s the kind of thing you might…

Gay Suicide and the Ethic of Love: A Progressive Christian Response

By Eric Reitan

…e ethics of homosexuality as if it were between those who hold firm to traditional Christian values and those who have sold out to secular culture. But this way of framing the debate ignores the real motivations of progressive Christians like myself—motivations that spring from real human tragedies. The other day a young gay man in Oklahoma took his own life. This is not a new or even an unusual occurrence, although it comes in the wake of a strin…

The Brutality of the American Eden

By Paul Harvey

…y, God in America, wasn’t really about God in America. Nor was it about religions in America. Following a fairly conventional narrative in mainstream discourse (albeit not one adopted by the contemporary Christian Right), the series focused almost exclusively on the “intersections of religion and public life in America.” The 3 two-hour episodes linger over Anne Hutchinson confronting John Winthrop over issues of freedom of conscience, Great Awaken…

Aliens Are Fattening Us Up For the Rapture

By Mark Hulsether

…y of all Left Behind books, The Late Great Planet Earth), devoted his television show to this very question: “Are UFOs Real?” If you missed the show, here it is on Lindsey’s website. Lindsey’s short answer to CNN’s question is that yes, indeed, UFOs are real and fully understandable, almost predictable, in terms of Lindsay’s dispensationalist end-times scenarios. They are literal demons and are further evidence for a plot that is “subtly advancing…

The US Religious Right and the LGBT Crisis In Uganda

By Sarah Posner

…d one year after it was first introduced in the Ugandan Parliament, the intimidation, harassment, and violence it was designed to incite remain an everyday part of life, and an urgent human rights crisis for LGBT Ugandans. Ugandan human rights advocate, Julius Kaggwa, who visited Washington this week, told me that while the AHB would authorize the state to prosecute, imprison, and even put to death anyone the state deems homosexual, “to date we ha…

Tea Party 2.0, Ready For Post-Election Launch

By Julie Ingersoll

…the election returns and followed Sarah on Twitter, two generations of religious right leaders announced plans for Wednesday, when they will to get to work consolidating the strength of the Tea Party. Richard Viguerie, often credited with developing and implementing the direct mail technology that helped build the new Christian right in the late 1970s, held at an election night event for tea partiers in Washington. He told them to get a good nigh…

If You Were Faced With Him

By Amina Wadud

…ome of their goodness rubs off. So, even when I say to myself “I must set limits,” I break my word again and again. So, yesterday was one of those days when I felt like I didn’t have a life of my own—despite managing some how to successfully raise five children, mostly as a single parent. I had three stops to make with my youngest daughter, baby in tow, and mostly he and I sat in the car; he asleep, and me trying to write a blog on my iPad. Let th…

Obama to Cave on Bush Tax Cuts: Letter to the Washingtonians, Chapter 1

By Daniel Schultz

…r the Democrats’ predicted and predictable loss of the House, the Obama Administration is signaling that it will cave to conservative pressure and accept a continuation of the Bush tax cuts—even for those making over $250,000 per year. “We have to deal with the world as we find it,” said Obama’s top adviser, David Axelrod, explaining that given GOP control of the House there would be no way to maintain the tax cuts for the middle-class without kee…