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Chatting with Myanmar’s Buddhist “Terrorist”

By Mark Juergensmeyer

…monastic office radiated spiritual authority. Though Wirathu is only one of 14 senior monks on the governing body of the 2500-man monastic complex, he clearly occupied a leading position within it. Only the framed pictures on his wall—mostly newspaper clippings and pictures of himself—were indications of his charismatic, rabble-rousing reputation. Though our conversation began cheerfully, Wirathu’s demeanor darkened when the conversation shifted t…

An Open Letter To American Muslims on Same-Sex Marriage

By Reza Aslan and Hasan Minhaj

…GBT rights is a new conversation, something that’s only recently come into contact with modern Islamic thought, but trust us, it’s not. Challenging the status quo for the betterment of society is one of the very foundations on which Islam was built. No one is asking you to change your beliefs. If you feel your faith tells you that homosexuality is haram, fine. We disagree with your interpretation, but you’re entitled to it. Ain’t America grand? Bu…

Greatest Hits of 2015: Religion Stories Our Readers Couldn’t Resist

By Ellie Faustino

…GBT rights is a new conversation, something that’s only recently come into contact with modern Islamic thought, but trust us, it’s not. Challenging the status quo for the betterment of society is one of the very foundations on which Islam was built. No one is asking you to change your beliefs. If you feel your faith tells you that homosexuality is haram, fine. We disagree with your interpretation, but you’re entitled to it. Ain’t America grand? Bu…

7 Women Scholars On the Gender Divide in Religious Studies, the Power of Mentors, and Leading While Female

By Rebecca Barrett-Fox

…anities at Washington University in St. Louis. Her work examines religious contact zones of the 19th century, a time when America was being dramatically reshaped by immigration, westward expansion, the end of slavery, and innovations in religion. Ann Taves focuses her work on human experiences that are atypical and abnormal—in books such as Religious Experience Reconsidered: A Building-Block Approach to the Study of Religion and Other Special Thin…

How Would Religion Respond to Extraterrestrials? A Thought Experiment

By Ed Simon

…in a universe that is less empty than it first seems. Mary Doria Russell’s 1996 novel The Sparrow recounts the horrific journey of Fr. Emilio Sandoz in the year 2019 to the planet Rakhat, and the United Nations inquest which follows his return in 2059. As Sandoz tragically discovers his mission is based on a very human and very flawed misinterpretation of the extraterrestrial culture. Dutch novelist Michael Faber takes a similar subject in his 20…

Religious Freedom is Impossible… Compared to What?

By Austin Dacey

…f equal respect and equal protection for all citizens, regardless of their spiritual and normative commitments. This much is apparent in the language of fairness, equity, and equality that recurs throughout her work. Weiner is reading Sullivan too narrowly. Koppelman has another challenge. In order to cope with multiplicity, he says, “law must simplify.” Accommodation must take place under some description. That description must somehow pick out v…

Sterilization Denial for Woman with Brain Tumor Highlights Religious Liberty Conflict

By Patricia Miller

…women or women of childbearing age for unequal treatment.” She says Section 1557 should be “viewed as a federal counterweight to conscience protections, requiring us to reassess the balance between sex equality and religious liberty.” In addition to challenging Church Amendment protections, she notes that “Section 1557’s commitments to healthcare access may represent a compelling interest” that courts would have to weigh seriously when considering…

Can You Become Un-Autistic?

By Michael Schulson

…But “passing” in this way takes enormous energy, as both Greenburg and her 14-year-old son know from personal experience. “All autistics are forced into a position where we have to use that energy to create an appearance of normalcy rather than to actually function,” she says. These issues aren’t unique to autism. We might call them challenges of the spectrum, recognizing that the “spectrum” is the ascendant identity model for our time. In sexual…

Why Science Needs “Neurodiversity,” Autism Included

By Andrew Aghapour

…able to thrive within particular social conditions. Over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, hundreds of thousands of autistic persons were institutionalized or put to death. To this day, many face hardships that could be avoided if society learned to accommodate their cognitive disabilities. If we consider autism a natural part of the cognitive spectrum instead of a contemporary disorder, we could shift our focus from magic bullet cures t…

Sing the Glory of the Smoke: The Spiritual History of Jazz

By Andrew Aghapour

…musicians share with religion scholars certain anti-essentialist leanings. Spirits Rejoice!: Jazz and American Religion Jason C. Bivins Oxford University Press (May 1, 2015) The similarities run deeper. Jazz musicians often describe their music as “sacred,” “spiritual,” and conducive of self-realization or social change. The history of jazz in America is one of cultural and sonic recombination, a mingling of traditions and concepts, words and soun…