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Why are Nuns and Monks in the Streets? (Parts I & II)

By José Cabezón

…government, it does so at the expense of the monks’ own goals. Moreover, since the number of official monks in a monastery is fixed, new monks can be admitted into the official ranks of the monastery only after a slot is vacant. Rather than admitting scholar-monks, however, government bureaucrats, who have the final say on whether or not a given monk will be admitted, are increasingly opting for admitting middle-aged worker-monks who, being past t…

Lo and Behold, the Sacredness of the Internet

By Martyn Smith

…ng the world. Herzog doesn’t spend much time exploring the everyday experience of the internet—whether social media or the omnipresent smartphone or Pokémon Go. He’s drawn instead to online addicts and people who are convinced they have a high sensitivity to the radio waves that transmit the internet. One everyday scene, however, so fascinated Herzog that it earned a place in Lo and Behold. Behind an image of Tibetan monks staring into their phone…

The Best-Laid Plans of Mice and Humans

By Amina Wadud

…ill go to Mina, etc. There is still no address for the hotels, but a local phone number. There is also information about processing customs at Jeddah, meeting the tour guide, and information that says “the group” will proceed to Makkah—which means the first will have to wait for the last person, which is the beginning of feeling like you are a group. They even include suggestions to “get to know” your fellow travelers. I still had no idea what wer…

How an 1843 Revelation on Polygamy Poses a Serious Challenge to Modern Mormonism

By Benjamin E. Park

…order. And though the prophet tried to stop the rumors from spreading, an increasing number of prominent figures outraged by the alleged practice were dedicated to root out the truth. Among those trying to expose the practice and its participants were Joseph’s brother, Hyrum, as well as his wife, Emma. Then, in May of 1843, in a radical reversal based on a mixture of theological reasoning and pragmatic cooperation, the two members of Joseph’s clos…

Pence’s Religious Freedom Policy Made ‘LGBQ’ Hoosiers Sick—Literally

By Sunnivie Brydum

…nearly 60%. Heterosexual people in Indiana did not report any significant increase in the number of unhealthy days, and surrounding regions experienced no similar spikes among LGBQ or straight populations. That suggests that something insidious in Indiana was impacting LGBQ people. Of course, anyone who followed the RFRA debacle in Indiana won’t be surprised by these results. The national outcry in the wake of the law’s passage made Mike Pence a h…

Busy Days For ‘eBay of Prophecy’

By Bill Berkowitz

…In addition to Rapture Ready Wallpaper, and a number of ads for books (Coincidences in the Bible and in Biblical Hebrewby Haim Shore), a very scary graphic novel (Armageddon Now: World War III), videos (“Rapture—End Times”), and dating aids (“Meet Christian Singles”—obviously something that should be done sooner than later), RaptureReady.com’s front page features a slew of bad-news articles with headlines that almost make you wish for the End Tim…

“Paleo” is More Than a Fad Diet: Boyd Eaton’s Plan to Return to Eden

By Michael Schulson

…cularly of highly educated career-oriented women—there are terrific differences in the number of children, the age at menarche, the age at first full-term pregnancy, nursing patterns—those kinds of things are all very different from what they were before. And in each case, the way we live now is a risk factor for breast cancer and, to a lesser extent, for ovarian and uterine cancers. The risk factor for cancer goes up slightly. But other things se…

Six Overlooked Gems from the Future of World Religions Report

By Timothy King

…out in relation to when Islam would overtake Christianity, a significant increase in the numbers of projected Christians would certainly push it back a few years. And since Islam will be increasing but at a decreasing rate, it might push that day off indefinitely. “New Month’s Day—Snowdance” photo by Snugg LePupp/Flickr. 4. “Nones” on the Rise Does Not Mean Religion Is in Decline (Particularly in the U.S.) In 2010, researchers categorized as “una…

Record Number of Stealth Creationism Bills Introduced in 2011

By Lauri Lebo

…t doesn’t keep its proponents and gullible lawmakers from whining that science is mean to them. As NCSE points out, an example of this supposed persecution was exemplified in Ben Stein’s cynical piece of schlock Expelled. (My review of the movie is here.) In addition to Texas, another anti-evolution bill was also introduced this month in Florida. HB 1854 would require “a critical analysis” of the teaching of evolution in public schools. The bill…

Why David Brooks Doesn’t Get the Outrage Over AIG

By Louis A. Ruprecht

…ds they are economically irrelevant, irrelevant from the perspective of crunching numbers. Perhaps so. But they are morally significant. And it is the absence of moral categories in the rich array of mathematical and psychological analysis that is most striking and most misleading about it. We don’t need a President or Treasury Secretary to hold our hand; we don’t need to be reassured, and we don’t need help getting in touch with our anger. Rather…