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Argue-by-Number: A Suggestion for the Church

…ult on God’s holy people. Numbering all the familiar arguments about homosexuality would extend and perfect this habit of citing scriptural verses without worrying much about what they mean. It would also help us to avoid an awkward question—all the more awkward for being so obvious: Why do we repeat these arguments so energetically, so incessantly? In the joke about the prisoners, the repetition is easy to explain. They are locked up, they have n…

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Rage Against the New Age Machine: Three Days at the Osho International Meditation Resort

…to a larger property and denied visas to foreign acolytes. The center’s tax exempt status was rescinded, and religious leaders railed against Rajneesh’s heterodox teachings. Faced with open hostility, the guru and his closest associates decamped from Pune to a 64,000-acre spread in Oregon. Dubbed Rancho Rajneesh, the commune was envisioned as the hub of a self contained city. When locals resisted the planned expansion, the Rajneeshiis (as discipl…

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Is Army’s New “Humanist” Designation Just Semantic Hooey?

…ajectory of his lineage.  Indeed, in many religions, choosing a name that expresses a close coherence between self-identity and religious identity and affiliation (or having one conferred) is a defining ritual feature, as in the Sikh Nam Karam ceremony for naming a child according to the first letter of a sacred hymn. Such a name is, as Roland Barthes put it, “the prince of signifiers; its connotations are rich, social and symbolic.” While not per…

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Rome vs. the Sisters

…together for the sake of greater effectiveness. Already in 1929 Pope Pius XI had stressed the need for better prepared Catholic school teachers; in 1950, Pius XII called a meeting of the heads of all religious orders for the purpose of further advancing their collaboration; and in 1952 he called a meeting of women’s superiors, during which he urged the sisters to update and educate themselves for the purpose of attaining attain equal footing with…

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‘Soul of Yoga’ at Stake in Texas Regulation Push

…that they may be running career schools as defined by Chapter 132 of the Texas Education Code. They had already sent such letters to directors in Austin. Arguing that the regulation of career schools benefits consumers by monitoring programs, ensuring that they are legitimate businesses, and providing an avenue for student complaints, the TWC requested directors to choose one of the following: apply and secure a career school license at the cost o…

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Wichita, the Sequel: A Clinic Reopens at Ground Zero in America’s Fight over Abortion

…Burkhart had trouble finding doctors for her own clinic, when she started exploring the idea of reopening the practice several years ago. One in-state doctor expressed interest, but after his local hospital learned about it, Burkhart said, they threatened to terminate his contract. An anonymous doctor who will work at the clinic described to the LA Times how they’ve planned for her protection: flying in every other week, then being driven to the c…

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Is the Satanic Temple Just an Elaborate Prank? 10 Questions for the Author of ‘Speak of the Devil’

…ou wish you had written? Which one? Why? Our Non-Christian Nation by Jay Wexler. Wexler is very smart, but also clever and funny. Reading his book, I thought: Why couldn’t I write a book like this? He seems like he’s having more fun. What’s your next book? It’s an anthology called The Penguin Book of Exorcisms. It will have primary texts concerning exorcism from around the world, some of which have never been published before. I’m excited about it…

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How Intelligent Design Advocates Helped Shape the Christian Right’s Texas Curriculum Standards

…om in one generation will become the philosophy of the government in the next.” But what I found most fascinating about the piece is the explanation behind the religious right’s recent interest in the Declaration of Independence. Christian activists like David Barton (who served as a curriculum advisor to the TBOE) have been campaigning to shift the focus from the Constitution in civics class to the Declaration of Independence. (In another arena,…

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Brits Get A Dose of Christian Nation Politicking

…other religious faiths, too.” (Like the Prime Minister using his office to promote his Christian faith.) But then Cameron reveals his politician’s circumspection, arguing on the one hand that advocates of “secular neutrality fail to grasp the consequences of that neutrality, or the role that faith can play in helping people to have a moral code.” That accusation is abruptly followed by the disclaimer that “[o]f course, faith is neither necessary n…

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The Sad Saga of a Compromised Rabbi

…with our colleagues and friends—even with opponents—a seal of trust exists between us. Just as we do not plagiarize, we honor the code of privacy and do not make public that which was meant to remain private. For me, that trust was broken in the midst of this passionate debate in a way that tells me we have crossed a line. Writing a Facebook wall comment in response to a May 3rd debate between Gordis and Peter Beinart at Columbia University, I ref…

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