Religion Dispatches
…plugged-in lifestyle doesn’t really get at the heart of the issue. I think the Amish, of all people, have it right. It’s not so much about what you as an individual are doing or not doing, as the effect technology has on the community: Why not make life easier and just put [a phone] in the house? “What would that lead to?” another Amish man asked me. “We don’t want to be the kind of people who will interrupt a conversation at home to answer a tel…
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…ability of cell phones to be used for impure activities, some Jewish cell-phone users have requested so-called “kosher” phones. The idea is to offer conservative Jews a phone that is free of “corrupting influences” of the sort that are already avoided by ultra-orthodox Jews through a ban on television and some radio. Reuters reported in February 2008 that Bezeq Israel Telecom launched a new “kosher” landline phone service, which will block calls…
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…lwaukee and Waukesha Counties (Milwaukee Metro Area) Nevada: Clark County (Las Vegas) Arizona: Maricopa County (Phoenix) Pennsylvania: Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery Counties (Philadelphia Metro Area), and Allegheny County (Pittsburgh) The Tier 2 Counties Florida: Miami-Dade, Pinellas (Tampa Bay area), and Duval (Jacksonville) Counties Ohio: Cuyahoga County (Cleveland) North Carolina: Wake (Raleigh) and Guilford (Greensboro) Counties Michigan: Mac…
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…Ssempa, who has the megachurch support of Canyon Ridge Christian Church in Las Vegas, and believes he shares the view that homosexuality is “unnatural, ungodly and criminal” with Rick Warren, who this year severed ties with him. But Lively, Kaggwa added, presented the “gay agenda” in such a sensationalistic way “as an attack on the family, as an attack on the youth and the future of a nation. The sensationalist packaging and the messaging of the t…
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…u got from establishment press, the more serious the questions became. The Las Vegas Sun didn’t want to giggle with Maureen Dowd about sexual improprieties; they wanted to follow the money, and they did, brilliantly. What is C Street currently up to? How do they connect with people’s day-to-day concerns, like health care, the economic crisis, Afghanistan and other issues, and how do they affect policy? The Family would say that it doesn’t do poli…
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…eat again!” In between speeches, speakers would hold prayers to bless the “hotel staff, those who serve our food, who make our beds,” and praise to God for not letting “hotel staff” be swayed by the protesters outside. The vibe was strange, eerie, and excited—a cross between a White supremacist sorority meeting; a capitalist love-fest with deep bonding over hatred for “the Left,” the LGBTQ+ community, and anti-racism efforts (all dressed up as exp…
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…6 a.m., at which time the first prayer of the day came in (I prayed at the hotel, just to be safe). Afterwards I took a long nap and came back to TheCall by late morning. But by then much had changed. Ford Field, which at best was half full, was empty and dulled. And it was hard to talk to people. Folks were friendly, but rarely chatty—though to do them justice, most of them were fasting, and probably hadn’t slept the night. The conversations I ha…
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…n North Carolina. Referring to Bakker’s theological “feel-good stance” as “cheap grace,” Rev. Mark Creech of the Christian Action League attributed Bakker’s preaching of a “toxic and counterfeit gay-affirming gospel” to being injured by the church as a child. “In some ways he’s right,” Bakker told me in response. “It’s called empathy.” He continued: “Every time someone accuses me of cheap grace, I go back and say no, it’s free grace. Grace is free…
Read More…slogans about immigration reform. On line I heard that parishes with large numbers of undocumented immigrants had received many tickets. No outside food or water, statues, gifts or selfie sticks were permitted. Despite 10,000 folding chairs, most of us would have no choice but to stand. Once in my appointed place behind the last row of seats, I found myself in a community of fellow pilgrims, lottery winners from local parishes, nearby colleges, an…
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…ualism is bad. Also, he notes but offers no explanation for the decreasing number of marriages in many countries. I am glad to see that in Section 34 he understands this basic fact of contemporary western culture: The ideal of marriage, marked by a commitment to exclusivity and stability, is swept aside whenever it proves inconvenient or tiresome. The fear of loneliness and the desire for stability and fidelity exist side by side with a growing fe…
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