Religion Dispatches
…is not an abolitionist in sight—nor does Huck show any signs that he would welcome one—and Twain will render Huck’s entire self-examination moot by the end of the novel when he tells us that, in fact, Jim had already been manumitted upon the death of his owner. At the most pragmatic level, the entire narrative of Jim’s quest for freedom is an exercise in redundancy. There are no lessons for liberation here. What may be most useful about reading, c…
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…physically move through the world according to its irresistible—but oh-so-welcome—pull. For example, Google anticipates the granddaughter’s needs before she even can articulate them. Her search terms move from vague to specific: “park with ancient gate in lahore,” evolves into “oldest sweet shop near mochi gate lahore,” evolves into “fazal sweets,” evolves into the momentous, game-changing phone call. Within the commercial, the boyhood friends’ t…
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…utin pledged a discrimination free Olympics; he said gay visitors would be welcome as long as they “leave kids alone.” A teenager who held up a rainbow flag as the Olympic torch passed through his hometown on January 8 was detained and arrested by Olympic officials as well as law enforcement officers. Meanwhile, lawmaker Alexei Zhuravlyov is proposing a law “that would deny custody to any parent who leaves a straight relationship to be gay.” CNN r…
Read More…the blessings of God. We reject that notion. As all of God’s children are welcome to receive the sacraments of communion and of baptism, so all of God’s children should be able to receive the sacrament of holy union and marriage.” He also quotes Luke Largess, a partner at Tin Fulton Walker & Owen saying that current state law makes it a misdemeanor for ministers to conduct marriage ceremonies without licenses; it is also illegal for them to sign…
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…and to African American GLBT persons who often feel ostracized rather than welcomed in the “friendly” parts of Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco. What’s more, gay activists may need to rethink their sales pitch to black voters that gay marriage is a civil right. Even Barack Obama consistently professed his opposition to gay marriage in favor of civil unions. Thus, greater clarity could be brought to this issue not just in terms of sacred u…
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…like: Now that you have repented the Bush administration’s sins, Europeans welcome you back to the commonwealth of the ethically pure nations. What are some of the biggest misconceptions about your topic? That to say that morality is not necessarily good is itself a moral statement. People who say this demonstrate that they are incapable to use the terms good/bad in a non-moral sense. I think we use these terms non-morally most of the time—perhaps…
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…xclusionary policies; whether labeled LGBTQ or “homosexuals,” some are not welcome in their community. Likewise, while Roman Catholicism has Caritas Internationalis, it is also insistently and dogmatically anti-choice, hostile to even the idea of women priests, and, in late 2008, stood opposed to a UN resolution calling for nations to decriminalize homosexuality. While the Anglican faith has Gene Robinson as an openly gay bishop in New Hampshire a…
Read More…both things be true? How can both sons be the recipient of “the blessing”? Welcome to the world of the Bible. The text is clear: both sons inherit God’s legacy through Abraham. It is not an exclusive or single inheritance. Why then does God tell Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away from the campsite? Because God wants the woman and the boy to have their own birthright, their own land that would be separate from Isaac’s. In other words, God inven…
Read More…ial candidate motorcade. But if you think what they offered Romney was a welcome to the league of Christian gentlemen, you should really read the letter for yourself. Here’s the opening paragraph: In this election year, matters of religious belief are once again highly visible in the public square. Some have tempered their enthusiasm for sound governing principles by their concern over differences in a candidate’s theological doctrine. It is tim…
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…making their society better. A project of increasing their declaration of welcome to all people to include minorities might be right in their wheelhouse. You may say this is not enough, and you’d probably be right. Make no mistake: I think any church to the left of Franklin Graham ought to pushing anti-racism, strongly. But just to help white folks accommodate themselves to what the census is going to reveal after 2050 would be a start, and bette…
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