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Joe Bageant, author of Deer Hunting with Jesus: 1946-2011

By Lauri Lebo

…e and sent Ola back into the slavery of her ancestors.” Also, I love his description of being punished in Bible school as a 5-year-old boy, unable to understand his transgression, and the lifelong conflict his religious upbringing instilled in him. (My Bible school failing was my inability to memorize the 23rd Psalm.) Bageant is a kindred spirit for those of us who have turned from our religious upbringing, but still, for reasons he articulates so…

Qaddafi Dies; Should it Matter How?

By Haroon Moghul

…ctly what happened; it seems, as of now, that he was shot while trying to escape, quickly captured, and died of his wounds. Those who seized him did take him to an ambulance, but we’re not sure if he was tortured, mistreated, left to die—the details may or may not come out. But considering how much harm and evil he caused, it is little surprise the nation celebrates his expiration. So why should it matter how he died? As vile as bin Laden and Qadd…

Why I Won’t Leave the Mormon Church Alone

By Holly Welker

…, as well as irritated, self-righteous assertions that we shouldn’t even discuss parts of our own history. It’s hard to invite all that, and one main reason to do so is that you come to the tortured conclusion that the LDS church doesn’t offer you truth, integrity, or salvation in this life or the next. For years after my exodus, I tried to work out my feelings about Mormonism on my own, and to avoid saying anything about it that would upset my fa…

AAA: Like a Good Neighbor

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…a broken down car, that help is just a phone call away. It also gives me discounts on lodging and other perks. My partner has a gold card with her name on it as well. The account number on both cards is the same. Years ago, when we signed up for the cards with the venerable roadside assistance company AAA, the woman at the counter smiled sweetly and never blinked an eye when we asked for the “family” plan. We were granted a generous discount under…

Pope Decries ‘Ideological Colonization’ of Family; Islamic State Executes Gays and Others; Gay Couple Gets Long-Delayed Wedding in Mexico; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…e ultranationalist group Right Sector tried to shut down another LGBT film screening, calling it “amoral.” Asked at the recent Eurocities Conference how he would support human rights after the Zhovten homophobic attacks, Maidan’s hero and current Kiev mayor Vitali Klitschko said he considered human rights a good thing, but would “not stand up for gays and lesbians.” It was not supposed to be that way in the new Ukraine. The February revolution was…

The Tweets of the Christ

By Nathan Schneider

…complete sentences. There were few lapses into Twitterish, that dialect descended from instant messaging of old (“lol,” etc.), distinct from cell phone text messaging only by the inclusion of tinyurl hyperlinks. The main feature of my experience of following the “service” was multitasking. Over the course of the three hours, I watched a lecture by Jared Diamond about the social functions of religion, cleaned up my kitchen, and did some transcribi…

On Harith, and Matters of Inheritance

By Amina Wadud

…This went on for four years and then suddenly, in 2006, she picked up the phone. We began a relationship that was literally 40 years in the making. Too bad I had already made plans to move to California and once again I would be the prodigal sister. Still we made up for lost time and had a relationship like none I have ever had as an adult. I believe I already mentioned that my second of three grandsons was born on the 22nd of December. We shared…

“Fast for Families” Immigration Reform Effort Enters 20th Day

By Joanna Brooks

…put individuals in impossible and even harmful situations. It’s a major disconnect. How would you begin to address that disconnect? I would encourage people to take a deep breath and a step back and look at some of the comprehensive immigration reform proposals on the table and the solutions they would offer to individuals they know who are the “good guys” who they want to help. This is a time when we have an opportunity to see positive change…

Bedside Manners: The Broken Spirituality of Contemporary US Medical Practice

By Peter Laarman

…icant religious movements—Christian Science and (to some extent) Religious Science and Dianetics/Scientology—have grown up around it. Because these movements (along with faith-healing proponents within traditional Christianity) so often take the extreme position of denying the power of bodily illness altogether, sober realists and an overwhelming preponderance of scientifically-trained people, including doctors, have been inclined to move to the o…

The US Religious Right and the LGBT Crisis In Uganda

By Sarah Posner

…’t say this in America, but I can say it in Africa.” But as evidenced by Fischer’s frequent echoing of Lively’s writings, and the refusal of leading religious right and Republican figures to distance themselves from Fischer, in some domestic circles he certainly can say those things. In Uganda it translated into the AHB, which Lively has called a “step in the right direction.” While Lively is frequently depicted as a fringe character on the religi…