Religion Dispatches
…are different dynamics vis-à-vis mosque politics. The more Urdu visible in signs and used for announcements from the men’s side on the loudspeaker, and from the women’s side from this one woman (always the same woman), means it is a predominantly Pakistani mosque. Arabic has a necessary privilege in the religion because of the text, and it was the language of the Prophet. So his statements might be placed on the walls or for decoration. Obviously,…
Read More
…the empire. Many leaders of the Church considered the sea-change a divine sign of the absolute truth of their religion, that historical success proves theological truth. It was a zero-sum view of the world: “Truth is with us. All else is falsehood.” That conclusion would haunt Christian believers some generations later with the extraordinary success of Islam. Within twenty years of the death of the prophet Muhammad, Muslim armies controlled the M…
Read More
…to those questions: humans ‘play God’ all the time, every day (from the design, testing, and using of drugs to handing down court decisions); such new organisms need to be strictly regulated and monitored, easily traceable, and tested in the external environment, because they always do eventually enter it; the government, industry, universities, and scientists at the federal and international level should be and are discussing and monitoring such…
Read More
…otesters got swept into the jailhouse. The UU engagement in Arizona made a significant impact. Following are seven lessons this experience offers for the faith community on effectively engaging and mobilizing people around the immigration crisis (or other social justice issues). 1) Engage leadership. The UUA president made a personal commitment on the issue. He offered to go to Arizona. He issued an invitation to others. He agreed to get arrested….
Read More…nswers in Genesis, argues that the Smithsonian’s new Hall of Human Origins promotes atheism. Ham is one of the founders of the Creation Museum, proving that one museum’s atheism is another museum’s science. A Methodist minister will be tweeting the Eucharist 140 characters at a time. A Christian graduate student at Augusta State University is suing the school for religious discrimination because her counseling department demanded she work to chang…
Read More…me reactions to the controversy –Newt Gingrich compares Park 51 to a “Nazi sign next to a Holocaust museum,” a Taliban operative warns that “the more mosques [America] stops, the more jihadis [the Taliban] will recruit,” and a Muslim cab driver in New York is stabbed in an apparent hate crime fueled by Park 51 hysteria. As I witness emotions on both sides of the Park 51 debate reach a fever pitch, I am reminded of my father’s efforts to build a mo…
Read More…mission finally prevailed in its three-year effort to obtain the status, a sign “of the shrinking influence of American social conservatives at the United Nations.” Congressional conservatives Trent Franks (R-AZ) and Christopher Smith (R-NJ) — heroes of the religious right — had joined with Muslim countries in an effort to block the IGLHRC’s application. Lynch observed: In previous years, American conservatives like Smith, backed by the White Hous…
Read More…’s billboard story: A “My Life, My Death, My Choice, FinalExitNetwork.org” sign in New Jersey has stirred criticism from Catholics and suicide prevention groups. Mainline churches are struggling to maintain their buildings as memberships and offerings decline. Some Christians don’t see the point of buildings. House churches are growing among many Christians disillusioned with traditional church structures. As one observer put it, “For many, church…
Read More
…they also decided to ban several other haircuts. This move strikes me as a sign of impotence on the part of Ahmedinejad. As I have written about regarding the Saudi Arabians, decisions like this are an attempt to flex muscles that do not actually exist. The crackdown on the public sphere is something that is usually resented by Iranians. However, after the rise of the Green Movement last year, the crackdown on men’s hair can be seen as a way to ex…
Read More…blown in from the Gulf of Mexico. When people face losing everything they love, prayer is a source of hope and comfort. However, the irony of our anti-science governor signing a prayer proclamation when he would not sign his name to protect the teaching of science is a bit much….
Read More