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Catholic Sex Teaching is No Laughing Matter

By Marian Ronan

…of lesbians on the upsurge. At the same time that anti-gay violence is growing in Africa, the number of African Christians, including Roman Catholics, continues to increase. Catholics now comprise twenty percent of the population of the entire continent, or 185 million people. It would, of course, be unfair to blame increasing anti-gay violence in Africa entirely, or even primarily, on the Roman Catholic Church, given the pivotal roles played in…

As Tensions Escalate in the Balkans, the West Could Hand Putin a Valuable Weapon

By Katherine Kelaidis

…ent events is the very opening that Russia is looking for when it seeks to wield influence in places like Serbia, where people are not necessarily thrilled at the prospect of Russian domination, but where there’s deep mistrust of a West that seems completely unaware of the historical memories at play. And Russia has been more than happy to fill the gap. Russian propaganda network RT recently launched a local website and broadcaster in Serbia. Offe…

Good News: Religious Outreach Works On Vaccine Hesitancy. Bad News: We Need It.

By Daniel Schultz

…uncommon to split along political lines, with the conservatives declaring flatly that they will not be vaccinated. In others, individuals skip the show and the vaccine without discussion. All of this adds up to a significant challenge to helping implement a monumental social effort. Perhaps more disturbing is the PRRI report’s intimation that the barriers to vaccination are as much ways of seeing the world as anything. Some hesitation is natural,…

The Religious Right and the Tea Party on “Education Choice”

By Julie Ingersoll

…n nature and the must be open to anyone who wishes to attend, though there will be a limit on the number of schools (no more than ten in the next decade) and the number of students enrolled. Opponents see charter schools as quasi-privatized schools (and also fear that this is a first step toward further privatization). They see even these limited charter schools as a threat to funding for public education—especially in these difficult budget years…

PCUSA’s Nod to “Traditional” Marriage Understandable, but Not Accurate

By William E. Smith

…nt, granddaughter, father’s or mother’s sister, daughter-in-law, brother’s wife, wife’s sister, stepdaughter, and his uncle’s wife. Here only first degree of affinity and second degree of consanguinity are forbidden . . .” John Calvin added first cousins to this list in 1546, which makes it very similar to today’s marriage laws. At the time, of course, it would have struck many as a significant break with tradition. 3) Were widows and widowers per…

A Peek Inside the ‘Onion’ of Scientology

By Kristin Rawls

…her sources had. It provided a roadmap. But to be very clear, I never went with the Wikileaks documents without double and triple checking it with others. While there is a lot of information out there, it is harder to access any directive or policy that [Scientology’s current leader], David Miscavige, writes. Those things are restricted to people in his immediate circle, and unless they’re released to the public during an event, those documents a…

YOU Are Spiritual But Not Religious: The Secret Spiritual History of the Choose Your Own Adventure Books

By Daniel Silliman

…y consume content, but want interaction. The history of the books is intertwined with the history of the Internet. There’s also a somewhat secret, spiritual-but-not-religious history of the CYOA books. The belief system at their core can be traced to Montgomery’s brief stint at Yale Divinity School in 1958-1959. According to his wife Shannon Gilligan, Montgomery only lasted a short time at the school because he was more interested in his own adven…

Naked Jihad

By Kate Blanchard

…rds, actions, and images have on other people, so we do the only thing we can do: we gather in communities of common understanding, around people who affirm us and make us feel normal. But perhaps with increased visibility—with nakedness, so to speak—can come increased tolerance, and eventually, an increase in compassion, without which there is no understanding. …

How Fitbit Helps a Conservative Evangelical College Monitor Students’ Bodies For Christ

By Jonathan Root

…bic points.” At the “Aerobics Center,” students filled out a computer card with their ID number, activity number, and the time, intensity, and distance of their workout. The data derived from the cards helped to determine grades. One student who had been forced to enroll in the Pounds Off Program said, “I’m really sad for the school. It has so much potential, so many positive things about it, but you can’t treat people this way… They treat you lik…

Scottish Episcopal Church Angers Conservative Anglicans With Embrace of Same-Sex Marriage; and more in Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…ei-ling] said. Chen said that rather than replacing terms like husband and wife with “both parties” in marriage laws, the government wants to “keep the heterosexual marriage system unchanged and add the same-sex marriage system.” Hong Kong: Multinational banks back lesbian couple in visa struggle Twelve multinational banks asked the Court of Appeals for permission to intervene on behalf of a lesbian couple. A woman whose partner has a job in Hong…