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Women’s Equality in the Church is No Longer Negotiable

By Mary E. Hunt

…urchgoers, to redirect their giving. There are untold numbers of religious/spiritual non-profits, including women’s religious orders that are good alternatives to the local parish for providing services in the community. If one is conscience stricken about worshipping in a building one does not pay to heat, I suggest either worshipping elsewhere for a while and/or placing a check in the collection made out to the power company. This is simple non-…

Evangelical “Sexual Purity” Is Not About Sex—It’s About Power

By Sara J. Moslener

…eir behaviors to God’s will. It promises that those who conform will enjoy spiritual, physical, and emotional satisfaction in their marriage relationships. Other scholars have parsed these claims in more sophisticated ways than I do and many other writers have demonstrated that these expectations are anything but a path to personal well being. What I’m saying is that sexual purity has never been about personal well-being for evangelical adolescent…

Pope Mum on LGBTs in Uganda; Church Defends Anti-Marriage-Equality Efforts in Australia; Cyprus Passes Civil Partnerships; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…ans, it is disappointing to see a politician jettisoning his principles so cheaply.” Meanwhile, Nick Duffy at Pink News suggests that some government officials would do well to take a look at their own anti-bullying guide, which encourages people to be better allies to their LGBTI friends. Asia: Growing acceptance for LGBT people; challenges within families Gavin Blair at the Christian Science Monitor reports on growing acceptance for LGBT people…

The Kids Are All Wrong: Texas Tosses The Enlightenment

By Burke Gerstenschlager

…aid as much when she prayed: “I like to believe we are living today in the spirit of the Christian religion. I like also to believe that as long as we do so, no great harm can come to our country.” Dunbar was quite clear: only our citizens’ shared belief in Jesus and Divine Providence can save and preserve Texas and the nation—and the SBOE’s new social studies curriculum will teach the youth of Texas just that. Why Keep Calvin? More important than…

Religious Right “Compassion” and Other Lies

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…rable, not worth the same rights or responsibilities as anyone else on the planet, and to top it off you are, according to their god, worthy of death – unless you change. Yes, with that sort of ingrained bullying built into church and society, it would seem hopeless to think that you would have to live your entire life being the subject of condemning sermons, the butt of numerous jokes, and the target of laws banning you from doing many things oth…

“Dark” Skin No Longer a Curse in Online Book of Mormon

By Joanna Brooks

…sion: “Because of their unbelief, the Lamanites will be scattered, and the Spirit will cease to strive with them . . .” The Book of Mormon follows groups of migrants from ancient Israel to the Americas, focusing especially on the experiences of rival peoples descended from the same family: the Nephites and the Lamanites. LDS people of my generation were raised to understand that the indigenous peoples of North and South America are the descendents…

Among the Problems with Trump’s Proposed Ban: Who is a Muslim?

By Michael Schulson

…spond that this seems like a violation of the First Amendment, at least in spirit. You can’t discriminate on the basis of religion or personal expression! But that constitutional argument ignores the degree to which Trump frames Islam as a kind of racial category—something that’s actually separate from personal expression altogether. “Equal protection categories in constitutional law are inadequate to describe the racial nature of the ‘Muslim terr…

Cue the Mad Swine: A Biblical Lesson for Republicans

By Peter Laarman

…ones,” reads the text. Without hesitating, Jesus first summons the unclean spirit to leave the poor man in peace, but the possessed one immediate shouts back, “What have you to do with me? I adjure you by God: Do not torment me.” When Jesus asks the man his name, he replies, “My name is Legion; for we (the demons) are many.” What’s more, Demon Man seems okay with his situation; in verse 10 he implores Jesus not to send his demons away. But the de…

Heroes: Sex and the Single Superhero

By Nick Street

…ero. In monasteries and convents and among the ranks of shamans, sages and spiritual warriors, gay men and women are disproportionately represented not only because those social locations have traditionally existed outside of hetero-normative institutions but also because undertaking the hero’s quest is their metabiological function. To put the matter differently: The birthing of new forms of culture at key junctures in human history is an express…

When Is a “Religious War” Not Really a Religious War?

By Sarah Posner

…hing would be rosy if all “religious people” were sufficiently generous of spirit to pay their respects to mourners of their enemies in a so-called “religious” war. As Goldberg acknowledges, religious incitement, particularly around the Temple Mount, is fueling some of the violence. But more than by religious feuds, Goldberg writes, the violence is driven by power, powerlessness, and frustration: [T]here can be no such thing as coexistence when di…