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The Double Blessing: Obama, the Bible, and Outreach to Muslims

…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…

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Conservative Christians Say it’s Okay to Vote for Romney Despite Doctrine

…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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New York Marriage Equality Set to Begin, Minus Two Clerks

…edom of religion.” Which completely misses the point. Fotusky is certainly welcome to believe that marriage is between one man and one woman, but in her job she has sworn to uphold the law, whether she likes it or not. She said her resignation was not a protest against the new law, but it begs the question that if her convictions about the sanctity (or “sacrament,” as Centi believes) of marriage is so complete, has she also refused to sign the cer…

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Vatican Equates Women’s Ordination with Priest Pedophilia?

…re everyone from the Irish grandmother to the smallest child was included, welcome at the table, and edified. According to Catholic theology well understood, all Catholics are priests by virtue of baptism. Bill Callahan’s funeral liturgy held recently in a public school all-purpose room (sans air conditioning) was one such example of this reality. The gifted radio show host Maureen Fiedler of Interfaith Voices handled the whole celebration with ap…

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The Belly of the Beast: NYC’s Shiny New Transit Hub Is All Wrong for the 9/11 Site

…nse) to build—yet there are no benches and few accommodations to make it a welcome place for anyone except the city’s wealthiest and, of course, tourists. From the outside, the Oculus as been likened to “a great white bird.” But the structure, as I see it, is shaped like two lids of an eye. White beams, which also form the ceiling of the interior, look to be bending outward like plumped white lashes, revealing the glass-domed roof of the Oculus sp…

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Rolling the Stone Away: LGBTQI Elders Meet the Next Generation of Christian Activists at a Watershed Conference

…out LGBTIQA people. Their work paid off as now many Christian communities welcome, ordain, and in some cases marry LGBTIQ people. Many of those people were in St. Louis, where a veritable rainbow of elders from groups including Dignity USA, Affirmations, Integrity, and the Institute for Welcoming Resources shared their experiences. For example, Darlene Garner who has a long, distinguished history of ministerial leadership was part of a splendid p…

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Religious Leaders Need ‘Empty the Pews’ Which Chronicles the Darker Side of the ‘Nones’ Phenomenon

…in Christianity has caused them will take more than a rainbow banner or a “welcome” sign to address. All of which leads us to the question I asked myself several times while reading the book: who is the intended audience? I suspect Stroop and O’Neal want other exvangelicals and Nones to find some consolation in knowing they’re not alone. That’s an important thing to understand, and a big reason why Stroop’s #EmptyThePews and Blake Chastain’s #exva…

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American Brokenness: A Lament

…th compassion; to recognize the real pain and discomfort of others; and to welcome them with open arms into the shared project of finding freedom, justice, and power together. That, as I always say, does not mean surrendering core principles or compromising them away. The truth, after all, is the truth. But I would love to see a sign at the next health care town hall meeting declaring WE SHARE YOUR PAIN AND WE NEED YOUR HELP. I would love to see B…

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Better Gay at Work Than Gay in Church

…eager to tap into this purchasing largess through targeted advertising and promotions. For instance, American Airlines started an LGBT-focused campaign at the turn of the millennium and increased its Pink Dollar revenue from $20 million to over $190 million in just five years. Businesses also realize that LGBT consumers are loyal to companies that have pro-gay policies for their employees. At the same time, LGBT consumers are unwilling to use serv…

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‘Empty the Pews’ Chronicles the ‘Nurtured Insanity’ of a Fundamentalist Upbringing

…and since I’ve been a bit of a pioneer in speaking out about leaving it, I welcome this book of essays. It heralds the arrival of the next wave of questioners I helped unleash by asking some questions of myself through my novels, nonfiction books, and media appearances. A large part of what Empty the Pews does is capture a generational exodus from toxic Christianity from the perspective of (for the most part) former believers. What is the usefulne…

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