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United Methodists Elect 1st Gay Bishop; Canadian Anglicans OK Same-Sex Marriage

By Peter Montgomery

…ute protects their rights under the 2011 Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms. These rights they claim include freedom of religion, equality before the law, the right to a healthy environment, and the right to privacy. They also claim that gay men must be banned from having sex because that will inevitably lead to the exploitation of children. “During the hearing of the applications, the court stated that some of the churches’ allegations se…

Rev. Barber: A “Moral Center,” Not a “Religious Left,” Will Save Us in 2017

By Peter Montgomery

…unfettered capitalism that cloak themselves in the nationalist rhetoric of freedom. “We declare freedom,” he said, “from theological rhetoric that accommodates us to injustice.” “I stand before you full of blood, full of blood and heart and fire,” said Carla Christopher, a community organizer from York, Pennsylvania. Bishop Tanyia Rawls said she stood as a proud lesbian and daughter of the Black Church who has taken on the challenge of consistentl…

Seven-in-Heaven Way, Hybrid Pope, & “Chrislam”

By Michael J. Altman

…While the Crystal Cathedral has fallen on hard times, its Spanish language service is booming. A Malaysian reality show searches for the best preaching Muslim woman. In Tajikistan, the parliament is considering a bill to keep kids out of churches and mosques. Secularism is on the way out in Bangladesh. In Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood has expelled a senior member for his plans to run for president. Some Methodist clergy are saying they’ll officiat…

Nuns on the Bus: 2700 Miles, Nine States, and a Rock Star DC Welcome

By Mary E. Hunt

…on, a hint that something new is afoot as many people come to realize what freedom for all really costs, and are willing to pay for it with their lives. The eldest bus rider was Sister of Social Service Diane Donoghue who, at 81, has done her share of social work. She minced no words in calling the Ryan Budget immoral, with the confidence and conviction that I have come to expect from experienced women who fear no one. When Diane was referred to a…

#MeToo and the Problem with the “The Billy Graham Rule”

By Sara J. Moslener

…iritual powers, often employing a hawkish rhetoric that conflated military service and personal piety. “Sissy stuff” is what Graham called Christianity as a young man attempting to reconcile his athletic prowess when he found himself first beckoned to conversion. Graham’s Jesus was a tough patriot who enlisted others in the battle against evil. Power, dominance, and victory: this was the rhetorical currency that launched Graham into greatness. So…

Trendwatch: Thieves Taking the Christ out of Christmas. Literally.

By Daniel Silliman

…Globe. A New York security company garnered a bit of publicity by offering free GPS trackers to implant in baby Jesuses, which wouldn’t deter thieves, but would enable recovery. The theologically questionable name for the promotion was “Saving Jesus.” Some thieves do get caught and face consequences. Sometimes serious consequences. Three 19-year-olds were arrested for stealing the nativity scene from a Methodist church in Forest, Va. in 2012. They…

After Roe: 3 Troubling Trends from the ‘Compassionate’ Anti-Abortion Crowd

By Robert Repino

…in this camp also tend to call for religious organizations to provide the services that pregnant people will need in a post-Roe world. In reality, religious institutions provide a fraction of the services that state and federal governments do, only with no oversight and no accountability. Social Security alone costs over a trillion dollars a year. There’s no possible world in which religious institutions could make a difference, even if they vow…

Knighting Viktor Orbán for ‘Defending Christianity,’ Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Demonstrates That ‘Culture War’ is the Only Theology That Matters to the Global Right

By Katherine Kelaidis

…g the celebration of EuroPride in Belgrade. Then on Sunday he led a prayer service for the “sanctity of marriage and family” while thousands of Serbs, in no small part inspired by the Patriarch, took to the streets to protest the planned EuroPride events. These events and the feteing of Orbán are not unrelated. Notable throughout the week, the Patriarch routinely emphasized the idea that it was outsiders coming to change Serbia’s values who were t…

The Politics of Anti-Gay Persecution: Gambia, Egypt, Jamaica, Russia, with a Helping Hand from US Religious Conservatives; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…etermining human rights is separated from morality and based on individual freedom without any restraints, all perversions will in due time become ‘rights’.” The Washington Blade reports: The Jamaica Coalition for a Healthy Society, the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship and Jamaica CAUSE are also organizing a rally at a Kingston park on Dec. 10 that will coincide with International Human Rights Day. They describe the event as “an evening of song, danc…

Is Joel Osteen, Success Mag Cover Boy, Really “God’s Best”?

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…life growing up, others from e-mail. He hears more stories after a worship service, where as many as 1,000 visitors are invited to meet him. I apparently missed the seminary class that taught pastors not to get “sidetracked in controversy.” Instead, my classes taught me that it was theologian Karl Barth that counseled pastors to use both the Bible and the newspaper in their preaching, but Osteen will have none of that. Anything that might get in t…