Religion Dispatches
…sections of religion and popular culture, I also looked forward to Perry’s new film because I wanted to see how his theological message of hope and faith would sustain his new efforts to address a global concern: the financial crisis. But the centralizing of the white family—which is a departure from Perry’s traditional filmic presentation—not only distanced Perry from his usual target audience of African Americans, it placed large servings of par…
Read More
…verage, nor would the bishops’ conference. It’s important to note that the new HHS requirements do not require Catholic hospitals to provide these services to patients or employees, who would need to go elsewhere to get them. They simply require that they be included in the health plan the employer offers and that, as with other services in the plan that carry no co-pay, they too are offered without a co-pay. Catholic hospitals are explicitly exem…
Read More…cilities, this will be more attractive to young people.” The building of a new mosque near New York’s Ground Zero is becoming a political football in that state’s governor’s race. Discrimination is also a problem for Satanists—or, for one particular Satanist, at least. Irving Davis, a convicted murderer, argues that his conviction be thrown out because his foray into Satanism should not have been revealed to the jury. Hearing the appeal, Judge Mic…
Read More
…from the show’s guests that reveal how their worldview has changed in this new era. Rev. M Barclay is the first non-binary trans person commissioned as deacon in the United Methodist Church. In episode 1, Kaleidoscope follows M over their 12-year path to ordination. Along the way M opens up about coming out (twice), dealing with public rejection, and the turmoils of love. (Subscribe and listen to the entire interview here.) What is one of the bigg…
Read More
…y and craft policies that could undo that historic harm. Predictably, this new policy has unleashed a new wave of anguish. Queer staff and students report feelings of “trauma,” “hurt,” “heartbreak” and “betrayal.” Since this spring, Oneida Chi, a former InterVarsity student leader in the 1990s has counseled close to 40 InterVarsity staff and students who feel traumatized by the new policy. Chi, a longtime advocate for LGBTQ visibility in the churc…
Read More…s-than-desired ratings. Which makes, at least momentarily, the boroughs of New York City a Glenn Beck radio free zone. (Word has it syndicators are looking for a new outlet.) Perhaps Beck’s self-styled turn to the prophetic last summer and fall—which included forays into the world of Black theology and the mysteries of the Bat Creek Stone, as well as his lachrymose and prayer-scented DC Rally in August —didn’t go over so well with hardboiled cons…
Read More
…warheads on these missiles, can you imagine, Glenn, a world where London, New York, and Jerusalem have been hit by a nuclear missile on the same day. That’s the nightmare scenario that Ahmadinejad is trying to put together and he’s dangerously close to doing it. Because Benjamin and I are So Close The subject line of a recent Mike Evans newsletter read “Send your congratulations to Benjamin Netanyahu.” It asked supporters to “Sign the letter of c…
Read More
…uld be considered nonsectarian. The results of the study, presented in the new report Reading, Writing & Religion II: Texas Public School Bible Courses in 2011-12, were decidedly mixed. On the one hand, eleven school districts did quite well, offering courses that were careful not to promote one religious perspective over all others, and which encouraged critical thinking, careful communication skills, and creativity. Twenty-eight districts had co…
Read More
…progressive demographics. That, at least, is my grim takeaway from PRRI’s new report, “The Politics of Gender, Pronouns, and Public Education.” The overall positions of various demographics are mostly what you would expect them to be. The report singles out White evangelical Protestants multiple times as, unsurprisingly, America’s most singularly anti-trans demo. In 2021, for example, 86% of White evangelicals said there are only two genders, wit…
Read More
…from the show’s guests that reveal how their worldview has changed in this new era. Conservative evangelical pastor, Danny Cortez, changed his mind on LGBTQ equality. The first person he told was his teenage son, Drew, who moments later came out as gay. That moment changed their lives forever and brought one of them close to death. In interviews with each of them, we learn about the triumphs and troubles that followed. (Subscribe and listen to the…
Read More