Religion Dispatches
…isappearing—literally—because of the intense status-loss shame they have experienced. Please say that you heard it here first: those congregations that learn how to minister effectively to the people experiencing this shame will survive and even thrive in the new apocalyptic landscape. And those preachers who have the guts and the clarity to explain how the old forms and verities are rapidly passing away—and why—will be worthy heirs of a still-vit…
Read More…eligious right wing, there have been low grumblings of protest against the new law, but for a nation where a woman’s hemline or her seat on a public bus can set off a firestorm, the response has been surprisingly muted. Dr. Eli Schussheim, chairman of the pro-life group Efrat, likened the decision to theft, saying that by allocating funding for non-medically necessary abortions, the committee “is stealing… from sick people… and giving the money in…
Read More
…o want to live by the traditional virtues, MacIntyre said, have to pioneer new ways of doing so in community. We await, he said “a new — and doubtless very different — St. Benedict.” Throughout the early Middle Ages, Benedict’s communities formed monasteries, and kept the light of faith burning through the surrounding cultural darkness. Eventually, the Benedictine monks helped refound civilization. I believe that orthodox Christians today are call…
Read More
…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
…ts were oppressive when they protected reproductive and gender rights (or “new” rights), whereas, when it came to protecting “traditional” rights to freedom of religion and speech, they were suddenly fundamental. New rights, they argued, cannot supersede traditional human rights. When they do, these rights violations must be redressed. This very argument is being used in the debate over the Obama health care reform law, one of the main objections…
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