Prosperity Gospel Is Not the Only Problem with Joel Osteen’s Harvey Response
Twitter was outraged Monday. Megachurch Pastor Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church, housed in a former basketball arena,…
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A Time to Break Down, and A Time to Build Up: Reinventing Ministry in Post-Katrina New Orleans
A disaster is not an “Act of God.”
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“Let’s Get in Formation”: Beyoncé’s Spiritual Call for Black Resistance
I don’t like Beyoncé in the way that some people do—I am not a bee in…
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Something So Broken: What’s Frightening About Beasts of the Southern Wild
Beasts is a transcendental film that enables the viewer to swim through a child’s memories, witness a hurricane and flood, watch a man die, see a home vanish. But is the imagery too transcendent and romantic?
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Disaster Theology: Blame and Powerlessness in Japan
The desire to regain control in the face of terrifying events is so strong we’ll do or say almost anything to put ourselves back in charge.
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Tokyo Governor Says Tsunami is Divine Punishment—Religious Groups Ignore Him
Scenes of destruction and human suffering in Japan have elicited worldwide support, both material and spiritual. But amid global calls for prayer and other religious responses, the most widely publicized example of a religious response to Japan’s worst disaster since the Second World War is…
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A Pastor Takes on BP in New Orleans
Nguyen sheltered hundreds of Vietnamese families in his church, and remained with them during the floods until the last family was rescued. Now with the BP oil spill creeping onto Louisiana’s coast, dismantling the lives of thousands of fishers, shrimpers, and oyster harvesters, many of whom are Vietnamese, Nguyen is in the position of miracle-maker again. It’s not a question of what Father Vien wants—it’s a question of finding out what a community needs.
Read MoreConservative Media Firm Pushes Claim That Gaza Withdrawal Caused BP Disaster
Also links “anti-Israel” Obama administration to biblical prophecies of future harm to Gulf Coast.
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Purpose-Driven Empire
RD News Round-Up—December 2, 2008. Rick Warren and Reader’s Digest’s multimedia platform; Faith-based orgs and Katrina; Churches for sale; Breakaway Episcopalians; and Bob Jones U. apologizes for racism; and Ted Haggard returns.
Read MoreBenedict is on a Roll!
Father Gerhard Maria Wagner called Hurricane Katrina divine retribution, and thinks the Harry Potter series is satanic. His reward? The Pope has just made him bishop.
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