http://www.realclearreligion.org/ en Copyright 2008 Tue, 21 May 2013 15:07:39 -0400 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/?v=3.33 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Tue, 21 May 2013 14:54:11 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Despite my well-deserved international reputation as a coward, I occasionally get into arguments with people, mostly on Facebook where no one can punch you. It was during such an argument recently that someone actually implied that I was a liar, one vice for which I don’t have a reputation, as far as I know. We were discussing…. never mind; that’s another essay. But when she asked me where I got my ideas about right and wrong, I said that I’d read the Bible. My opponent laughed that off. She’d never read the whole Bible, she said, and she was...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/no_bible_no_democracy_254331.htmlhttp://spectator.org/archives/2013/05/21/the-book-we-still-cant-sparehttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://spectator.org/archives/2013/05/21/the-book-we-still-cant-spare 100254331 PM Update Lars Walker, American Spectator Tue, 21 May 2013 14:56:34 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 The US state department has just released its annual review of religious freedom around the world. Eight countries are marked out for particularly egregious violations: three are officially atheist, two are Sunni Muslim, one is Shia, one Buddhist, and one, Eritrea, is intolerantly multi-faith in that it recognises three streams of Christianity and one of Islam while persecuting all others.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/total_religious_freedom_dream_on_254332.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/andrewbrown/2013/may/21/religious-freedom-state-department-reporthttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/andrewbrown/2013/may/21/religious-freedom-state-department-report 100254332 PM Update Andrew Brown, The Guardian Tue, 21 May 2013 13:59:58 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 At first glance, it would seem that the town of Greece, New York, has been brazenly violating the First Amendment. For roughly a decade, it invited local Christians — and only Christians — to offer prayers opening its Town Board meetings.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/town_prayers_need_less_jesus_more_krishna_254324.htmlhttp://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/05/21/my-take-town-prayers-need-less-jesus-more-krishna/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/05/21/my-take-town-prayers-need-less-jesus-more-krishna/ 100254324 PM Update Stephen Prothero, CNN Tue, 21 May 2013 14:49:39 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Near my house is a 2.8 mile trail that loops through tall, old growth forest, and as I hiked in solitude, I noticed a scowling middle-aged woman hiking straight toward me on the same trail.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/when_you_come_to_a_zax_in_the_road_254328.htmlhttp://www.marcusbrotherton.com/2013/05/note-to-self-give-people-wide-berth.htmlhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.marcusbrotherton.com/2013/05/note-to-self-give-people-wide-berth.html 100254328 PM Update Marcus Brotherton, Men Who Lead Tue, 21 May 2013 15:05:00 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 At the Feb. 4 funeral of Ed Koch, who died of heart failure at 88, the former mayor received one of the greatest send-offs in New York City history. Thousands of people gathered in the cavernous sanctuary of Temple Emanu-El on Fifth Avenue to hear personal and moving eulogies from his closest friends, his nephews and their children, the current mayor, an Israeli ambassador, and a U.S. president. At the conclusion of the uplifting service the organist played “New York, New York” as a funeral dirge. The casket was escorted to the curb, and the crowd, after rising in a...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/ed_koch039s_catholic_send-off_254333.htmlhttp://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/132604/kochs-catholic-send-offhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/132604/kochs-catholic-send-off 100254333 PM Update Jonathan Cohen, Tablet Magazine Tue, 21 May 2013 14:39:05 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 The nation is focused on Moore, Okla. and communities surrounding it.While I was speaking at a conference in Moore a few years ago, people told me of the tornado that hit in 1999. Moore is not rural Oklahoma, but it is a developed area, and the damage from that 1999 tornado was still fresh in their memory. Now, as the news unfolds, we see that this new tornado has brought devastating damage—perhaps much more than in 1999.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/how_to_get_involved_in_disaster_relief_254325.htmlhttp://www.relevantmagazine.com/reject-apathy/creation-care/5-ways-get-involved-disaster-reliefhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.relevantmagazine.com/reject-apathy/creation-care/5-ways-get-involved-disaster-relief 100254325 PM Update Ed Stetzer, Relevant Tue, 21 May 2013 14:45:55 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 During World War II, three Mormon teenagers took on the Third Reich and the new film “Resistance Movement” shares the history of the Helmuth Hubener Resistance Group.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/mormons_versus_nazis_254326.htmlhttp://www.deseretnews.com/article/865580251/Whats-new-New-film-shares-true-story-of-Mormon-teens-who-took-a-stand-against-Hitler-video.htmlhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865580251/Whats-new-New-film-shares-true-story-of-Mormon-teens-who-took-a-stand-against-Hitler-video.html 100254326 PM Update Cecily Markland, Deseret News Tue, 21 May 2013 02:12:12 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Donald Miller is one of the last great Christian iconoclasts. After growing up in a fundamentalist household in Pearland, Texas, Miller broke free from empty orthodoxy and discovered his true faith while a student at ultra-liberal Reed College in Portland. This journey was recorded in Miller's 2003 bestseller, Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality, a memoir that sent shock waves through the Christian world. "Blue Like Jazz" developed such a fan base that its readers crowd-funded more than $300,000 to turn the book into an independent...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/donald_miller_christian_iconoclast_254323.htmlhttp://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/05/19/donald-miller-christian-iconoclast.htmlhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/05/19/donald-miller-christian-iconoclast.html 200254323 AM Update Joshua DuBois, The Daily Beast Mon, 20 May 2013 13:32:24 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 More than 75 otherwise unknown documents from the early Christ movements of the first and second centuries have been discovered in the sands of Egypt, the markets of Cairo, or in unprocessed sections of European and Near Eastern libraries in the past 150 years. As these documents have been translated and studied by scholars, it has become clear that many of them belong to the very heart of Christian beginnings. Unfortunately the public knows little about these documents and churches almost never read them.As I have taught these documents over the past 20 years in seminaries, colleges,...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/time_for_a_new_new_testament_254306.htmlhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/hal-taussig/time-for-a-new-new-testament_b_3204221.htmlhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/hal-taussig/time-for-a-new-new-testament_b_3204221.html 100254306 AM Update Hal Taussig, Huffington Post Tue, 21 May 2013 00:58:21 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church has denounced the Apostle Paul as mean-spirited and bigoted for having released a slave girl from demonic bondage as reported in Acts 16:16-34.In her sermon delivered at All Saints Church in Curaçao in the diocese of Venezuela, Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori condemned those who did not share her views as enemies of the Holy Spirit.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/katharine_jefferts_schori_vs_st_paul_254319.htmlhttp://anglicanink.com/article/diversity-not-jesus-saves-says-presiding-bishophttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://anglicanink.com/article/diversity-not-jesus-saves-says-presiding-bishop 100254319 AM Update George Conger, Anglican Ink Tue, 21 May 2013 00:39:55 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 In May comes graduation days. Commencement time offers a moment for reflection on the purpose of higher education — especially in our Catholic universities.And every year we watch the Catholic universities to see who the commencement speakers are, and we dissect the ways they honor or detract from a university’s mission.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/pope_benedict039s_guide_to_a_catholic_college_254316.htmlhttp://www.ncregister.com/site/article/benedict-xvi-and-education/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.ncregister.com/site/article/benedict-xvi-and-education/ 100254316 AM Update Fr. C.J. McCloskey, NCR Mon, 20 May 2013 14:59:23 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Although doctrines and decrees change in the LDS Church — think polygamy and blacks — one consistent teaching from the time of Joseph Smith to today is that the righteousness of parents can provide salvation to wayward (read: unrighteous) children.  This is a big deal to many LDS parents ( I can think of a score or more, who worry about children who have moved away from church activity.) It’s important to understand that because Mormonism teaches that its church is the only true church, the definition of “wayward” extends far...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/mormon_parents_wayward_children_254313.htmlhttp://blogs.standard.net/the-political-surf/2013/05/20/idea-that-righteous-parents-can-save-wayward-children-a-consistent-doctrine-in-mormon-history/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://blogs.standard.net/the-political-surf/2013/05/20/idea-that-righteous-parents-can-save-wayward-children-a-consistent-doctrine-in-mormon-history/ 100254313 AM Update Doug Gibson, Standard-Examiner Mon, 20 May 2013 16:06:45 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Returning for the first time in three decades to the constitutionality of saying prayers at the opening of a government meeting, the Supreme Court on Monday took on a case involving Town Board sessions in the upstate New York community named Greece, a city of about 100,000 people.  For years, it followed the practice of having local clergy — mostly leaders of Christian congregations — recite prayers to start Town Board public meetings.The case of Town of Greece v. Galloway (docket 12-696) was one of five newly granted...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/supremes_to_hear_legislative_prayer_case_254310.htmlhttp://www.scotusblog.com/2013/05/court-to-rule-on-government-prayer/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.scotusblog.com/2013/05/court-to-rule-on-government-prayer/ 100254310 AM Update Lyle Denniston, SCOTUSblog Mon, 20 May 2013 16:07:04 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 One reason the idea of gay marriage, or "marriage equality," spread so fast is that it seems obvious once you think about it. It was a genuinely new idea when it first appeared in this publication in 1989. As was not the case with civil rights for African Americans, feminism, or for that matter gay rights themselves, there was no long history of opposition to be overcome. The challenge was simply getting people to think about it a bit.Not everyone was immediately persuaded. In March, Ben Carson appeared on Fox News' "Hannity" show to talk about...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/dear_gays_evangelicals_aren039t_monsters_254314.htmlhttp://www.newrepublic.com/article/113186/ben-carson-and-gay-marriage-policehttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.newrepublic.com/article/113186/ben-carson-and-gay-marriage-police 100254314 AM Update Mike Kinsley, New Republic Tue, 21 May 2013 01:06:00 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 The popularity of the History Channel's The Bible shows that Americans still yearn for inspiration from the Greatest Story Ever Told. For all of its positive power, however, The Bible may inadvertently perpetuate negative images of Jews and Judaism. For centuries, dramatic presentations of the biblical narrative were bad news for Jews. Passion plays"”often timed to coincide with the Easter-time commemoration of the Crucifixion"”not only portrayed Jesus' Passion on the Cross, but ignited the passions of the crowds who took to the streets...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/the_most_jewish_jews_of_039the_bible039_254320.htmlhttp://www.firstthings.com/onthesquare/2013/05/jewish-concerns-about-history-channelrsquos-the-biblehttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.firstthings.com/onthesquare/2013/05/jewish-concerns-about-history-channelrsquos-the-bible 100254320 AM Update Poland, Cooper & Adlerstein, FT Tue, 21 May 2013 00:48:00 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 The slender man of 22, a former guerrilla fighter, was making another hangdog, penitent appearance at the behest of city officials here. It was brainwashing that led him to take up arms against the state and "go to the forest," he said, and his sincere desire was to forget that it had ever happened.Most of the time, people like this young man, Dzhabrail Altysultanov, do not come back alive, the deputy mayor of Khasavyurt, a city near the Chechen border, acknowledged matter-of-factly, as a waitress brought a steaming platter of roasted meat. If Mr. Altysultanov had...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/039do_you_know_how_many_tsarnaevs_we_have039_254317.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/20/world/europe/bomb-suspects-trip-sheds-light-on-caucasus-war.html?pagewanted=allhttp://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/05/20/world/europe/bomb-suspects-trip-sheds-light-on-caucasus-war.xml?pagewanted=all 100254317 AM Update Ellen Barry, NYT Mon, 20 May 2013 14:52:40 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Amos Yong is an American Pentecostal theologian who was born in Malaysia. He is one of nine evangelical theologians, including Bradley, an associate professor of theology and ethics at The King's College, who write about their personal experiences as minorities interacting with white evangelical institutions in the book, Aliens in the Promised Land: Why Minority Leadership Is Overlooked in White Christian Churches and Institutions. Yong is Dean of the Divinity School and the Rodman Williams Professor of Theology at Regent University.In the book's third chapter titled,...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/the_colors_of_evangelicalism_254312.htmlhttp://www.christianpost.com/news/asian-american-pentecostal-theologian-on-transnational-character-of-evangelicalism-racialization-in-the-church-pt-2-96174/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.christianpost.com/news/asian-american-pentecostal-theologian-on-transnational-character-of-evangelicalism-racialization-in-the-church-pt-2-96174/ 100254312 AM Update Alex Murashko, Christian Post Tue, 21 May 2013 02:17:40 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 Chances are, each of us has a relative or family friend who is finishing college this month and moving on to the next phase of life. Even in the best of circumstances, graduation can bring a great deal of uncertainty and anxiety. New graduates will face the challenges of finding jobs, managing finances and building healthy relationships and families. As loved ones search for the perfect gift to launch their graduate into the next phase of life, what the class of 2013 may need more than anything is a seemingly difficult gift to give: wisdom.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/21/here039s_a_bible_with_that_diploma_254303.htmlhttp://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/05/19/why-bible-is-best-graduation-gift-can-give/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/05/19/why-bible-is-best-graduation-gift-can-give/ 100254303 AM Update Doug Birdsall, FOX Tue, 21 May 2013 02:17:16 -0400 05/21/2013/00/00/00 ]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2013/05/21/trekking_without_god.htmlhttp://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2013/05/21/trekking_without_god.htmlhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2013/05/21/trekking_without_god.html 100254315 AM Update Jeffrey Weiss, RealClearReligion Sun, 19 May 2013 15:57:26 -0400 05/20/2013/00/00/00 Last fall, the Archdiocese of Boston released an ambitious plan designed to stem the decline it has experienced—in priests, Mass attendance, and treasure—since the 2002 wave of sexual-abuse scandals. The plan, called “Disciples in Mission,” will be phased in throughout Boston’s 288 parishes over five years. Cardinal Seán O’Malley hopes it will not only slow the decline of the archdiocese—some of it self-inflicted, some caused by powers beyond its control—but will also create the conditions for...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/20/cardinal_o039malley039s_revolution_254296.htmlhttp://www.commonwealmagazine.org/big-dighttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.commonwealmagazine.org/big-dig 100254296 AM Update Luke Hill, Commonweal Magazine Sun, 19 May 2013 15:08:44 -0400 05/20/2013/00/00/00 In early May, the trial of Kermit Gosnell was drawing to a close. Our nation was gripped by the revelations of how for years, this notorious abortionist had enjoyed free reign to do his bloody work in horrifically unsanitary, effectively unregulated conditions, resulting in the murder of a number of newly born-alive babies and one mother, along with the countless human beings similarly killed inside the womb.Serious questions were being raised about what our legal regime and social culture of abortion-on-demand had unleashed, and the moral inconsistency being horrified by...]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/20/religious_coalition_for_kermit_gosnell_254284.htmlhttp://www.lifenews.com/2013/05/17/religious-group-protests-laws-that-could-stop-other-kermit-gosnells/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.lifenews.com/2013/05/17/religious-group-protests-laws-that-could-stop-other-kermit-gosnells/ 100254284 AM Update John Lomperis, LifeSiteNews Sun, 19 May 2013 15:27:54 -0400 05/20/2013/00/00/00 An Anglican congregation in Virginia that recently lost a property suit against The Episcopal Church is asking for a rehearing before the state Supreme Court.George Ward, senior warden of the vestry of The Falls Church Anglican, told The Christian Post that the congregation will submit a petition that may be heard by the Court.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/20/anglicans_still_want_their_church__back_254289.htmlhttp://www.christianpost.com/news/anglican-congregation-seeks-rehearing-after-losing-property-suit-to-episcopal-church-96070/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.christianpost.com/news/anglican-congregation-seeks-rehearing-after-losing-property-suit-to-episcopal-church-96070/ 100254289 AM Update Mike Gryboski, Christian Post Sun, 19 May 2013 14:50:53 -0400 05/20/2013/00/00/00 ]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2013/05/20/fundamentalists_without_a_fundament.htmlhttp://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2013/05/20/fundamentalists_without_a_fundament.htmlhttp://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2013/05/20/fundamentalists_without_a_fundament.html 100254283 AM Update Doug Wilson, RealClearReligion Sun, 19 May 2013 15:54:51 -0400 05/20/2013/00/00/00 Do you remember your favorite teacher when you were a kid? I certainly do. She was my second grade teacher, Mrs. Newman, who I knew loved me. Mrs. Newman was a 60-something-year-old woman with a big heart and an even bigger personality.She often reminded me of Mary Poppins, being firm yet fun. I remember when I was a couple years older, making a special trip to the other side of town to trick-or-treat at her house, purely as an excuse to see her again.]]>http://www.realclearreligion.org/2013/05/20/mormon_wins_top_teacher_award_254295.htmlhttp://blog.chron.com/mormonvoice/2013/05/local-mormon-woman-wins-top-teacher-in-nation/http://www.google.com/gwt/n?u=http://blog.chron.com/mormonvoice/2013/05/local-mormon-woman-wins-top-teacher-in-nation/ 100254295 AM Update Heather Hemingway, Houston Chron.