It's been a bad few weeks for Psalms in the news. Some perfectly good verses got dropped from a 35-year airline promotion, and a disturbing verse that some fringe characters have been employing for years to call for President Barak Obama's death achieved a new prominence, gleefully forwarded to colleagues by a high official in Kansas. I see both as part of the same melancholy trend: the death of civil religion.
First, Psalms on a Plane. Last Wednesday Alaska Airlines decided to stop placing cards with Psalm verses on first-class passengers' meal trays. The carrier favored mild passages like Psalm 107:1, "Give thanks to the Lord for He is good; his love endures forever" superimposed on glorious Alaskan landscapes. The note to frequent fliers announcing the discontinuation called it "difficult" and noted that, "While some passengers appreciated the prayers, we've heard from many of you who believe religion is inappropriate on an airplane, and some are offended when we hand out the cards."
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