Monthly Archives: April 2013
The Infidel and the Indifferent
By Martin E. Marty — April 29, 2013
Thoughtful religious leaders have to work to promote affiliation and commitment as they seek and sometimes find company among the non-religious who would stir interest in the deeper things of life. This is a mission for them in a time of when gloss is favored in many sub-cultures.
Quote of the Day: President Obama
By Ron Ribiat — April 29, 2013
“The History Channel is not here. I guess they were embarrassed about the whole Obama-is-a-devil thing. Of course, that never kept Fox News from showing up. They actually thought the comparison was not fair — to Satan.” – President Obama, joking at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner on Saturday in Washington.
ANALYSIS: Will former Palin adviser help or hurt bishops’ media woes?
By David Gibson — April 29, 2013
NEW YORK (RNS) The nation's top Catholic bishop has said the hierarchy would benefit from hiring an “attractive, articulate, intelligent” laywoman to present their message because, as he put it, “In the public square, I hate to tell you, the days of fat, balding Irish bishops are over.”
Religion & Ethics Newsweekly Video: Baseball and Religion
By Sally Morrow — April 29, 2013
New York University president John Sexton, former law school dean and distinguished legal scholar, has written a most unusual book: “Baseball as a Road to God.”
Female converts to Islam facing growing scrutiny
By Omar Sacirbey — April 29, 2013
BOSTON (RNS) Karen Hunt-Ahmed is part of a growing sorority of female American converts to Islam, especially those who are or were married to Muslim men, who must deal with the perception that they converted to Islam because of domineering boyfriends or husbands.
An old-school confessional revives saying ‘I’m sorry’
By Ann Marie Somma — April 29, 2013
DERBY, Conn. (RNS) The Rev. Janusz Kukulka can't say his parishioners are sinning more -- but they sure are lining up at the new confessional booth that's decidedly old-school.
Can atheists and Christians work together? An interview with Harvard’s Chris Stedman
By Jonathan Merritt — April 29, 2013
Stedman, author and "humanist chaplain" at Harvard University, shares how he believes Christians and atheists can learn to work together.
Monday’s Religion News Roundup: Holocaust survivors * Finding Misha * George Jones
By Daniel Burke — April 29, 2013
Zubeidat Tsarnaeva's journey from Joan Jett lookalike to hijab-wearing conspiracy theorist. The mysterious Misha is found in Rhode Island. George Jones and the Christ-haunted South.
The Simple Pleasures of a Writing Retreat
By Jana Riess — April 29, 2013
No, a writing retreat isn't a spa experience, but it's pretty awesome anyway. I'm on retreat for a week starting tomorrow.
When Prophecy Fails
By Mark Silk — April 29, 2013
Last Saturday I attended a memorial service in Washington for Henry Riecken, an old friend's father, who died last December at the age of 95. Riecken was one of the high priests of American social science during its mid-20th-century heyday, but he earned lasting fame as one of the three co-authors of When Prophecy Fails, the classic account of true believers who refuse to give up their beliefs even when faced with definite empirical proof to the contrary.
Controversy in Candyland: What Is the Source for Peggy Orenstein’s Writing?
By Jana Riess — April 27, 2013
Peggy Orenstein's writing this week on the sexualization of Candyland is excellent, but is it too similar to Rachel Marie Stone's 2012 blog posts on the same topic?
5 dumbest things said about the Boston Marathon Explosions: Fox News, (some) Republicans
By Omid Safi — April 27, 2013
The purpose is not (merely) to expose and ridicule—ok, maybe there is a touch of that—but rather to shine the light on areas of shortcoming that we, all of us, will have to deal with if we are to get to a more beautiful place than we are right now.
The redemption of Enda Kenny
By David Gibson — April 26, 2013
Less than two years after he blasted the Vatican over its failures to protect children from abusive priests -- or help investigate the crimes -- Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny will receive an honorary degree from Boston College. Are bygones bygones?
Quote of the Day: Focus on the Family president Jim Daly
By Ron Ribiat — April 26, 2013
“As our culture drifts ever further from the truth that each person is created in God’s image, and is therefore of unspeakable value, life will continue to be viewed as a cheap commodity.” — Focus on the Family president Jim Daly, writing in The Washington Post about the need for a “moral and spiritual awakening” […]
John Paulk, former Christian ex-gay spokesman, recants and apologizes
By David Gibson — April 26, 2013
(RNS) John Paulk, who for years was known as the poster boy for the Christian "ex-gay'' movement, says he has come to terms with his sexuality and says he is "truly, truly sorry for the pain I have caused'' in supporting the belief that gays can change.
