Opinion
Secular political query
By Mark Silk — October 3, 2008
OK, I know this is above my pay grade, but why did the McCain campaign think that the recipe for Palin last night was “Let Sarah be Sarah!” rather than “Get her to act like a plausible occupant of the Oval Office”? I’ve no doubt, what with all the laying on of winks and the […]
NH religious
By Mark Silk — October 3, 2008
A new Saint Anselm College New Hampshire poll, showing Obama up by 12 points, has him leading among Protestants by seven and among Catholics by four. No white Catholic problem for him there. The poll turned up 70 born-again/evangelical Christians, who broke 54-29 for McCain–providing some more confirmation for my hypothesis that evangelicals in the […]
Counting blessings
By Mark Silk — October 3, 2008
Last night, Sarah Palin used “bless” and its cognates three times, in three distinctly different ways. From last to first: 3. “I’ve been there. I know what the hurts are. I know what the challenges are. And, thank God, I know what the joys are, too, of living in America. We are so blessed. And […]
COMMENTARY: In Gordon Gekko we trust
By Tracy Gordon — October 3, 2008
“Greed is right. Greed works. Greed-for lack of a better word-is good.” So goes the Gospel According to Gordon Gekko in the film, “Wall Street.” Jesus, however, had a different take. Some theological reflection on our current economic situation. (Dick Staub is the author of “The Culturally Savvy Christian” and the host of The Kindlings […]
Veep Debate Live Blog
By Mark Silk — October 2, 2008
9:05. Hear that, soccer moms? 9:10. And hockey moms? 9:14. Is it good to say you won’t answer the questions? 9:26. Splitting Palin and McCain on windfall profits tax…not bad. 9:27. Palin’s really really against greed. And bad guys rearing their heads. 9:30. Climate change is real, she says. Doesn’t want to argue about the […]
Gay what?
By Mark Silk — October 2, 2008
This election season I’ve been struck by the fading force of gay marriage as a political rallying cry. WaPo reports today that the gay marriage ban is losing out badly in the polls even as its proponents have raised more money than the other side. John McCain got his “from conception” licks in at Saddleback, […]
Her personal faith 2
By Mark Silk — October 2, 2008
I certainly can’t complain that the Getreligionistas have ignored my little call-out, either in commenting on my earlier post or in their own purlieu. I don’t think coverage of Palin’s religion has been as bad as they do (though it’s been far from perfect), and “not terribly open about her religious views” (as Mollie puts […]
COMMENTARY: Sacred space
By Cathleen Falsani — October 2, 2008
ARLINGTON, Va.-There has been much debate about how 9/11 memorials at the Pentagon, Ground Zero and Shanksville, Pa., should be created-what they should look like, how they should feel. It’s really a conversation about how to make each space sacred. The designers of the Pentagon memorial got it right. Their hauntingly understated, modern design transforms […]
COMMENTARY: Blinded by the might, leaders lose common touch
By RNS Blog Editor — October 1, 2008
c. 2008 Religion News Service Nepal names 6-year-old as `living goddess’ CHENNAI, India (RNS) A 6-year-old girl has been named by Nepal’s new Maoist-led government as a “living goddess,” or Kumari, in a town near the capital of Kathmandu. For centuries, the chief priest of the Nepali monarchy appointed the Kumaris in several towns in […]
COMMENTARY: Blinded by the might, leaders lose common touch
By Tom Ehrich — October 1, 2008
c. 2008 Religion News Service NEW YORK _ Overnight rain cleaned the streets of New York. Overnight reviews pegged Sen. Barack Obama as Friday’s debate winner, Milan’s latest fashions as “silly,” and the Mets’ hopes as waning. The morning air filled suddenly with the siren of an ambulance. Stores opened. Life moved on. Despite the […]
COMMENTARY: Blinded by the might, leaders lose common touch
By Charles Honey — October 1, 2008
c. 2008 Religion News Service CASCADE TOWNSHIP, Mich. _ Mandy Helton Jones had planned to spend the next couple of months traveling to Asia and Australia with her new husband, Jon. But when she spotted a blog looking for couples to carry a handwritten Bible across America, their travel plans changed in a hurry. “We […]
The Young and the Evangelical
By Mark Silk — October 1, 2008
In case you missed this, under-30 evangelicals are more likely to prefer Obama than their over-30 coreligionists. By the same amount as it’s looking like Midwestern evangelicals do. 1-2 rather than 1-3.
What’s up, Pew?
By Mark Silk — October 1, 2008
Today’s Pew poll, which shows Obama’s lead growing from two to seven points over two weeks ago, has him losing considerable ground among white Catholics, from seven to 13 points down to McCain. I don’t get that. More comprehensible is Obama’s turnaround among white Mainline Protestants, from 10 points down to one point up.
Quinnipiac Swings
By Mark Silk — October 1, 2008
Today’s Quinnipiac polls of Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania show big margins for Obama: 51-43 in Florida, 50-42 in Ohio, and 54-39 in Pennsylvania. He trails by five points among white voters in both Florida and Ohio, but is up by four in Pennsylvania. White Catholics split for McCain 51-44 in Florida, 48-47 and 47-45 in […]
