Religion Dispatches

Creationism Makes Its Mark

Lauri Lebo — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:00:01 PST

When their son Zachary came home from science class with a cross burned on his forearm It was not the religion that bothered his parents, but the injury to their child. They sued, and brought science v. creationism back into the courts for another round.

Physicians, “Conscience,” and the Denial of Options

Wendy Cadge — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:00:01 PST

New federal regulations, enacted by the lame-duck Bush administration, privilege the religious or moral scruples of physicians over a patient's right to treatment. 40 million Americans have physicians who will not present them with all the options for treatment.

Amway, Religious Right Pyramid Scheme, Returns to the Motherland

Bill Berkowitz — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 01:00:01 PST

“Emerald”-level member uncovered fraud and deception before being kicked out; Charles Colson and “Redemption”; Americans United’s Top Ten Church-State stories; and more.

New Book Reveals How Faith is Like a Covert Operation for the Bush Family

Frederick Clarkson — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 20:00:01 PST

A brand new investigation of the Bush family reveals a religious narrative that strays from the official story circulated to supporters and the press. How many conversions did George W. actually have and why? How did a blue-blooded Episcopalian family come to represent the evangelicals of America?

Rest in Peace, Sam Huntington

Mark Juergensmeyer — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 00:00:01 PST

He was a lifelong Democrat, and opposed to the Iraq war, but his theory of the “clash of civilizations” helped to support the neo-con notion of a war on terror.

RDPulpit: Israel in Gaza: Right but not Smart

Rabbi Michael Lerner — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 00:00:01 PST

Israel is still using a strategy of domination in its struggle with Hamas, trying to use force to gain security. But this is a recipe for endless war.

The Most Popular Stories of 2008

The Editors — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 00:00:01 PST

The numbers are in and you, the reader, have chosen your favorite RD stories of the year; from Rick Warren to AIPAC, Sarah Palin, Creationism 2.0 and the fabled “death” of the religious right.

The Sexual Threat to Fundamentalism

Michelle Goldberg — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 01:00:01 PST

Why have homosexuality and gender-bending displaced Jews and anti-Semitism as the bogeymen of fundamentalists across the globe?

Doubt v. Predator: A Vatican II Parable

Gabriel Mckee — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 00:00:01 PST

The film adaptation of this Pulitzer Prize-winning play, set in the midst of Vatican II, pits the age-old male hierarchy against the secrecy of the recent molestation scandals. And the winner is...

RD10Q: Brands of Faith: Marketing Religion

Mara Einstein — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 21:00:01 PST

Branding is a combination of name, logo, and mythology; in a world in which we see more than three-thousand marketing messages a day, does religion have to sell itself in order to remain part of the cultural conversation?

O(Pinn)ion: Defending Obama’s Choice

Anthony B. Pinn — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 21:00:01 PST

I reject Rick Warren’s theological orientation and vigorously critique the death-dealing theologies of those like him. But my disagreement (and yours) is not the point.

By the Way: The Rove of the Religious Right, A Eulogy

Randall Balmer — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 12:00:01 PST

“Evil Genius” Paul Weyrich’s legacy of a conservative revolution may be coming to a close.

The Best Books Media of 2008

Jeff Sharlet — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:00:01 PST

Forget the standard litany of the best-selling books and most popular movies... This year’s list includes comics, rock bands, Battlestar Galactica, “Hava Nagila” sung to the tune of “The Twist,” and “I Am the Walrus” translated into Aramaic.

Evangelicals Fire the Future: Rich Cizik’s Resignation

Robert P. Jones — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 21:00:01 PST

The former VP of the National Association of Evangelicals was forced to resign for his acceptance of gay civil unions; ironic, given the views of evangelicalism’s future leaders.

Death Penalty, Debated (Dedicated to the Memory of Sarah Horowitz)

Bill Berkowitz — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 19:00:01 PST

The tension between an anti-death penalty activist and her conservative father, author David Horowitz, echoes the nation’s tension.

Paul Weyrich, “Godfather” of Modern Conservative Movement, Dead at 66

Bill Berkowitz — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 13:00:01 PST

You may not know the name, but you know his work.

Op-Ed: “Religion As A Wedge”: The Rick Warren Debacle

Anthea Butler — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:00:01 PST

With the choice of Rev. Warren to make the inaugural invocation, the president elect has proven himself tone deaf to the nuances of American religious life.

Ten of Our Favorite Top Tens

The Editors — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 11:00:01 PST

Thou shalt not ignore the Top Ten list. We, the editors, rank the top of the tops, including The Onion’s list, comparisons between Religion and Dentistry, Reality TV’s Most Memorable Christians, Top Intellectuals, and many more. Six more to be precise.

Obama’s Divisive Choice of Rick Warren

Michelle Goldberg — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 10:00:01 PST

In his zeal to appeal to all, the president-elect chose a pastor to give the invocation at his inauguration who has compared gays to pedophiles and abortion to the Holocaust. Why did he do it?

Gimme That Old Spice Religion

Frederick Clarkson — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 00:00:01 PST

The winner of Old Spice’s “Art of Manliness” competition isn’t just any Conservative Christian—he’s a card-carrying member of the theocratic Christian Reconstructionist movement that encourages women to submit to their men and to abstain from voting. Does this war on “metrosexual pretty boys” mark the beginning of a political career for Matthew Chancey?

The Shoe Thrower: What Bush Didn’t Understand

Mark Woodward — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 18:00:01 PST

A young Iraqi woman, frustrated and in tears, explains to her classmates: “If Iraqi people come at you with shoes, you have lost their hearts and lost the war and God help us all.”

‘Jews Who Were Israelis’: Anti-Semitism and the Mumbai Chabad Center

Shaul Magid — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:00:01 PST

Though Mumbai militants were instructed to kill “Jews who were Israelis,” few of the victims had any ties to Israel and at least one was an Ultra-Orthodox anti-Zionist. Comprehending the conflicting notions of Jewishness is essential to understanding whether this was an act of anti-Semitism or not.

RDPulpit: To the ‘Furiously Raging’ Religious Right

Peter Laarman — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:00:01 PST

Newsweek actually gets religion, writes the author of the recent gay marriage issue. It’s the Christian Right culture warriors who claim that God possesses their prejudices who are mistaken.

Newsweek Takes a Bullet On Gay Marriage

Mary E. Hunt — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:00:01 PST

A major newsmagazine gets theological, and infuriates conservatives. But the Newsweek story doesn’t even scratch the surface of contemporary religion scholarship on gay marriage.

Religious Right to Newsweek: ‘Woe to [You] for Even Printing This’

Bill Berkowitz — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 01:00:01 PST

RD News Round-Up—December 15, 2008: Bush’s Faith-Based Initiative after 8 years; ‘War on Christmas’ mash-up; Religious Right layoffs and cutbacks, ‘Prop. 8—The Musical,’ Prop. 8 Gear, and the first Vietnamese American elected to Congress.