In the News: The Crusades, Anti-Vaxxers, Chocolate Gods, and more!
A round-up of recent religion and media stories in the news. Continue Reading →
Tag: Obama
The Reformation Will Be Televised: On ISIS, Religious Authority and the Allure of Textual Simplicity
The religious fundamentalism of ISIS is not evidence that Islam needs a Reformation, but that one has already occurred by Suzanne Schneider. Continue Reading →
In the News: Wicca, Climate Change, Gaza and Much More
A round-up of recent religion and media stories in the news. Continue Reading →
In Defense of the Coalition: Observing the RNC
Our lady in Tampa, Abby Ohlheiser, reports back from the Faith and Freedom Coalition. Continue Reading →
That's Why They Crucified Him:An Interview with James Cone
by Joe McKnight I am sitting alone in this living room with the father of black liberation theology. An interview with Union Theological Seminary professor James Cone. Continue Reading →
34 Years to Find a Mormon Voice
By Amy Levin We hear about the black vote, we hear about the Mormon vote, but we seldom-to-never hear about the black Mormon vote (or black Mormons at all, for that matter). Continue Reading →
Rumors of Liberation Theology’s “Huge Influence” Are Greatly Exaggerated
Joe McKnight: Mark Oppenheimer’s explanation of liberation theology underscores the theology’s fundamental principles which are often wholly overlooked or deliberately maligned by President Obama’s detractors. Continue Reading →
Rumors of Liberation Theology’s "Huge Influence" Are Greatly Exaggerated
Joe McKnight: Mark Oppenheimer’s explanation of liberation theology underscores the theology’s fundamental principles which are often wholly overlooked or deliberately maligned by President Obama’s detractors. Continue Reading →
Playing Amendment One
Becky Garrison on the political positions played by media, voters, advocates and the president on Amendment One. Continue Reading →
"But Marriage is No Sacrament."
From Gary Wills’ new article at New York Review of Books:
The early church had no specific rite for marriage. This was left up to the secular authorities of the Roman Empire, since marriage is a legal concern for the legitimacy of heirs. When the Empire became Christian under Constantine, Christian emperors continued the imperial control of marriage, as the Code of Justinian makes clear. When the Empire faltered in the West, church courts took up the role of legal adjudicator of valid marriages. But there was still no special religious meaning to the institution. As the best scholar of sacramental history, Joseph Martos, puts it: “Before the eleventh century there was no such thing as a Christian wedding ceremony in the Latin church, and throughout the Middle Ages there was no single church ritual for solemnizing marriage between Christians.”