Religion
Between the Friday morning talks of Maggie Gallagher and Joseph Bottum, I was asked in the presence of a notable personage about my conversion to Catholicism. It took some time — well past the cessation of the conversation — for my mind to catch up to the realization that said personage’s response indicated that I…
The Roman Catholic Church has been under veritable government attack in Connecticut, and its travails highlight the need for religious organizations, Catholic and otherwise, to be selective and to tread carefully with political activism: The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport sued Connecticut officials in federal court Friday, after being told it needs to register as…
A second conversation in which sufficient articulation proved difficult on Friday night’s all–Anchor Rising Violent Roundtable on the Matt Allen Show related to Matt’s statement that the Catholic Church is in some respects an anti-American institution. Having such a strong statement catch one off guard doesn’t make measured extemporaneous response an easy accomplishment, but upon…
Last night’s Violent Roundtable on the Matt Allen Show was the most difficult public appearance/talk show that I’ve done yet. Probably because Matt correctly assessed that an hour of harmony wouldn’t have been very interesting, his questions touched on a number of weighty subjects on which expressing comprehensive thoughts on the spot is not easy.…
This story confounds categorization: Eastern District of Michigan judge Lawrence P. Zatkoff handed down the decision, in a case involving an alleged violation of the constitutional separation of church and state. The issue is whether a government-owned company, AIG, can market sharia-compliant insurance products. (To be sharia-compliant, an investment vehicle must be created and structured…
Marc addressed the intention of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence to request that its pastors advocate during Mass on Sunday for maintenance of welfare payments. Dan Yorke expressed dismay, as well. What I find most discouraging about the initiative is its indication that the Church is misassessing (or not adequately considering) the political tides.…
Given the comments to my post about Monday’s (apparently) politically founded murder, it would seem that my non-symbolic reference to an entity named Satan has caused some confusion about my view of human agency. The existence of evil as a force in the universe does not absolve humanity of responsibility for acts committed in its…
Only evil was served by the killing of abortionist George Tiller. Just as one can imagine the phrases by which Satan guided Tiller to see his barbarous work as righteous, one can imagine the whispers that brought the killer to Tiller’s church — leading him perhaps to see as poetry a setting that should have…
Given the hour, perhaps this news excuses a cliché: first, they came for the Christians: A local pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a San Diego County official, who then threatened them with escalating fines if they continued to hold Bible studies in their home, 10News reported. Attorney Dean Broyles of The…
Some folks will groan at the movie’s mention, but I rewatched The Passion of the Christ on Friday night, and many of the points that struck me when the movie was new are still valid, although their social and spiritual implications have long since been integrated more deeply into my thought. This time around, the…