I wish we saw more coverage of liturgical holidays but I get why we don’t. How do you write something fresh and new about something that’s been done … for thousands of years? It’s very difficult to transmit culture or tradition as “news” — since, by definition, they’re not. So that’s why you see news outlets focusing on progressive churches or groups that change, rather than retain, doctrine. It’s actually a fundamental flaw in the transmission-of-information part of the news... Read more
If you have spent much time studying First Amendment cases you will know that many of the most important cases center on the activities of people with whom no one in his or her right mind would want to have dinner. The bottom line: It’s easy to protect the free-speech rights of nice people. It’s harder to take a legal stand in defense of Nazis who want to assembly and march through a Chicago suburb that is home to hundreds... Read more
Inspector Gregory: Is there any point to which you wish to draw my attention? Holmes: To the curious incident of the dog in the night-time. Col. Ross: The dog did nothing in the night-time. Holmes: That was the curious incident. From Silver Blaze, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (1892) If may have taken five weeks, but The New York Times has finally reported the news that New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan and the Archdiocese of Milwaukee... Read more
There he goes, there he goes again. At the moment, the Rt. anti-Rev. Richard Dawkins is — logically enough — in full-tilt, set-on-stun PR mode for his new book, “An Appetite for Wonder: the Making of a Scientist.” The goal is to make headlines and move volumes and, as the old saying goes, a headline is a headline. You may remember that big-headline story the other day, the one in which one of the world’s most famous atheist evangelists said... Read more
Where’s Joe Carter when you need him? Oh, right. I forgot. Before his premature departure, Carter served as GetReligion’s resident expert on Calvinism. Trust me, I am a poor fill-in, although I posted a few months ago on media coverage of the Southern Baptist Convention debating that subject. (At that time, I acknowledged that I flunked Professor Sarah Pulliam Bailey’s Calvinism 101 course.) So, I am stepping into this post with fear and trepidation — and under duress from Editor... Read more
On one long winter workday in camp, as I was lugging a wheelbarrow together with another man, I asked myself how one might portray the totality of our camp existence. In essence it should suffice to give a thorough description of a single day, providing minute details and focusing on the most ordinary kind of worker; that would reflect the entirety of our experience. It wouldn’t even be necessary to give examples of any particular horrors. It shouldn’t be an... Read more
It was my intention today to look at religion news coverage of the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. And I hope to still do that. But I didn’t come across anything particularly winsome or substantial. I’m sure there must be some good (or bad!) stuff out there. Please do pass it along. During my search, I came across a story that I do want to commend. Mostly for just being written. This weekend I met someone who had... Read more
It’s time for a quick dip into my unusually thick GetReligion folder of guilt, that place where I stash stories that I know deserve a bite of criticism, but more pressing matters (think Syria) keep pushing them back in the cyber-queue. The other day, The New York Times ran what was essentially a work of hagiography in praise of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. There is not a single surprising word in this story, not a random thought... Read more
First things first. Wait just a minute: Richard Dawkins said what?!? By way of a news story from Religion News Service, readers learn: CANTERBURY, England (RNS) — Richard Dawkins, one of the world’s best-known and outspoken atheists, has provoked outrage among child protection agencies and experts after suggesting that recent child abuse scandals have been overblown. In an interview in The Times magazine on Saturday (Sept. 7), Dawkins, 72, he said he was unable to condemn what he called “the... Read more
Speaking of Ch-ch-ch-ch Changes … In the last few weeks, we’ve highlighted the departures of two respected journalists from the Godbeat. First, Bob Smietana left The Tennessean. Then Ann Rodgers announced plans to leave the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Now, a third religion-writing superstar — Tim Townsend of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch — has decided to leave the Godbeat. Townsend revealed his plans on Twitter and even provided dramatic music to go along with the announcement: ANNCMNT: (http://t.co/SMbYrrNM6Q) I’m leaving the PD to... Read more
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