Friends, check out this new book by some of the best scholars–Orthodox Jewish and orthodox Christian–on what Judaism and Christianity mean for each other: http://www.amazon.com/Covenant-Hope-Christian-Jewish-Reflections/dp/0802867049/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344957840&sr=1-6&keywords=covenant+and+hope You will recognize the names of some of these prominent scholars: David Novak, Robert Jenson, Michael Wyschogrod, RR Reno, Miroslav Volf, Eugene Korn, Alan Mittelman, and others . . . and even yours truly (how did he get in there?). The book is full of surprises, such as the essay by Schlomo Riskin, famous rabbi... Read more

Since my article came out, I have been through far worse than I ever thought would happen. My job is at risk, and worst of all, my coworkers received an e-mail from a gay rights organization with the title “COMPLAINT AGAINST CSUN’S ROBERT LOPEZ: GAY BASHER.” Soon I got e-mails from administrators. People really investigate claims like this. Gay basher? What the heck has this movement come to? For God’s sake, I am a bisexual raised by a lesbian couple,... Read more

Was the Sikh temple shooting another example of religion being the biggest instigator of violence? This will be the topic at: Theology on Tap “419” restaurant/bar under the awning out front Thursday night, 8 PM Read more

by Robert Oscar Lopez August 6, 2012 The children of same-sex couples have a tough road ahead of them—I know, because I have been there. The last thing we should do is make them feel guilty if the strain gets to them and they feel strange. http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2012/08/6065?utm_source=RTA+Lopez+Two+Moms&utm_campaign=winstorg&utm_medium=email Read more

By Charlotte Allen The ongoing controversy over University of Texas sociologist Mark Regnerus is a textbook example of how a legitimate scholarly dispute can turn into a political witch-hunt. http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2012/08/regnerus_and_the_liberal_war_o.html Read more

THEOLOGY ON TAP In my absence, my colleague Dr Aaron Sherwood will address this questions and then open it up for discussion. This Thursday, August 9, 8 PM “419” bar/restaurant, Roanoke just under the awning out front Be there or be square Read more

Wall Street Journal This month the Christian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani marked his 1,000th day of incarceration in Lakan, a notorious prison in northern Iran. Charged with the crime of apostasy, Mr. Nadarkhani faces a death sentence for refusing to recant the Christian faith he embraced as a child. He embodies piety and represents millions more suffering from repression-but his story is barely known. Mr. Nadarkhani’s courage and the tenacity of his supporters, many of them ordinary churchgoers who have crowded... Read more

This will be the topic at our next Theology and Tap. In my absence, my colleague Dr James Peterson, an internationally-recognized Christian ethicist who specializes in genetic ethics, will give a short talk and then lead a discussion. Dr Peterson is Editor-in-Chief of the sixty-year academic journal Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith and the president of the Canadian Scientific and Christian Affiliation. He will gather with others under the awning out front. “419” restaurant/bar Thursday, August 2 8 PM Read more

LONDON — They’re not asking for much, these two elderly women who lost their husbands to the worst crime in Olympic history. They’re not asking for a speech or a video or even a prayer to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the murder of 11 Israelis at the 1972 Munich Games. http://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/la-sp-oly-plaschke-20120726,0,4757816.column Read more

Charles J. Chaput A friend of mine, a political scientist, recently posed two very good questions. They go right to the heart of our discussion today. He wondered, first, if the religious freedom debate had “crossed a Rubicon” in our country’s political life. And second, he asked if Catholic bishops now found themselves opposed—in a new and fundamental way—to the spirit of American society. Building a Culture of Religious Freedom Read more