Sites and stories I’ve enjoyed this weekend: “Abba Changes Everything” at Christianity Today on how every Christian should hear the biblical call to care for the orphan. I am in fundamental and impassioned agreement. This is CT at its best: telling stories and making impassioned arguments. A new Gallup poll comes to the result that Tea Partiers look a lot like the conservative base. Shocker. “Why is the Gulf Cleanup So Slow?” Yes, why indeed? iPhone Apps for Atheists and... Read more
I am going to share some reflections today on the CLS v. Martinez case. Yesterday I posted first responses as they were received. Today, now that the dust has settled a little more, there is time for sober reflection. In this first post, I am going to give the background, so that anyone who is unfamiliar with the case can catch up. In 2004, the Hastings School of Law (which is affiliated with U. C. Berkeley and the California higher... Read more
Our interviews with some of the major players in the CLS v Martinez case are beginning to go live. We just posted interviews with Michael McConnell (whom we had interviewed earlier), who argued the case on behalf of CLS before the Supreme Court, and Marci Hamilton, who sides very much with Hastings. A quote or two from McConnell: “Essentially, the court declined to rule on most of our arguments, so the impact is that there will be a lot more... Read more
Today I have been posting a series of blog entries on the CLS v Martinez case. Scroll down to see more of the context and early responses. I just got off the phone with Michael McConnell, who argued the case before the Supreme Court. The CLS/ADF side has emphasized that this is a very limited ruling, and part of the case is thrown back to the Circuit Court to determine whether the all comers policy, which the Supremes decided is... Read more
I just got off the phone with David French, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. A more thorough rendering of the conversation will be available soon, but for now, here is a rough and ready transcription of one part I found especially interesting: “In many ways I see this case as the fruit of the poisonous tree of a previous bad Supreme Court decision. That previous bad Supreme Court decision is the Board of Regents of the University... Read more
In my earlier post I framed the issues behind CLS v. Martinez and noted the first-blush response of David French, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, which argued the case alongside the Christian Legal Society. The ADF just issued their press release on the case. Granted, they have an interest in arguing that this does not decide the issue of free religious association on college campuses without discrimination. Still, they may well be right in their interpretation of... Read more
In lieu of the usual Morning Reports today, I am going to be collecting responses to the CLS v. Martinez case, for which the Supreme Court just issued its decision (you can download the decision at their website). As regular readers of Cross and Culture and the Evangelical Portal at Patheos will remember, we interviewed Michael McConnell, the former federal judge (and potential Supreme Court nominee) who argued the case before the court. The different sides will construe the issue... Read more
In the space of a few clicks online, one can go from the beautiful and sublime to the ugly and the absurd. I enjoy Head Heart Hand, the blog of David Murray. I recommend checking out the blog in general, but I also enjoyed this post on the Legalism Family. On the other hand, this from Liam Fox is the kind of dazzlingly, breathtakingly, jaw-droppingly ridiculous caricaturing of conservative Christians that makes me want to pull the skin off my... Read more
Since I have been traveling and unable to piece together my usual Morning Reports, I thought I would drop a few links here to articles I’ve enjoyed: The Extraordinary Story of A. N. Wilson Losing Faith and Gaining it Back Again Ed Stetzer on Denominations as Tools for Missions and Ministry Why I Will Never Again Be Able to See Al Gore and Not Think of “Crazed Sex Poodle” 48% Today See Government as a Threat to Rights Stanley Fish... Read more
Unless you were hiding under a rock for the past 36 hours, you are probably aware that General Stanley McChrystal, who was yesterday the supreme commander of all NATO forces in Afghanistan, was portrayed in a Rolling Stone magazine article as insubordinate, immature and borderline incompetent. What was so damaging about the article were not specific things that McChrystal said — which were not really so bad — but its unsparing and rather merciless depiction of the atmosphere which McChrystal... Read more
Philosophical Fragments
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