BRAD ASKS:       I think Trump is a bad president. Is it right of me to pray for his defeat? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Or turn Brad’s question around. Will it be proper for others to pray for the defeat of the Democrats’ 2020 nominee? The President has provoked the most ferocious pro-and-con political emotions in our lifetimes, so prayers inevitably result. That’s because prayer is a virtually universal phenomenon. We all know the phrase ‘foxhole religion” about desperate... Read more

It’s the most notorious sexual encounter of ancient times. In a remarkably candid account in the Bible (2d Samuel chapters 11 and 12), the great King David impregnates  Bathsheba when both were married to others. In the 21st Century, and especially with the recent rise of the #ChurchToo wing of the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment, there’s vigorous debate in print and online about whether Bathsheba intended to lure the king’s attentions, or the two shared equal blame for adultery,... Read more

(With the 50th anniversary of U.S. astronauts’ moon walk on  July 20, The Religion Guy here repeats some  material from “Religion Q & A” for December 18, 2014.) DAVID’S QUESTION: Do you know if it’s true Christian Communion was celebrated during the first moon landing? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Yes, though this was top-secret at the time. Something about such momentous events makes mere mortals reach for transcendent themes. For example, media coverage of last month’s 75th anniversary of the... Read more

THE QUESTION: What do U.S. religious groups teach about the contentious abortion issue? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Remarkably, the abortion issue is as contentious as when the U.S. Supreme Court liberalized law 46 years ago, with new state restrictions injecting it into courtrooms and the 2020 campaign. The following scans significant teachings by major religious denominations. The Catholic Church, the largest religious body in the U.S. (and globally), opposes abortion, without exceptions. A Vatican Council II decree from the world’s... Read more

THE QUESTION: Should women be pastors or preachers in U.S. Protestant churches? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: The above issue erupted in recent days among U.S. evangelicals (more on this in a moment). In the interest of full disclosure, the (Protestant) Religion Guy’s personal opinion on this is yes, and in fact his own local congregation has its first female pastor. But as usual “Religion Q & A”  intends to provide a non-partisan journalistic survey. Let’s first note that Catholic and... Read more

THE QUESTION: In light of the recent measles outbreak spreading from certain enclaves of U.S. Orthodox Jews, does their religion, or any other, oppose vaccination? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: The current epidemic of highly contagious measles is America’s worst since 2000 when the federal Centers for Disease Control proclaimed the disease eradicated. At this writing there are 704 known cases of the disease, three-fourths of them in New York State, but no deaths yet. The epidemic apparently originated with travelers... Read more

THE QUESTION:  This month, the Muslim nation of Brunei cited religious grounds for prescribing execution by stoning for those guilty of adultery or gay sex, and amputation of hands to punish convicted thieves. Does Islam require these penalties? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: In the Muslim world there’s no consensus that the faith requires these traditional punishments in modern times, but a handful of the 57 member nations in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation have such legislation. One is the small... Read more

THE QUESTION: Regarding Israel and Bible prophecies about the End Times, what are the meanings of such terms as Dispensationalism, the rapture, premillennialism, the great tribulation,  pre-tribulationism, and Armageddon? THE GUY’S ANSWER: A March 31 New York Times article on how religion may influence U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s approach toward Israel had this headline: “The Rapture and the Real World: Pompeo Mixes Beliefs and Policy.” One key point was that the then-Congressman told a religious audience in 2015... Read more