What role will religion play in the 2012 elections? According to voters, not a big one. A recent Pew Research Center poll revealed that most Americans are comfortable with what they know about the candidates’ faith and that their votes will have little to do with the nominees’ religion. In fact, a majority of the electorate is significantly more interested in Mitt Romney’s tax returns and gubernatorial record than in his beliefs. Two-thirds of those surveyed said religion’s influence on... Read more

Amid the high and low minded rhetoric and the “slamming” of the other party and its policies at this year’s Republican and Democratic national conventions there has been a backdrop of faith on display. Representatives of many faiths were on hand to offer up official and unofficial prayers throughout each of the conventions. Christians of all stripes, Muslims, and Jews were all represented to some degree either on the platform or in nearby venues. In an interesting twist, the same... Read more

Just a little over eight years ago, after leaving the game to pursue a higher calling, Mase released his third studio album, Welcome Back. Since then, the Harlem emcee, noticeably unable to decide between pulpits and popping collars, has resurfaced a few times on your favorite urban radio station. First alongside 50 Cent and his G-Unit constituents, then on a few remixes by Drake and Wale to name a few. And now, after a performance at Hot 97’s Summer Jam... Read more

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Like John F. Kennedy before him, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney suggested to the American people Thursday night his particular brand of faith is not a threat. President Kennedy, a Catholic, famously said he would not take directions from the church on matters of public policy, and that the Constitution guaranteed the separation of church and state. For his part, Mr. Romney shrugged off his Mormon faith, saying the fact it made him different than most Americans was no big... Read more

Are Catholics now so “successfully” assimilated into American political life that they are without political impact—that there really is no such thing as a “Catholic vote”? Unfortunately enough, Catholics are largely indistinguishable from non-Catholics and, despite a few pundits, no, there really is no “Catholic vote.” This obvious conclusion—clear enough from the fact that the vote for the winning candidates in the last national election was approximately the same for Catholics and non-Catholics—has serious current implications as the anti-Catholic posturing... Read more

R3 Contributor Sharon Lauricella is featured here Inspiration comes in different forms. It can be in the form of a movie, a show, a song, or a dance. It can also come from a desire to simply make a difference. But often times, inspiration comes from the people closest to us, the people we surround ourselves with: our families, friends, and mentors. I met one of my biggest inspirations about four years ago. I was in my first year, in... Read more

I left politics for a reason: I was tired, down trodden and disenchanted with the whole process. Having the opportunity to return to journalism is a blessing. Being able to speak my mind and write only what I believe for the first time in three years is freeing. More importantly, as a former editor of mine recently said, “I’m glad you’re back. You always belonged in newspapers.” Indeed, it’s like coming home. After what happened Wednesday at the Democratic National... Read more

While Democracy and the Democratic Party may sound similar, the party leaders again showed yesterday that one has little to do with the other. President Obama and party leaders wanted the party’s platform changed to include a reference to both Jerusalem being the capital of Israel and God. The omissions however were not accidental and a high number of delegates opposed the change, which had to be agreed to by two-thirds of the delegates. As shown in the video below,... Read more