Stonehenge, Yucca Mountain, and the Bible

Last updated on: January 5, 2016 at 11:43 am By Fred Clark

How long can history and memory be preserved without any written record? And, even if we stipulate that some vestigial memory might linger after many centuries, is there any way to separate those legitimate memories and histories from all that has accumulated around them? It's a tantalizing problem. We want to know more than we do -- maybe more than we can -- about the ancient past, but the record of it just isn't there. What we have, instead, are ciphers and puzzles, with few clues to understanding them. Read more

Outside there’s a boxcar waiting

Last updated on: January 5, 2016 at 9:30 am By Fred Clark

Akinobu Kimura just did something that probably no human being has ever done before. Plus: Advice for the gig economy; the purpose of FreeCell; more failed predictions from the GOP; and how many actors have pulled a von Sydow? Read more

Toddlers on a treadmill: Why evangelicals can’t even take baby steps toward justice

Last updated on: January 4, 2016 at 8:33 pm By Fred Clark

That doesn't mean they'll be allowed to say "Do justice." But -- provided the anti-gay and anti-abortion stuff remains in good order -- they may be allowed to suggest that doing justice is one possible optional extra that some Christians might optionally be permitted to consider as a hobby, just so long as they get their homework done first and it doesn't otherwise interfere with their support for TAOTS or their opposition to gay baby-killing. Read more

InterVarsity takes a firehose to Pentecost in a rush to quench the spirit

Last updated on: January 4, 2016 at 8:43 am By Fred Clark

A remarkable, prophetic moment took place at Urbana -- the big student missions conference held by InterVarsity. And then, with dazzling speed, InterVarsity set to work quenching the spirit, backpedaling furiously and releasing an official statement intended to reassure white Christians who are terrified of black people. The pattern holds. Read more

Sunday favorites

Last updated on: January 2, 2016 at 7:01 pm By Fred Clark

"O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more." Read more

Maybe this year will be better than the last

Last updated on: January 2, 2016 at 6:45 pm By Fred Clark

We're turning the page after a sad New Year's Eve for our family. Plus: Shouldn't retailers be happy when tens of millions of their customers get a raise? Why voters prefer good fans of the wrong teams over bad fans of the right ones. And why it's not safe to share a home with American police officers. Read more

Such things will happen in time

Last updated on: December 29, 2015 at 6:53 pm By Fred Clark

I don't think Warren Buffett's philanthropy can atone for the exploitation of poor and minority families he's enriching himself with through the despicable practices of Clayton Homes. Plus: Soul-less Neaderthals and the Nephilim; pulling ourselves together; my failure to make the Worst Christian Book Covers list; and dancing to Donald Trump's nightmare. Read more

‘Ed Dobson loved homosexuals’

Last updated on: December 29, 2015 at 5:39 pm By Fred Clark

Ed Dobson was a lieutenant in Jerry Falwell's Moral Majority and helped to create the religious right. The Michigan pastor also worked with ACT UP to find ways that his fundamentalist mega-church could help people suffering from AIDS. Read more

Run, Franklin, run.

Last updated on: December 29, 2015 at 4:07 pm By Fred Clark

"In denouncing the Republican Party this week, Graham made a pitch for the prayer rallies he will hold in every state next year, starting in Iowa in January shortly before the crucial first presidential primary." That almost sounds like Franklin Graham is organizing for an independent run for president. Read more

Brother Paul and the Ship of Miracles: Good stories

Last updated on: December 28, 2015 at 3:05 pm By Fred Clark

"The Meredith was designed to haul cargo and only had accommodations for 12 passengers and a 47-person crew. On the afternoon of Dec. 22, in gale force winds and swirling snow, the crew began to load the refugees into the cargo holds using makeshift booms and gangplanks. ... It took nearly 24 hours, but the crew somehow managed to fit 14,000 refugees within the ship's five cargo holds." Read more

What is the name for a church led by a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox traditions?