Such a lonely word

Last updated on: August 20, 2012 at 11:03 pm By Fred Clark

Jamelle Bouie: “Why Romney keeps lying about Obama and welfare” It’s been three weeks since Mitt Romney first took fire for asserting that the Obama administration “gutted” work requirements in welfare. When the first ad was released, PolitiFact took the lead in debunking its claim that under Obama’s plan, “they just send you your welfare check,” giving it the highest rating of “Pants on Fire.” FactCheck.org followed suit, and the Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler offered a similar denunciation, giving the... Read more

Smart people saying smart things

Last updated on: August 20, 2012 at 5:22 pm By Fred Clark

Elizabeth Drescher: “Masculinity and Mass Violence” By and large the common denominator in mass killing is gender; the intimate enemy is almost always a man. Left unexplored in commentary … is the role masculinity itself — not the biological fact of being male, but the behavioral and ideological markers of maleness that are malleable across time and culture — plays in acts of violence in general and mass violence in particular. Given the centrality of men, masculinity, and masculinist ideologies... Read more

When ‘evangelism’ intends to alienate and exclude

Last updated on: August 20, 2012 at 12:27 pm By Fred Clark

That Truth for Youth culture-war Bible we discussed yesterday is destined to be poorly received. I think that’s by design. The purpose of this new, improved Bible, allegedly, is to “reach youth with the gospel.” By the “gospel,” unfortunately, these folks mean the culture-war gospel — not the good news of Jesus the Christ, but a collection of sermons condemning abortion, homosexuality, sex, drugs & rock ‘n’ roll. But set aside that little matter of blasphemy and let’s just consider... Read more

‘Use my head alongside my heart’

Last updated on: August 20, 2012 at 1:36 am By Fred Clark

“If the church is to mean anything going forward it must be on side of liberation.” “She makes Mickey Spillane look like Dostoevsky.” “If you’re a Christian, you’ve got to ask some serious questions about what’s going on here.” “Cobb County Evangelical Hospital held its fifth annual Walk to Cure Gayness on Sunday, drawing thousands of participants to raise funds and awareness for the debilitating psychosexual disease.” “Young-earth creationism is, in fact, just one of a number of movements that... Read more

Rep. Todd Akin exposes the horrific immorality of moralism

Last updated on: August 19, 2012 at 10:22 pm By Fred Clark

This post is about a tea-party Republican politician’s understanding of sex, morality and rape. So consider that a trigger warning for anyone who views the first two as Good Things and the last one as a horrific crime (this guy disagrees on all three counts). Evan McMorris-Santoro of Talking Points Memo seems to have had this story first, “Republican Senate Nominee: Victims of ‘Legitimate Rape’ Don’t Get Pregnant“: Rep. Todd Akin, the Republican nominee for Senate in Missouri who is... Read more

Culture warriors produce a new, improved Bible

Last updated on: August 19, 2012 at 12:22 pm By Fred Clark

Fundamentalist Christians are fond of the final verses of the book of Revelation: The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. No, not that one, of course. They don’t tend to think of “grace” as a defining characteristic of the Lord Jesus. Nor do they believe such grace should be extended to all the saints (at least not to all the people who claim to be among the saints — certainly not to the egalitarians, liberals, homosexuals,... Read more

Sunday favorites

Last updated on: August 8, 2012 at 7:21 pm By Fred Clark

Luke 4:16-19 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim... Read more

‘Inerrancy’ is not a victimless crime

Last updated on: August 18, 2012 at 8:43 pm By Fred Clark

The doctrine of “inerrancy” is often referred to as a “high view of scripture.” It is not. It’s a low-down dirty trick to play on the Bible and on anyone who tries to read it. Inerrancy is not a victimless crime. It chases some people away from the Bible and prevents others from reading it intelligently. I respect that this idea comes from a place of respect, but that is not where it leads. It leads to a profound disrespect... Read more

Wizard imps and sweat-sock pimps

Last updated on: August 18, 2012 at 6:25 pm By Fred Clark

This probably means there’s no chance that LifeWay Christian Books will resume carrying The Blind Side. This study could be fruitful if a follow-up explored the reasons for its findings. Instead, it will likely be fodder for more of the same feckless guilt-tripping that is a primary cause of its results. Sometimes what love looks like is doing the paperwork. You don’t like to do paperwork? Exactly. Scot McKnight provides a concise, helpful description of dominion theology. Christian Piatt’s “Church... Read more

Aug. 18: ‘To the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, R.I.’

Last updated on: May 18, 2012 at 8:03 pm By Fred Clark

President George Washington, August 18, 1790: Gentlemen. While I receive, with much satisfaction, your Address replete with expressions of affection and esteem; I rejoice in the opportunity of assuring you, that I shall always retain a grateful remembrance of the cordial welcome I experienced in my visit to Newport, from all classes of Citizens. The reflection on the days of difficulty and danger which are past is rendered the more sweet, from a consciousness that they are succeeded by days... Read more