2013-01-30T16:42:22-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:42 pm   By

True connoisseurs of ecclesiastical humor can answer this question: “How many Episcopalians does it take to change a light bulb?” The most popular answers sound something like this: “Ten. One to change the bulb and nine to start a newsletter about the irreplaceability of the original bulb.” Episcopalians do love their traditions, a trait that they share with everyone else in the Anglican Communion. Nevertheless, the reason the world’s 77 million Anglicans fight so much is that many cherish some... Read more

2013-01-30T16:42:35-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:42 pm   By

During one of his early visits to London, Billy Graham was confronted by an Anglican leader who causally dismissed the entire crusade effort. “Young man,” said the priest, “I do not approve of your style of evangelism.” “I’m sure that what I’m doing isn’t perfect,” replied Graham. “But I like the evangelism that I’m doing better than the evangelism that you’re not doing.” Robert E. Webber knew that collision of styles inside out. The theologian spent most of his career... Read more

2013-01-30T16:42:42-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:42 pm   By

For those marking their calendars far in advance, the next celebration of Passover will begin at sundown on April 19, 2008. This means well-connected American Jews have almost a full year to lobby for their favorite rabbi to make the unofficial, but totally buzz-worthy, list of the nation’s 50 top rabbis. The pre-Passover list in Newsweek was such a hit that the film-industry players who created it are already gearing up for the sequel. The goal was to jump start... Read more

2013-01-30T16:42:53-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:42 pm   By

You’re waiting for the other shoe to drop. You know the shoe I’m talking about — the religion shoe. When the Virginia Tech University story broke, you began clicking from website to website, channel to channel, seeking information and, then, something more. You’ve seen photos of mourners in pews, offering comfort and seeking solace. You know that believers will pray and that journalists will keep aiming cameras at them, because, that?s what Bible Belt people do. People in southwest Virginia... Read more

2013-01-30T16:43:06-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:43 pm   By

Religious folks sure get nervous when public officials talk about “fundamentalist” gunmen invading a school. Consider what happened recently after a staged emergency at Burlington Township High School in New Jersey. The police script for the drill called for armed men to crash the front doors, shoot several students and barricade themselves in the library with hostages. This document, according to the Burlington County Times, described the intruders as part of “a right-wing fundamentalist group called the ‘New Crusaders’ who... Read more

2013-01-30T16:43:24-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:43 pm   By

When Peter Maris’ father arrived from Greece the U.S. immigration officer couldn’t understand his last name and “Margaris” became “Maris.” When his mother’s Jewish parents arrived from Poland they added “ski” to their name because they thought “Rafalski” sounded Catholic and, thus, would be safer. And when Kathleen Rafalski married Dennis Maris, she immediately joined the St. Demetrios Orthodox Church in Hammond, Ind. “They were married in the Greek church,” said Peter Maris, 42. “She learned to speak Greek. She... Read more

2013-01-30T16:43:34-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:43 pm   By

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The tall wardrobe in the office of the Westmont College English department isn’t much to look at, but visitors from near and far keep visiting to peek inside. A previous owner described this piece of oak furniture as a “perfectly ordinary wardrobe,” a big one of the “sort that has a looking glass in the door.” It was big enough to hold “a second row of coats hanging up behind the first one,” yet the threshold... Read more

2013-01-30T16:43:43-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:43 pm   By

NEW YORK — At the height of Da Vinci Code mania there was sign at the door of the Murray Hill Conference Center asking visitors if they wanted to learn the truth about the “real Opus Dei.” Visitors received a cheery information pamphlet. Staffers also had answers ready for those asking edgier questions that usually sounded something like this: “Is this the world headquarters of Opus Dei, the place where that albino monk Silas lived who murdered all those people... Read more

2013-01-30T16:43:55-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:43 pm   By

Eric Phillips really likes soup at lunch. One of his favorites is baked-potato soup, a filling option that, at first glance, appears to be meat-free. That’s important because Phillips isn’t eating meat during the 40 days of Lent preceding Easter. Alas, baked-potato soup almost always contains chicken fat, as do many vegetable or pasta soups. “I gave up meat for Lent last year, which was a pain in the neck,” said Phillips, who has a Catholic University of America doctorate... Read more

2013-01-30T16:44:03-05:00

Last updated on: January 30, 2013 at 4:44 pm   By

The panic may strike in the shelter of a Starbucks, when a customer realizes that a quote from evangelical superstar Rick “The Purpose Driven Life” Warren is printed on some of coffee cups. This would cause any latte-sipping liberal to mutter “Oh my goddess” and worry about legions of Focus on the Family donors invading Wiccan book clubs in Unitarian sanctuaries from sea to shining sea. Does thinking about this give you sweaty palms? If so, writer Robert Lanham of... Read more

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