Chaplain Refuses Kmiec Communion

Last updated on: May 15, 2008 at 1:45 pm By M.Z.

In violation of Canon 912, a chaplain refused professor Kmiec communion for his advocacy of Barack Obama for President. While I have found Professor’s Kmiec’s initial justifications particularly weak even if I share them in finality now, I think his arguments have improved. I don’t think his arguments ever came to the point of direct support for abortion. ** I’m reopening the comments here. I request that comments positive and negative attempt to stick as closely to the topic at hand... Read more

Irving Kristol on Jewish and Christian attitudes toward business

Last updated on: May 15, 2008 at 11:00 am By Policraticus

I stumbled upon the following passage by Irving Kristol, so-called father of the neoconservative movement, in his 1978 speech “The Spiritual Roots of Capitalism.” I’m posting it here in the hope of generating some discussion. Christianity and Judaism in the United States today face many of the same problems, though they do not share all the same problems. When I talk about religion, I talk as an insider, but when I talk about Christianity, I think it will be very... Read more

NARAL Pro-Choice America endorses Obama

Last updated on: May 15, 2008 at 8:19 am By voxnovablog

A statement by Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America: “Today, NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC is proud to endorse Sen. Barack Obama for president. Sen. Obama has been a strong advocate for a woman’s right to choose throughout his career in public office. He steadfastly supports and defends a woman’s right to make the most personal, private decisions regarding her reproductive health without interference from government or politicians. “Sen. Obama has been a leader on this issue in the United... Read more

Whose Chief Political Advisor?

Last updated on: May 14, 2008 at 7:01 pm By Morning's Minion

We all know that Jermiah Wright is the chief political adviser of the Obama campaign. After all, what else can account for the obsession with this man’s words in the media?OK, let’s get back to reality: Wright is not part of Obama’s campaign. But John McCain’s political adviser is a man named Charlie Black, a man who made money lobbying for some of the world’s nastiest thugs and dictators. Consider Jonas Savimbi, the Angolan rebel who plunged his country into perpetual... Read more

A Conservative Case Against Nuclear Weapons

Last updated on: May 14, 2008 at 2:42 pm By Edward Blackadder

The desire for the United States to abandon its nuclear weapons is one that is most often associated with the far left. Yet lately a number of fairly prominent conservatives appear to be reaching the same conclusion. Last year, for example, Henry Kissinger, George Schultz, William Perry, and Sam Nunn penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal entitled “A World Free of Nuclear Weapons”: The Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) envisioned the end of all nuclear weapons. It provides (a) that... Read more

Kant: Wrong For America (Updated)

Last updated on: May 14, 2008 at 1:33 pm By Henry Karlson

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An Evangelical Manifesto

Last updated on: May 14, 2008 at 11:38 am By Policraticus

On May 7th, a group of influential Evangelical leaders and teachers published a remarkable document, An Evangelical Manifesto: A Declaration Identity and Public Commitment, that deserves a nod, I think, from all Christians concerned about the living of their faith in public life. The Manifesto is divided into three parts: 1. We Must Reform Our Identity 2. We Must Reform Our Own Behavior 3. We Must Rethink Our Place in Public Life While Parts 1 and 2 are interesting and... Read more

When The News Is Not News: Vatican Says Aliens Could Exist

Last updated on: May 14, 2008 at 5:04 am By Henry Karlson

Yesterday, some people on the Catholic blogosphere commented on a statement given by Rev Jose Gabriel Funes saying that alien life could exist. The one thing I didn’t see in the news report, and the one thing which should have been reported, is that this is a long-standing tradition and viewpoint (not doctrinal nor dogmatic, but a valid theological opinion) which existed in the Church even before the Reformation. One can find this view, for example, in the works of Cardinal Nicholas of Cusa (1401 – 1464). ... Read more

Non-Religious Arguments

Last updated on: May 13, 2008 at 3:07 pm By jonathanjonesuiwdpt

Thursday is finally back, and he is considering supernaturalism, tradition, and the law. He raises an interesting point: why do the religious tend to fall back on religious arguments? There is nothing wrong with this, of course, but the point of argument is to inform and persuade. This often means adapting to audience, even as there is refusal to compromise on principle. How often do we fail to consider how our interactions appear? How little do we attempt empathy outside... Read more

Unions: From the People Who Brought You Weekends

Last updated on: May 13, 2008 at 10:46 am By Edward Blackadder

I found this exchange between Jonathan Alter and Mickey Kaus fascinating. According to Alter, unions have largely been venal, short-sided, and generally bad for society. Yet he thinks we ought to expand their power and influence in the hope that they will behave in a more enlightened manner. Alter’s concern (in his words, “unskilled workers are getting the shaft”) is of course legitimate, but so far as I can tell his line of reasoning is pretty much the “politician’s logic”... Read more

What Christian group traces its origins to the Azusa Street Revival?