This may be the pickiest post I have ever written, but, hey, the mountains of North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee are my favorite place on earth, so please allow me to share a news-related chuckle with the locals.
Which religious views are appropriate?
Let’s start with a bit of background. Last week, a federal judge ruled that a law authorizing a National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional. That day is marked in early May and observances can continue until all appeals are exhausted. There’s a group called the National Day of Prayer Task Force. It focuses on Christian events and they worked with the Pentagon chaplain’s office on a National Day of Prayer event to be held next month. They had invited noted Christian evangelist Franklin Graham to give a prayer. Mikey Weinstein, who runs the Military Religious Freedom Foundation and was also in the news years ago when he fought evangelical influences at the United States Air Force Academy, complained about his invitation and by Thursday, the invitation was rescinded. (And I’m not sure if it’s coincidence or not, but President Barack Obama is actually meeting with Franklin Graham and his more famous father, the Rev. Billy Graham, today!)
Abuse of a 'boy' or a 'young man'?
Anyone who picked up a major newspaper today knows that one of the hot stories on the other side of the Atlantic is the resignation of Bishop Roger Vangheluwe of Brugge, Belgium — the latest star to fall in the current wave of clergy sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church.
Still Supremely Protestant-less
As the Supreme Court nomination anticipation heats up, Dahlia Lithwick’s piece for Slate reads more like a sigh than anything else. Lithwick suggested that the short lists everyone keeps writing about don’t tell us very much except what people–media included–expect to see the next fight over the court.
Tebow wars, part 666
It would be an understatement of epic proportions to say that Baltimore is slightly obsessed with the Ravens, its NFL franchise in the tortured era after the sinful betrayal that cost the city the Colts.
Al Qaeda, airstrikes and . . . churches?
Earlier this week, news broke that two top Al Qaeda leaders were killed in an airstrike carried out by U.S. troops:
Hooking up with CNN
Religion is overrated. Here in the bubble of GetReligionland, we sometimes forget that. Thank you, CNN, for reminding us.
South Park goes too far or just full circle?
State of the online Godbeat 2010
Last week, I posted a chunk of what I wrote marking the 22nd birthday of the weekly “On Religion” column for the Scripps Howard News Service.
