A Chinese revival (or several)

A few months ago, we discussed Confucianism’s comeback in China. Now the New York Times magazine considers the rise of Taoism as part of a broader religious revival in the Communist country. Ian Johnson’s article seems pretty thorough, but it also feels a little light on China’s tense relationship with religion.


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Religious liberty bogey man -- Scalia?

As I mentioned the other day, the Mattinglys of Ferndale, MD, received waves of really strange robo telephone calls before the election — since one adult in the house is a registered Republican and the other is a Democrat. We got ‘em all, folks.


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Railing against the Pope

Pope Benedict XVI dedicated the Basilica of the Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family in Barcelona this past Sunday. I was traveling from Denver yesterday and following a bunch of Catholic bloggers as they described the mass as one of the most exquisite and inspiring they’d ever witnessed. And the church itself is considered a feat of architecture, engineering and art. Though largely completed, it won’t be totally done for another 15 years or so. It will be the tallest church in the world. Designed by Antoni Gaudi, it’s replete with Christian symbolism.


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Getting Colson's wrongs right

A reader sent us a link to the Slate feature “The Wrong Stuff: What it Means to Make Mistakes.” It’s written by by Kathryn Schulz and features Q&As with notable folks discussing their relationship to being wrong.


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Religion & race in Bible Belt voting

Back during the 2008 campaign, I was invited to take part in an excellent gathering organized by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life that focused on candidate Barack Obama and the Democratic Party’s attempts to reach out to evangelicals and, in general, highly devoted religious believers of all kinds.


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