Today an imam delivered the opening prayer before the Virginia House of Delegates – and once again the Religious Right is having kittens.
Three Religious Right groups – the Traditional Values Coalition, the Virginia Anti-Shariah Task Force and Act for America — say the imam, Johari Abdul-Malik of the Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, is […] Read More
On Feb. 24, a tragedy occurred at SeaWorld in Orlando, Fla. A six-ton killer whale known as Tillikum pulled trainer Dawn Brancheau underwater to her death in front of a crowd of horrified spectators watching a show.
Brancheau’s tragic death has led to some soul searching: What should be done with Tillikum? Is it ever appropriate to keep killer […] Read More
Let’s close out the week with a selection of updates and news tidbits that you might have missed:
[…] Read More
The infamous “C Street house” is back in the news.
A group of clergy in Ohio, aided by a tax lawyer, has written to the Internal Revenue Service today asking the federal tax agency to examine the house’s tax-exempt status as a church.
If you’re just joining us, the C Street house is a structure in Washington, D.C., […] Read More
For months I’ve been trying to figure out what to make of the “tea party” movement.
Is it merely another band of anti-government, low-tax activists with a libertarian populist edge – or will it become the next wave of the Religious Right? Do the tea partiers intend to stay focused on issues like smaller government or will they […] Read More
Two months ago, I wrote a post about religious tolerance being on the upswing at the Air Force Academy. The Associated Press had reported that when Pagan cadets sought a place to worship, Academy officials worked with them to create an outdoor stone circle.
Some people are having a difficult time dealing with that.
Someone recently left […] Read More
Note: Today is the federal observance of Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday. This blog post is a re-publication on an item that originally appeared on Jan. 13, 2006.
Today marks the federal observance of Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday. Since his tragic assassination on April 4, 1968, King’s memory has been pressed into service in highly unusual ways that King […] Read More
TV preacher Pat Robertson’s recent callous comments about Haiti have attracted quite a bit of attention.
Once again, Robertson has stuck his foot firmly into his mouth. Americans United and many other groups have issued statements denouncing him. Progressive commentators like Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann have blasted him. I expect the editorial cartoonists will have a field day. […] Read More
If you need a reminder of how important church-state separation is, read Joel McDurmon’s chilling essay “A Perfect Hatred.”
McDurmon is director of research for American Vision (AV), a Georgia-based Religious Right outfit that seeks to replace our constitutional democracy with a government built around an ultra-fundamentalist reading of the Bible. These “Christian Reconstructionists” often say publicly what […] Read More
Told ya so!
Back in April, when Religious Right bigwig James Dobson announced his “retirement” from Focus on the Family, Americans United was skeptical. We pointed out that while Dobson was giving up some managerial duties, he still planned to broadcast over the radio, issue monthly letters to supporters and hand out political endorsements. It didn’t look like much was […] Read More