Author Archives: Andrew Stuttaford

Asteroid 2012 DA14

For some reason, the asteroid’s near(ish) miss brought this to mind…

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Benedict Resigns

Brendan O’Neill (atheist, former altar boy) looks at the pope’s resignation and is none too impressed: Benedict is aware of the crisis of vocation in the modern world, the way in which he what he called the ‘relativist cultural context… … Continue reading

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In the 21st Century

A hideous story from NBC: Assailants stripped, tortured and bound a woman accused of witchcraft, then burned her alive in front of hundreds of witnesses in a Papua New Guinea town, police said Friday after one of the highest profile … Continue reading

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Nice Try

Well, this made me laugh: In authoring scripture, Origen [an early theologian] argues, God has deliberately planted all sorts of interpretive obstacles: problems, difficulties, mistakes, morally objectionable stories, and so forth. These manifold obstacles lead us to press beneath the … Continue reading

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The Return of Alexander III?

Yet another reminder of why the Pussy Rioters went to the Cathedral. The Moscow Times reports: President Vladimir Putin said Friday that the Russian Orthodox Church should be given more say over family life, education and the armed forces in … Continue reading

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First Amendment, Second Amendment

The Economist picks up on this letter from 64 Roman Catholic theologians in favor of gun control. With so much talk of late of the supposed attack on religious freedom represented by Obamacare’s contraception mandate, this passage caught my eye: … Continue reading

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More on Morsi

Cross-posted on the Corner: Der Spiegel: To comprehend the Egyptian president and grasp how the Muslim Brotherhood shapes its members, it helps to speak with men who knew Morsi during his time with the Islamist organization — and who also … Continue reading

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History Rhymes

Cross-posted on the Corner: A number of people here have noted that yesterday was International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Well, in Mali they were burning books. The Christian Science Monitor reports: Fleeing Islamist extremists torched a library containing historic manuscripts in … Continue reading

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The Dukhovnik

Here’s a must-read in the FT that sheds yet more light on Putin’s relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church: …Father Tikhon wields influence in the church far above his modest rank of Archimandrite, or abbot, due primarily to his contacts … Continue reading

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Just Another Foolish Priest

A cleric talking nonsense is hardly news, but when it’s the right sort of nonsense, the Washington Post can be relied upon to gush: Ambitious and outspoken, the new head of Washington National Cathedral has attracted more attention over the … Continue reading

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