Category Archives: Religion

Mother Teresa and the Cult of Suffering

Mother Teresa has been canonized today. The new saint’s record is more complicated than either her critics or her fans like to acknowledge, but this balanced piece by Mari Marcel Thekaekara in the Guardian is worth a look. Towards the … Continue reading

Posted in Religion | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Trump on God

CNN (from last year): “Well I say God is the ultimate. You know you look at this?” Trump said, motioning toward an oceanfront golf course that bears his name. “Here we are on the Pacific Ocean. How did I ever … Continue reading

Posted in politics, Religion | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

ISIS, God and The Devil

Austen Ivereigh’s defense of Pope Francis’ response to ISIS appears to be, well, evolving. Just the other day, he was arguing this: [ISIS] is a wholly modernistic creation, a vehicle of power, the “technocratic paradigm” of domination and exploitation, applied … Continue reading

Posted in politics, Religion | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on ISIS, God and The Devil

“Paris Vaut Bien Une Messe”

Politico: Trump met with hundreds of evangelical leaders in New York earlier this week, and while some well-known figures — such as Liberty University’s president, Jerry Falwell Jr. — have endorsed the candidate, others are more hesitant to do so. … Continue reading

Posted in politics, Religion | Tagged , , | Comments Off on “Paris Vaut Bien Une Messe”

“On the Ideology of Anti-Islamophobia”

An interesting criticism of the notion of “Islamophobia,” translated from French, has made an appearance at Charnel House, a Marxist blog that’s nearly equally fascinated by architecture. (They say the last remaining Marxists are to be found in English departments, but … Continue reading

Posted in philosophy, Race, Religion | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Doubt as Sin.

In the course of reading around a story about how the Portland Public Schools board has unanimously approved a resolution aimed at “eliminating doubt” about climate change and its causes in schools, I came across this quote  from Nietzsche (It’s … Continue reading

Posted in Religion | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Rome, Brussels and Ventotene

Cross-posted on the Corner: Writing in Britain’s Catholic Herald, Ed West reports on the attitude taken by the Vatican to Brexit. I touched on this last week in a discussion on the award to the Pope of the Charlemagne prize, … Continue reading

Posted in Church & State, politics, Religion | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Rome, Brussels and Ventotene

The Pope, the EU and the Charlemagne Prize

Cross-posted on the Corner One thing about this pope: When it comes to political matters, he has an unerring ability to be on the wrong side of the issue. Vatican Radio: Pope Francis on Friday received the International Charlemagne Prize of … Continue reading

Posted in Church & State, history, politics, Religion | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Pope, the EU and the Charlemagne Prize

The “God Gap” Shrinks in a Trump v. Clinton Matchup

This from Religion News Service: The Battleground Poll has the Clinton-Trump God gap at under 15 points, with those who say they go to church at least once a week preferring Trump to Clinton by nine points and those attending less … Continue reading

Posted in politics, Religion, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Freeloading and Virtue-Signaling: Roman Catholic Opposition to ‘Just War’ Theory

National Catholic Reporter: VATICAN CITY The participants of a first-of-its-kind Vatican conference have bluntly rejected the Catholic church’s long-held teachings on just war theory, saying they have too often been used to justify violent conflicts and the global church must … Continue reading

Posted in Church & State, politics, Religion | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment