Joe Carter

In the Lord of the Rings films, British actor Ian McKellen played Gandalf, a wizard who helps protect Middle-earth from the forces of evil. But in real he plays a censor, protecting hotel guests from the nefarious collaboration of Moses and the Gideons: Details: Is it true that when you stay at . . . . Continue Reading »

This should not be a surprise to anyone : Edmunds.com, the premier resource for online automotive information, has determined that Cash for Clunkers cost taxpayers $24,000 per vehicle sold. Nearly 690,000 vehicles were sold during the Cash for Clunkers program, officially known as CARS, but . . . . Continue Reading »

Think pastors have a stressful job? They’ve got nothing on the music ministry director. (Why are you laughing? Have you ever tried to choose a hymn.) From CNN:You may not think of people who plan, direct and conduct performances for religious services as being under a particularly high amount . . . . Continue Reading »

I can’t believe we’ve gone the whole day without any of our Lutheran contributors mentioning Reformation Day. (Um, we do have some Lutherans around here, don’t we? Note to self: Get some Lutherans.)Fortunately, one of my fellow Baptists, Timothy George, founding dean of Beeson . . . . Continue Reading »

When does a cross cease to represent Christianity and become a secular symbol? According to Justice Antonin Scalia, when it’s used for a war memorial. As Susan Jacoby, the Washington Post ’s resident atheist, reports : In oral arguments this month in the case of Salazar v. Buono,, which . . . . Continue Reading »

Every autumn Christians throughout North America engage in hand-wringing disputes over what to do about Halloween. The discussions tend to reflect in microcosm how we interact with overtly secular aspects on a larger scale. Should we separate and stand apart, becoming a witness by our disengagement, . . . . Continue Reading »

When it is pointed out that the media and academy are skewed to one type of idealogical persuasion, everyone shrugs. But as Mark Bauerlein of the Chronicle of Higher Education points out, the research shows liberal bias is of exactly the same kind, uses the same methods, and holds the same . . . . Continue Reading »

Every autumn Christians throughout North America engage in hand-wringing disputes over what to do about Halloween. The discussions tend to reflect in microcosm how we interact with overtly secular aspects on a larger scale. Should we separate and stand apart, becoming a witness by our disengagement . . . . Continue Reading »

At the AOL-sponsored site Politics Daily , religion columnist David Gibson has a feature on the precautions taken by “religious leaders and congregants alike over the possibility of a swine flu epidemic.” Church services may pose the greatest risks, however. Christians not only gather . . . . Continue Reading »

WORLD Magazine has a cover story on how the case of a small Benedictine college—and federal attempts to pressure it to pay for employees’ contraception—could foretell the loss of religious freedom after Congress overhauls healthcare: For the 18 Benedictine monks living in a . . . . Continue Reading »