Joe Carter

In the latest issue of Books and Culture , Joseph Bottum has one of the most comprehensive reviews of mystery novels and Christianity that you’ll ever find: Some things have changed over the years, of course: the uses of technology, the openness about sex, and, notably, the treatment of . . . . Continue Reading »

Stop Giving One Hundred Percent! The Scriptorium , John Mark Reynolds Thou Shalt Not Say “Jesus” Patheos , Thomas S. Kidd GOP leaders push to have marriage defined in N.C. Washington Times , Cheryl Wetzstein How the Church of England can—and will—endure The Spectator , Tom . . . . Continue Reading »

Walter Russell Mead takes note of the recent reappraisal by some liberal intellectuals of the work of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas : There are few articles of faith as firmly fixed in the liberal canon as the belief that Clarence Thomas is, to put it as bluntly as many liberals do, a dunce . . . . Continue Reading »

Although the presidential primary candidates have barely cleared the starting blocks in their race for the nomination, the examination of their religious beliefs has already hit full stride. Numerous profiles and editorials have already implied that the Republican candidates are racing toward a theocracy. For example, in a hit piece for the New Yorker, Ryan Lizza says that the overarching thesis of his article is that Michele Bachmann holds “a set of beliefs more extreme than those of any American politician of her stature.” But is this really true? Just how extreme can a candidate’s beliefs be before they are deemed unelectable? … Continue Reading »

Theologian Carl Truman has a helpful post explaining the different views of tradition held by Protestants and Catholics : Ask a thoughtful Protestant about where Protestantism and Catholicism most significantly diverge, and it is likely that they will mention the closely related areas of tradition . . . . Continue Reading »

Reversing the Retreat from Marriage Love and Fidelity Network , Cassy Hough The Quiet Death of Interfaith Activity? Patheos , Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein American Muslims feeling right at home, new poll finds National Post The Last Temptation of Science The New Atlantis , Algis Valiunas Marriage . . . . Continue Reading »

Did you know ugly folks make less money than the beautiful people? One study has revealed that “an American worker who was among the bottom one-seventh in looks, as assessed by randomly chosen observers, earned 10 to 15 percent less per year than a similar worker whose looks were assessed in the top one-third — a lifetime difference, in a typical case, of about $230,000.” Daniel S. Hamermesh, a professor of economics at the University of Texas, Austin, proposes that to compensate these folks we should have affirmative action for ugly people : 
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The “golden age” of Arabic science extended from the eighth through the thirteenth centuries a.d. . Since then the intellectual decline has been staggering. Hillel Ofek traces the answer back to foundational differences between Islam and Christianity : There are roughly 1.6 billion . . . . Continue Reading »

Survey: Catholic Infant Baptisms Decline EWTN News A few Catholics still insist Galileo was wrong L.A. Times , Manya A. Brachear Politics and religion can mix L.A. Times , Charlotte Allen Promote Democracy: Start at Home, but Don’t Stop at Home Public Discourse , Jennifer S. Bryson American . . . . Continue Reading »

Leland Ryken on the 400th anniversary on the King James Bible : Upon the death of Queen Elizabeth I in March 1603, King James of Scotland became the ruling monarch of England. Somewhere along the way south to London his procession was met by a group of Puritans who presented him with a list of . . . . Continue Reading »