Tribes exist when people share a heritage. Religions exist when people share belief stories. Communities exist when people share priorities. Through most of human history, we have lived in groups where all these three were shared — heritage, belief, and priorities. We had common ancestors,
You know what’s a sin? People who think they can look at someone and tell if they are a sinner. In the end, that judgment is up to God and God alone. All we mortals can do is to determine who is dangerous to the
Is religion about the smells and bells, the elements of the ritual? We have all heard the story about Tallulah Bankhead going to mass with Cardinal (Francis) Spellman. As the procession passed her, the cardinal in his vestments with a censer, she is reputed to
To die, and to be reborn. It’s a powerful notion, so powerful and pervasive in human societies that there is no surprise that Christianity puts death and rebirth at the core. And it provides an easy way to take a measure of someone’s beliefs. Are