How much longer do we have to pretend that it matters when we hear people justify their prejudices by claiming: “The Bible says”? It’s such an easy excuse for sanctifying any position, that people who’ve never even opened the Bible use it. It’s saying something
A world religions professor faces mortality You’d think after studying religions around the world that I’d have formed some definite ideas about the afterlife, but alas, I haven’t. And I know that I’m in good company — some of the religious leaders that I admire
Should you stay, or should you go? It continues to be one of the major crises for religious believers today. What should we do with “these people” whom our denomination has marginalized for centuries? For some it’s LGBTQ+ people. The United Methodist Church, for example,
Translating the triggers: A handy primer Of course, we want to believe that everyone means what they say. We’d love to believe that more educating and presentations of the facts convinces people. We think that explaining ourselves repeatedly and spending a lot of energy to
Pat Robertson saying it in the name of Jesus didn’t make it Christian Probably the most used basis for justifying discrimination, whether it’s against LGBTQ+ people or others, is the appeal to religious claims. But is religion any more than a scapegoat to hide everything
They’re paralyzed with fear Imagine a story where Jesus comes up to someone who’s been an invalid for 38 years and who’s been waiting for who-knows-how-long at a place known for its healing properties — and the first question Jesus asks him is: “Do you
Every culture has them. And we know what ours are. They’re the stereotypes, the popular definitions, the expectations, the images of what a lesbian, gay man, bisexual person, transgender person, queer person, or any of the others in that alphabet are supposed to be. They’ve
Each year Valentine’s Day encourages a whole season of love, whatever that means in American culture. At least it means that the new year begins with stores overflowing with candy, flowers, cards, stuffed animals, jewelry, and other paraphernalia needed to show how buying proves we’re
They still can’t quit it It’s no wild prediction to say that the year ahead will see even more of the “culture wars” ginned up by religionists who use their religion the way any addict uses their preferred addictive substance or process. They’re primed to
When you weaponize bigotry, it’s only a matter of time before someone picks up a weapon It was another deadly mass shooting in Colorado at an LGBTQ+ nightclub on another American day that will live in infamy as did the shooting six years ago at