Category Archives: Religious Belief

The closet Christian

I grapple with this every semester. Should I or shouldn’t I? Some semesters I announce to my religion classes that I’m a “thinking theist”. I’m not ashamed of being a person of faith, but I realize that I take the … Continue reading

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Doubting and religious belief

This is a topic that interests me a great deal. There was a thread on Andrew Sullivan’s blog that I found intriguing. It was prompted by Pope Benedict’s recension of the prior excommunication of a schismatic bishop. (More posts on … Continue reading

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Environmentalism as faith

It’s not the connection I would make, but the analysis of what counts as “religious faith” (i.e., at least organized religion) is not uncommon. Faith is belief without verifiable evidence. This unquestioned adherence to the theory of Global Warming bears … Continue reading

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Two forums on Religion and Belief

Two good talks from the City University of New York (CUNY), Graduate Center. “What is Religion?” and “Varieties of Nonbelief“. [Videos]

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Mennonites in Mexico

I heard this segment on Public Radio International’sThe World this afternoon. Mexico is the last place I think of when I hear the word “Mennonite”. You can read more about the religion here. We do have a Gator connection, though. … Continue reading

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Out of the mouths of babes

I thought this was too precious. What I didn’t realize is that there may be room for concern about the name of the giraffe. But it seems to me that the name came before the conversion.

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Echoes of Schleiermacher

I receive monthly greetings from a Benedictine abbot, Abbot Philip. He’s the Abbot of Christ in the Desert in New Mexico. They were the site of a Discovery Channel show in 2006. I wrote and asked his permission to quote … Continue reading

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The religion gene

I suppose we can’t have it both ways. This from the NY Times: For atheists, it is not a particularly welcome thought that religion evolved because it conferred essential benefits on early human societies and their successors. If religion is … Continue reading

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New meaning to an old joke

Here it goes: a rabbi, a minister and a Muslim sheik walk into a restaurant…

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Anne Rice’s return

I’ve re-checked out from the library Anne rice’s Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession for probably the third time. This time I’m actually reading the book. I am not a fan of vampires so I “missed out” on the … Continue reading

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