Culture and SocietyCulture and Society Archives
October 5, 2006
Rejecting God in Public Schools
It's a violation of church and state to pray to God in public schools. However, the same standard does not appear to apply to those who worship Allah:The U.S. Supreme Court rejected an appeal Monday by evangelical Christian students and their parents who said a Contra Costa County school district...May 25, 2006
The American Idol
The British Times Online gives a provoking, if not distressing, commentary on American priorities:A PREMATURELY greying bar singer from Birmingham, Alabama, has been named 2006’s American Idol after viewers of the talent show cast nearly 64 million votes in one night — more votes than any US president has received....April 13, 2006
Da Vinci Code Brings Westminster Response
Westminster Theological Seminary responds to the Da Vinci Code:The Truth will be resurrected on Good Friday when Westminster Theological Seminary, one of the oldest and most respected seminaries, will launch a robust website dedicated to presenting a factual response to the claims in Dan Brown’s runaway best-seller novel and soon-to-be-...November 24, 2005
Washington's 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation
Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor-- and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the...September 20, 2005
Scientific Research and Modern Day Fables Part 1
I would bet that the most people accept the results of scientific investigations that are published in peer reviewed journals as fact. But can published research in scientific journals be trusted and should it be used to change public policy and impact our society in the profound manner that has...August 2, 2005
Religious Neutrality and the Supreme Court
Imago Dei writer Colby Garman has an important post on the Myth of Neutrality and the Supreme Court Nomination of Judge John Roberts which explains that the fundamental beliefs of individuals necessarily impact the decisions that are made:The views an individual carries are informed by the ways that they answer...July 12, 2005
Ideas, Consequences and Worldviews
In his Town Hall column Chuck Colson writes about the "birth dearth", the plummeting birth rates in most of the industrialized world. Throughout Western Europe and East Asia, the birth rate is well below 2.1 births per woman—which is the minimum needed to maintain a stable population. Environmentalist dogma argues...June 20, 2005
A Lesson from the Life and Death of Terri Schiavo
Amid the ongoing controversies that surround the death of Terri Schiavo is the lesson that our courts and society have taken a low view of human life, one that measures a person’s worth by the scale of the young and healthy [HT: Captain Ed]. The core values of this death...May 19, 2005
Eugenics in America
State Secret: Thousands Secretly Sterilized ABC News reports that thousands of people were secretly sterilized by the state between 1929 and 1974. From the early 1900s to the 1970s, some 65,000 men and women were sterilized in this country, many without their knowledge, as part of a government eugenics program...May 2, 2005
Stay-At-Home Moms Deserve High Pay
I couldn’t agree more with the sentiment behind the recent study that concluded stay-at-home moms should earn six figure incomes for the hours they work and the duties they perform. "The importance of this calculation or this estimate is just calling attention to the fact that being a stay-at-home mom...March 15, 2005
Activist Judge Imposes New Moral Standard on Marriage
SAN FRANCISCO - A judge ruled Monday that California's ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional — a legal milestone that, if upheld on appeal, would open the way for the most populous state to follow Massachusetts in allowing same-sex couples to wed. Judge Richard Kramer of San Francisco County's trial-level...January 17, 2005
Newt Gingrich as a Litmus Test for Moral Conservatives
Newt Gingrich is testing the waters for a possible bid at the presidency in 2008 and has become a litmus test for conservatives who believe that character counts and that what a person believes and does impacts his or her suitability for public office. You see, like former President Bill...Bush Backs Off Defense of Marriage Amendment
The Washington Post reports that President Bush has backed away from his push for a constitutional amendment that would "protect" marriage due to the realities of the Senate. However, Bush could not have expected a Senate with more than 67 Republican Senators back in 2004 when he previously pledged his support of DOMA. In fact, given the overwhelming nationwide defeat of referendums aimed at establishing gay marriage, if anything, Bush has more public support than before. Did election outcome divert the gay marriage "crisis" that invoked the President prior statements?
January 6, 2005
Director Blames Audience for Film Failure
Often-controversial director Oliver Stone has blamed the failure of his epic film Alexander on the "raging fundamentalism" in the U.S. South... Some conservative groups objected to Alexander's portrayal of the famous warrior as a bisexual. - more Interestingly, the historian Plutarch, while probably embellishing Alexander's character, describes Alexander as follows,...December 30, 2004
Truth and Its Consequences
Donald Sensing of One Hand Clapping has published a preview of his upcoming book about the history, causes, and implications of the current conflict between the West and a powerful strain of Islam. His summary begins, This war is in fact a religious war all around, even though we of...December 24, 2004
Absolute Moral Truths at the Evangelical Outpost
Visit the interesting discussion on absolute moral truths at the Evangelical Outpost. Both the original post and discussion are worth perusing. Here is a useful excerpt: The secular postmodern world believes that God doesn’t exist. Ontologically speaking he possesses no Being and, obviously, no knowledge. Postmoderns do, generally speaking, believe...December 23, 2004
Democrats Rethink Abortion Strategy
After long defining itself as an undisputed defender of abortion rights, the Democratic Party is suddenly locked in an internal struggle over whether to redefine its position to appeal to a broader array of voters. [LA Times] While a change in the Democratic position on abortion is long overdue, a...December 18, 2004
Pope John Paul and Civilized Progress
Pope John Paul publicly condemned homosexual marriage as a radical and aggressive attack on the family and the fabric of society. "Who destroys this fundamental fabric causes a profound injury to society and provokes often irreparable damage," he said. [more] Commenting and homosexual marriage (an oxymoron), abortion and other issues...December 14, 2004
Famous Atheist Now Believes in God
An interesting article about Antony Flew begins with the revelation that the noted atheist has changed his mind: At age 81, after decades of insisting belief is a mistake, Antony Flew has concluded that some sort of intelligence or first cause must have created the universe. A super-intelligence is the...November 3, 2004
Values, Character, Morality and Worldview Counts
Morality does matter and character does count. In their analysis of the election results several insightful bloggers are concluding that values and voter's and candidate's worldviews played a substantial role in voter decisions. Here is a round-up of excerpts. From Joshua Claybourn: In my estimation, there is a stronger undercurrent...States Vote Against Gay Marriage
Gay rights activists received a rebuke from the Deep South to North Dakota as voters in 11 states approved constitutional amendments to ban same-sex marriage in a clean sweep for proponents of traditional one-man, one-woman unions. [more]. Predictably, gay-rights activists rejected the overwhelming vote of U.S. citizens and are taking...October 23, 2004
Which President? Which Worldview
The Dawn Treader gives insight into how to evaluate a political candidate. He suggests that the fundamental basis for picking an individual to lead this nation is his worldview. I concur and add that in addition to what a candidate says, his actions and record speak volumes about what he...
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October 21, 2004
Kerry's Ongoing Faith-Based Contradiction
BlogsforBush's Matt Margolis notices a contradiction in John Kerry's statement, "I will bring my faith with me to the White House and it will guide me," when compared with Kerry's prior assertion,"I can't take what is an article of faith for me and legislate it for someone who doesn't share...
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Mrs. Laura Bush Shows Grace, Class
Responding to Theresa Heinz-Kerry's gaffe that Mrs. Bush never had a "real job" (despite working for 10 years as a school teacher), the First Lady showed grace and compassion. "Mrs. Bush knows that some days are more difficult than others when your husband is running for president," said her spokesman...
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October 8, 2004
Christian Leaders Take a Stand for Morality in Election
Christian Leaders Take a Stand for Morality in Election; Focus on the Family's Dobson, Hodel Join National Call for Biblical Principles to Guide Voter Decisions
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September 23, 2004
Where to begin to combat terrorism?
An interesting post by NeophytePundit lists terrorist groups by location and discusses the strategies of Bush vs Kerry. Region # of Groups Africa 29 East & Central Asia 4 Eastern Europe 19 Latin America 44 Middle East / Persian Gulf 40 North America 32 South Asia 32 Southeast Asia &...
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September 10, 2004
Study Shows the Decline of Marriage Among Christians
You can understand why atheists and agnostics might have a high rate of divorce, since they are less likely to believe in concepts such as sin, absolute moral truth and judgment. Yet the survey found that the percentage of atheists and agnostics who have been married and divorced is 37%...
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