Glenn Beck, ultraconservative infotainer and TV host, has recently decided that “social justice” is a code word for fascism. When I first heard this news, I couldn’t believe it was not a headline from the satirical newspaper The Onion. What tortured and specious logic could he possibly employ to literally link Adolf Hitler to Archbishop [...]
Posts from ‘March, 2010’
God an Algorithm?
If you haven’t been able to read Robert Wright’s book The Evolution of God, and probably won’t have the time to do so, then I strongly urge you to view or listen to the interview of him by Krista Tippett, on her Speaking of Faith program. The interview gives the essence of this very provocative, [...]
Racism and the Church
I wholeheartedly believe that issues of Justice, fairness and equity especially as they relate to ecological, gender, sexual, racial/cultural and economic realities should occupy the forefront of our theologies. In my experiential opinion, justice should take precedence over any other theological concerns. I say this not only as a theologian, but as a black Latino male. Any [...]
Black Theology and Interreligious Dialogue
My colleague here at Union Theological Seminary, James Cone, wrote the following way back in 1992: Although I am a Christian theologian, I contend that a just social order must be accountable to not one but many religious communities. If we are going to create a society that is responsive to the humanity of all, [...]
Remembering Religious Diversity
The New York Times features an op-ed piece from Andrew Baker this morning that should serve as a stirring reminder of the importance of shared religious heritage and diversity. It regards the difficulty of restoring the yeshiva and synagogue of Maimonides in Cairo, Egypt. This is not, however, simply a story of how difficult it [...]
The religious aspect of health care
There certainly has been a lot of debate in the media over health care. While one could argue about a deontological claim to health insurance vs. a natural rights claim to health and welfare vs. a social contract theory vs. well… you get the picture. One thing that isn’t explored as much is the role [...]
Obama and the Middle Way
In the March 8 issue of The Nation, Katha Pollitt concludes an excellent article with: “What is the point of Obama being conciliatory and careful if his opponents are reckless and don’t want to conciliate.” (http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100308/pollitt). I’m sure many of us resonate with what Pollitt is urging: Get tough, Mr. Obama! All your reconciliation stuff [...]