Category: Featured
Sugar Cookies & Family Heritage
4 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, 2 sticks of butter. Combine these 3 ingredients with your hands. Add some sugar, 1 teaspoon of baking soda dissolved in milk, 2 eggs, and vanilla. Mix well, roll o... Read More
Religious Interactions, Pop Culture, & Historical Imagination (Spoiler Alert)
Religious themes currently permeate the film and television industries in the United States. The film Noah still floats toward the top of the charts leading to interesting conversations about authen... Read More
The Myth of a Judeo-Christian Tradition
In the United States, it’s common to hear frequent and impassioned references to the concept of ‘Judeo-Christian’ culture, ethics, or values. Any cursory review of American media wil... Read More
Unity Through Diversity
“What options are there for those who want to recognize that there is a higher power but don’t fit into organized religion?” This question is common in the circles I travel. Many of my friends a... Read More
An Argument for Santa Claus
I once wrote a paper on why I believe in Santa Claus. The argument, in a nutshell, went something like this: human life consists not just of physicality but of that for which we live. If this is true,... Read More
Who is my neighbor? (Syria edition)
As the conflicts in Syria and Iraq have become increasingly sectarian over the last few years, feeding off one another’s dynamics and international rhetoric and involvement, stories about the pe... Read More
Community, Choice, and Identity: The Politics of Wearing Skirts
The package arrived on a cold Friday afternoon, a nondescript bundle shoved into my mailbox. The unremarkable packaging and unglamorous delivery method disguised the tightly packed questions, doubts, ... Read More
How do you solve a problem like Fred?
Reportedly, the Rev. Fred Phelps, the longtime head of the Topeka, Kan.-based hate group the Westboro Baptist Church, is in hospice care [Phelps passed away on Mar. 19th ed.]. His son Nathan Phelps, o... Read More