Religion

The depth of cynicism behind the Vatican's invitation last month to right-wing Episcopalians "to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony" is best understood through one of Rome's most high-profile converts, a certain John Henry Newman.

In his new book "The Evolution of God," he takes his readers on a journey through the spiritual beliefs of our ancestors to the development of the three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. ... Original Article

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Schwartz Fellow

Eyal Press is a Schwartz Fellow at the New America Foundation.  He is a contributing writer at the Nation and a journalist who has written extensively about politics, social issues and the world of ideas.  His essays, reviews, and feature stories have appeared in the New York Times, the Atlantic Monthly, Mother Jones, The Columbia Journalism… more

The "war" between science and religion is notable for the amount of civil disobedience on both sides. Most scientists and most religious believers refuse to be drafted into the fight. Whether out of a live-and-let-live philosophy, or a belief that religion and science are actually compatible, or a heartfelt indifference to the question, they're choosing to sit this one out.

Still, the war continues, and it's not just a sideshow. There are intensely motivated and vocal people on both sides making… more

Under Hillary Clinton's watch, the State Department has called Nigeria "probably the most important country in Africa." Why? Three words: light, sweet, crude. Nigeria is one of America's largest oil producers, and poised to become even a bigger one. It is also Africa's most populous country—one in six Africans comes from Nigeria—and one of the continent's richest and most corrupt democracies.

I don't think I commit sins with higher-than-average frequency, but after accumulating them for five decades, I could sure use a born-again experience. Just a quick cleansing and a fresh start.

Actually, make that four decades. In the mid 1960s, when I was 8 or 9, I did get born again. At a southern Baptist church in Texas, I felt the tug of God and responded to the altar call, and several weeks later got baptized. But within a few years I was losing my… more

Since ancient times the God of scripture has been at times vengeful and wrathful--and at other times loving and compassionate. Author Robert Wright says that, even for the non-believer, there is a hidden message in these vacillations--a message with the potential to lead a modern, technological, global civilization towards a more peaceful existence. Today, Where We Live, We’ll talk with Wright about his new book The Evolution of God. We’ll explore how religion interacts with foreign policy, scientific discovery,… more