Iranian students have released a book containing cartoons of the Holocaust, including some depicting hospitalized Jews on respiratory machines attached to canisters of Zyklon B, the gas used to exterminate Jews during World War II. Meanwhile, a British publisher’s house was set afire, after he decieed to publish a novel about the early life of one Muhammad’s wives.
Archbishop Hiltz said that the diocesan bishop of New Westminster, Michael Ingham, pointed out that it was not for him to rescind the diocese’s rite for the blessing of same-sex relationships. The diocesan synod has to debate the issue. Hiltz said that he’d be “very surprised if they rescind that motion.”
Most clergy are not trained in economics. And the last thing the country needs is well-intentioned moralistic advice from poorly-informed people. (See Sentamu, John.) Yet as the financial crisis in the United States deepens, it seems peculiar that neither the Christian left nor the Christian right has had much to say about the ideas and behaviors that brought about our financial panic. Greed isn’t great. But is that the best we have to offer?
Bishop Stacy Sauls defended the deposition of Bishop Bob Duncan of Pittsburgh on the BBC’s Radio 4 Sunday program.
“Market freedom has become an absolute, a kind of fundamentalist religion in itself,” Dr John Sentamu said, the Archbishop of York, adding: “You know the joke about how many economists it takes to change a light bulb. The answer is: ‘None. The market will sort it out.'”
Yesterday, at the urging of the conservative Allied Defense Fund, some 33 pastors endorsed a presidential candidate (John McCain, presumably, and ironically, given his history
We have received terrible news from South Africa this morning. Bishop David Beetge died on Saturday. He had cancer, but when I saw him at
Ann Rogers of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes: Although much about San Joaquin’s experience is unique, its story is instructive about the problems that may lie ahead for the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh, which will vote Saturday on whether to join San Joaquin in seceding.
I grow uneasy –and suspicious– when spiritual advisors talk about their pastoral relationships with candidates Jeremiah Wright’s speech to the NAACP was profoundly distressing and obviously embarrassing to the candidate. I had the same problem with a New York Times front page article a few weeks ago featuring an interview with Sarah Palin’s pastor. Are they doing it with the candidates’ permission? Or if not, whose agenda is being furthered?
Sleight-of-hand magic is based on the demonstrable fact that as a rule people see only what they expect to see. Angels are powerful spirits whom God sends into the world to wish us well. Since we don’t expect to see them, we don’t.