According to Dr. Jeffery Peipert, the study’s lead author, abortion rates can be expected to decline significantly—perhaps up to 75 percent—when contraceptives are made available to women free of charge.
On the question of the public engagement of the church, the survey found important divisions between Catholics who prefer a “social justice” emphasis that focuses on helping the poor and Catholics who prefer a “right to life” emphasis that focuses on issues like abortion.
Inmates of other faiths, such as Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists and Jews, will be expected to turn to Christian prison chaplains for religious counsel and guidance, according to the office of Public Safety Minister Vic Toews, who is also responsible for Canada’s penitentiaries.
Ross Murray, director of religion, faith and values at the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, suggests that it is not the religious freedom of Catholic bishops that is in jeopardy in the United States, but the freedom of the people who sit in their pews.
A political group wants to provoke the IRS into suing a minister for endorsing a candidate and a political party from the pulpit. The mainly right-wing group promotes something called “Pulpit Freedom Sunday” and they say nearly 1500 preachers took part.
Melinda Hennenberger presents an excellent piece at washingtonpost.com analyzing how Joe Biden and Paul Ryan incorporate their Catholic faith very differently when it comes to
I have much more in common with progressive Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists than I do with certain people in my own tradition, with fundamentalist Christians. The part of Christianity I stand with is the part in which we can live with ambiguity and with pluralism.
She says she’s also bothered by the way conservatives often talk about the poor: as if they deserve to be just that. She doesn’t buy the assertion that the government should stay out of people’s lives, at least financially. Or that unfettered competition between corporations will allow Americans who work hard enough to share in this country’s riches.
Dan Gilgoff takes an insightful look at the dilemma faced by some evangelical Christians in this presidential election. he focuses on Rob Seyler who has
Non-violent civil disobedience in the pursuit of justice and peace among Episcopal clergy happens often throughout history and some even participated in the Occupy Movement. Some clergy, such as Jack Stanton participating in a march against the firing of union workers, are arrested for civil disobedience too.