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The Reformation Experience Was a Timeless Message

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The Reformation is not discussed enough. In it lies a story that applies to today and all times to come. To summarize, it was a time when Martin Luther, a priest in good standing, wrote and talked about the evils then going on in the Catholic church. That evil was priests taking money for promises they made about the fate of dead people. If grandma sinned and needed a break to get into heaven after she was dead the priest could arrange that for you. But the priest demanded money.  People were fed up with this but, in their limited knowledge, thought they had no choice. Luther came along just at the right time and a revolt took place. He did not intend to start a new branch of the Christianity but that was the outcome. He made up his own stuff; he preached hatred of Jews and no doubt contributed to centuries of grief for them. To me, the Reformation illustrates the dark side of religion. It is a thing those in positions of power use to punish others in the public. The scheming pries...
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A Talarico Victory May Caution "Christian" Candidates

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During much of the past few decades, politicians running for local and state offices saw little downside to preaching against abortion. They would each claim to be more against abortion than their opponents. Then things changed. Abortion is seldom brought up now. What changed, of course, was abortion rights winning statewide referendums. Now politicians do not see anti-abortion as a risk-free issue and seldom bring it up. Readers know Talarico is studying to be a preacher and has stated the Bible does not condemn abortion. He supports gay marriage. Paxton, his Republican opponent along with the religious right, are making the election into a referendum on the right's interpretation of the Bible. If Talarico wins, endorsement of the right's version of the Bible and putting that version into various laws will not be see as no risk postures. Bible Belt politics will be different. It could be even worse for the right. Liberal candidates may see an advantage in lampooning the right...
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Entering Priesthood/Convent is Not What Catholic Parents Encourage

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  In the past when families were large, entering the priesthood training was the pride of parents and siblings. Now it is seen as peculiar. The commitment of years in training and celibacy is no longer on the table for either many parents or children. Some lament this and blame parents and young people.  We all know the variables punishing against being in the Catholic clergy. Plenty of Protestant denominations need clergy but also have in place ridiculous obstacles.  A couple of generations ago families were bigger. Parents may not have lamented a childless child of their own. With only one or two children, the notion of a celibate adult child may not seem as appealing. College costs are more formidable today. Even with the denomination subsidizing the entire life package may not look appealing. If one works all of his/her life, the retirement reward of a nice place in Florida may look better than the denomination's housing for poor clergy.  Most young people look f...
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Separation of Church and State; It's OK to Cheat a Little

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  Along with friends in Red River Freethinkers, I spent several years trying to move a stone engraved version of the Ten Commandments off City of Fargo (ND) property. My wife, Elaine, and I put not only time but a considerable amount of money into the effort. While we were unsuccessful and the stone still stands there, it was an interesting experience and provided a life-long thread of events I still follow. One was an article published recently by a law professor at the Christian university, Liberty. To my amateur eyes it seems like a balanced view of the history and current status of displaying the Ten Commandments on public property.   These Ten Commandment display go back mostly to the 1950's. There was sort of an irony of history that Cecil B. Demill was promoting his movie, "Ten Commandments" at the same time a judge in Minneapolis concluded that children behaved better if the Ten Commandments are displayed in their homes. The result was stones being installed on pu...
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The Religious Revival that Never Came

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In 2002 a Canadian writer regarded as an authority in religion predicted a religious revival would sweep through Canada. Instead, religion went into a nose-dive and has never recovered. Canada is ahead of the U.S.in the decline of religion but the U.S. is headed in the same direction.   The reason for the projected increase in the faith numbers made back in 2002 was, "There is a longing out there which can only be satisfied by engaging the faith." It turned out the "longing" was not there of if it was it was satisfied with something else. What's ironic is that one can read the identical words written about the U.S. today on religious sites. It is said there is longing in today's society which will be satisfied by large numbers coming back the church.  I suppose this comes from testimony of people who join or return to the faith. That some people claim the need experienced by recent converts can be assigned to the broader society. The facts are there is no ...
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Black Voters Have Made the Difference

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When Mitt Romney ran against Obama, Republican polling told Romney just before election day he would win. Election night he watched the returns in black districts in Ohio. He knew he was defeated. Republican polls had treated black voter turnout as average. A large black turnout turned the tide in states Romney needed. I don't understand why the turnout of black voters varies. We do know voter turnout varies among all groups. Logic would tell us, and voter drive activity reinforces, the prediction there will be a large black turnout in the coming election. It will be for Democrats but more meaningfully a vote against Trump and Republicans. The link explains the gradiences of various groups. One I had not thought of is the thousands of people laid off from Federal jobs. A disproportionate number of these are black voters. They are the kind of people knowledgeable about elections and the organizing that precedes them.  Our effort to understand electoral politics is helped by the 2024...
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Why the Bible Brings Down Christianity

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All of us learn over the course of our lives that some things we were taught earlier turn out not to be true. Sometimes it was "history" that was incorrect but passed down with good intentions. Sometimes it was myth. And sometimes the myths were passed down with bad intentions, such as the desire to control or take advantage of others including ourselves.  The passage of time has put the Bible on the defensive. While a few today treat it in its entirety as "true", the more common approach in Christianity is to select certain parts, treat those as true and powerful, and disregard other parts as myth. When trying to convince others of the Bible's importance the marketer has to convince the customer that not only is the favorite part "true" but the speaker, writer or preacher is the one that knows and can separate the chaff from the wheat.  Gambling can teach us about the probability of "truth." If you flip a coin and guess "heads" you...
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