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Category Archives: Religion

Religion Lesson

This has nothing to do with politics. I’ve mentioned before that I have an advanced degree in theology, courtesy of the nuns at the aptly named Our Lady of Sorrows Grammar school. But recently I discovered a shocking deficit in my theological knowledge. That deficit has been corrected, and I feel obligated to both confess […]

The Church of Perpetual Bullshit

The Catholic bishops, many of whom are probably secret abusers themselves, are gathering in Rome to discuss the deeply complex issue of what they should do about the legions of sexually abusive priests. They have, according to this article, concluded that, shockingly, the problem is not restricted to the U.S., but is worldwide. Imagine that, people […]

She may have something there

The recent report on sexual abuse by the Catholic clergy has even this ex-Catholic aghast. The utter cruelty is beyond belief. As a former scholar at Our Lady of Sorrows grammar school, where I lost my religion, I was particularly stunned by the story of the priest who abused a seven year old, then told […]

I got mail

Today I got a piece of mail with no return address, but I knew it was important because it had strict instructions on the envelope that it should be delivered only to me and that it should not be destroyed. So, of course, I hastened to open it, and found it was a letter personally […]

Gluten free Jesus

First lets stipulate that there are in fact some people who are sensitive to gluten. Their numbers roughly equal the percent of the population singled out by the Occupy folks. You’d never know it by the way in which “Gluten Free!” is plastered on all manner of food items. For example, today I had some […]

God in the classroom 

A few days ago I learned that among all the horrible things in the Republican platform, there is a demand that the Bible be taught “as literature” in public schools. Of course, it’s a transparently bogus demand for the establishment of the Christian religion, but transparently bogus arguments have won in the past. Remember, the […]

No surprises here

Americans have differing opinions about torture: “Remarkably, the gap between torture supporters and opponents widens between voters who are Christian and those who are not religious. Just 39% of white evangelicals believe the CIA’s treatment of detainees amounted to torture, with 53% of white non-evangelical Protestants and 45% of white Catholics agreeing with that statement. […]

Traditional Good Friday music and more

This is Good Friday, so like all good graduates of Our Lady of Sorrows grammar school, I must make note of the day. It is a day sacred to Christians. Even many of us heathens get it off, so I am able to sit here at home and write this blog post. I am not […]

Religious freedom takes another hit 

This is really unbelievable! A police official says brutal beatings that left one teenager dead and his brother seriously wounded at a New York church were part of what members considered a “counseling session.” New Hartford Police Chief Michael Inserra said Wednesday that both Lucas and Christopher Leonard were subjected to hours of physical punishment […]

The PR pontiff shows his true colors

As the (or should it be “a”) poet once wrote, “hope springs eternal in the human breast”, and it is that human foible which perhaps best explains the eagerness with which Americans of a not right wing persuasion have rushed to embrace he who is Pope only because his predecessor resigned to avoid exposure. Some […]