There are hotlines at 10 Downing Street, but apparently there is no hotline to God, at least while Tony Blair was Prime Minister. In a recent interview with Spiegel, the former PM discusses his recently published memoirs:
SPIEGEL: Mr Blair, you write in your new memoir “A Journey” that religion has always been more important [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Daily Devolutions'
No Hotline to God
September 6th, 2010 · No Comments · Daily Devolutions, Philosophy of Religion
Tags:10 Downing Street·George Bush·hotline to God·Prime Minister's Questions·religious politics·Tony Blair
Pot-Kettle Interview
August 30th, 2010 · No Comments · Daily Devolutions
This is awkward — a Spiegel (i.e., German) reporter interviews the Iranian Foreign Minister:
SPIEGEL: Mr. Foreign Minister, you are the senior diplomat of the Islamic Republic of Iran. You represent a nation that prides itself on a cultural history stretching back more than 2,500 years. Don’t you find it shameful that people are stoned to [...]
Tags:adultery·execution by stoning·Germany·Holocaust·Iran·Jews·religious crimes·Sharia law·stoning
Ecumenical Engagement: Strippers & Evangelicals
August 28th, 2010 · No Comments · Civil Religion, Daily Devolutions
An evangelical church in Ohio has been picketing a nearby strip club and the strippers have been returning the favors. At least the groups are talking and being civil with one another — this is a positive sign and could lead to something. The AP’s Jeannie Nuss reports; be sure to check out the photos, [...]
Tags:evangelical church·Fox Hole·New Beginnings Ministries Church·Ohio·picketing·strip club·strippers
What To Do With an Anthropology Degree
August 22nd, 2010 · No Comments · Daily Devolutions
The Guardian has posted an encouraging story about studying anthropology and what people do with anthropology degrees.
Assuming that one is truly dedicated to four-field anthropology, the following certainly rings of truth: “Anthropology has been described as the most scientific of the humanities and the most humanistic of the sciences.”
Unfortunately for most anthropology graduate students, the [...]
Tags:anthropology degree·archaeology·biological anthropology·cultural anthropology·four field anthropology·holistic anthropology·humanities·linguistics·science
An Unenthused Rinpoche
August 16th, 2010 · No Comments · Axial Age Religions, Daily Devolutions, Globalization and Religion, Ritual and Religion
As my readers know, there is no such thing as “Buddhism” — there are multiple kinds of buddhisms, some of which eschew spirits and deities while emphasizing consciousness and compassion, whereas others are highly ritualized and enthusiastically enjoin the supernatural realm of gods and souls.
I was reminded of this the other day while reading Electa [...]
Tags:Boulder Shambhala Meditation Center·Buddhism·Buddhisms·credulous Boulderites·Dalai Lama·emanation·Holden Caulfield·holiness·incarnation succession·Khyentse Yangsi Rinpoche·Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche·reincarnation·Rinpoche·Tibetan Buddhism
The Ancient Astronaut Religion
August 4th, 2010 · No Comments · Archaeology and Religion, Daily Devolutions, Recent and New Religions
I have attempted to watch every episode of the History Channel’s series on Ancient Astronauts. Invariably, a time will come when I have to stop watching an episode because the commentary becomes so bizarre, speculative, and ridiculous that I just cannot take it any longer.
It is truly unfortunate that the so-called “History” Channel chooses to [...]
Tags:academic archaeology·aliens·ancient astronaut theorists·ancient astronaut theory·ancient astronauts·conspiracy theorists·History Channel·hypotheses·mainstream archaeology·theories
Say It Isn’t “So”
July 21st, 2010 · No Comments · Daily Devolutions
Seed Magazine is running a strange article about the word “so.” Instead of having a “writer” or “reporter,” this story has an “analyst” whose name is Michael Erard. Here is what our analyst says about the word “so”:
The language of science, with its specialized vocabulary and clipped rhythm, has a distinctive architecture.
The functional elegance of [...]
Tags:"so"·basic literacy·causation·explanation·grammar·junk words·matters of style·Michael Erard·Seed Magazine·sentence structure·the word "so"·Valley girl talk
Religious Odds and Ends
July 17th, 2010 · No Comments · Cultural Evolution of Religion, Daily Devolutions, Emotions and Religion, History of Religions, Power and Religion, Ritual and Religion
Gunning for God: Over at the Atlantic Wire, Heather Horn reports on a new Louisiana law that allows concealed carry permit holders to bring their guns to church, but only if they receive an additional 8 hours of training. No word on whether this additional training includes doctrinal or theological instruction on who may be [...]
Tags:aliens·burqa·Chinese UFO·Christian cosmology·contact·Copernicus·creation·discourse·evolution·Foucault·French law·Gallileo·God the deceiver·guns in churches·Hangzhou·heavenly joke·hijab·Islamic garb·Kepler·Louisiana gun law·Marilynne Robinson·mystification·niqab·religious symbolism·Ruth Harris·science·theology of guns