Category Archives: The Scoop

by Sandi Dolbee Am I the only one tiring of the same old single-dimensional tweets, stories and blogs about how the line between politics and pulpits is becoming increasingly blurry? Journalism is like driving a car. You need to spend … Continue reading →

by Lee Gilmore Recent tweaks to collective American anxieties around the shifting of our cultural, spiritual and sexual sands provide an opportunity revisit some persistent and emerging religious narratives. The military's official repeal of DADT earlier this week may have … Continue reading →

by Becky Garrison In the Washington Post, Muslim scholar, writer and activist Yasir Qadhi debunks five myths many Americans still believe about Islam ten years after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. In particular, he notes that Americans continue … Continue reading →

by Dalia Hashad Next week, Palestinian leaders will appeal to the United Nations in a bid for state recognition. Media reports have focused on the array of possible outcomes and their consequences. Leaders of the occupied territories might request full … Continue reading →

by Jacques Berlinerblau The dust-up this past weekend over Mayor Michael Bloomberg's decision not to feature clerical speakers at the 9/11 memorial service in New York has now thankfully settled. Even though the conservative Christian “outrage machine,” as Americans United … Continue reading →

by Judith Weisenfeld The first substantive session of my undergraduate seminar at Vassar College on the topic “Gods of the City: Religion in New York” was to take place on the afternoon of September 11, 2001. I had selected a … Continue reading →

by Kevin Healey The New York Times Magazine's recent photo-portfolio of Ground Zero steelworkers contains no explicit religious imagery. Likewise, the accompanying articles and interviews by Randy Kennedy, Dean Robinson and James Estrin make no explicit mention of religion. But … Continue reading →

by J. Terry Todd One of the most fascinating instances of 9/11 memorializing is the push for the canonization of Father Mychal Judge, a Franciscan priest and New York Fire Department chaplain who is listed in official records as New … Continue reading →

by Becky Garrison Given the ongoing controversy surrounding the inclusion of a cross-like structure at the 9/11 Memorial Museum, reporters might consider other religious and spiritual angles on how 9/11 victims are memorialized. As noted in the September 2 broadcast … Continue reading →

by Caryle Murphy (courtesy of Global Post) RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — For more than three decades, Saudi Arabia has used its vast oil riches to host foreign students in the kingdom, build schools and mosques abroad, distribute the Qur'an in … Continue reading →