Research On Religion » Sexuality & Marriage

Shari Rabin on Jews on the American Frontier

tonygill — Sun, 11 Mar 2018 08:00:08 +0000

What is it like to be a stranger in a strange land on the move, and how does that affect one’s ability to preserve their religious identity? This is a central question take up by Prof. Shari Rabin, an assistant professor of Jewish Studies at the College of Charleston and director of the Pearlstine/Lipov Center for Southern Jewish Culture, in her new book Jews on the Frontier: Religion and Mobility in Nineteenth-Century America. We begin, as usual, with a little background on our guest, learning how Prof. Rabin moved from Wisconsin to Georgia and then into the study of Jewish migration. Not surprisingly, we learn that her research interests in graduate school resonated with her own experiences on the move. Shari also gives us a synopsis of the Peralstine/Lipov Center that she runs.

We then move into our discussion on Jewish migration in 19th century America, first with a general overview of Jewish migration patterns dating back to the early colonial period in America. We learn that Charleston actually has the second oldest synagogue in the US dating back to the mid-17th century. Our conversation covers the various “push” and “pull” factors that led many Jews to migrate to American in the early 1800s. In Europe, governments tightly regulated Jewish behavior and living patterns, which served to shape their communities. In the US, by contrast, no such regulations existed and with the opportunity to head out West, it became very easy for one to lose one’s religious identity. The struggle to retain one’s heritage serves to focus the rest of our discussion. It is noted that much of the early Jewish migration was comprised of single males, making it difficult to find a spouse and raise a Jewish family. Intermarriage with Christians always presented itself as one possibility, but there were efforts to provide Jewish matchmaking services in order to retain cultural continuity. Issues of circumcision are also discussed, with Prof. Rabin noting that it was very difficult to find someone qualified to perform the procedure within the required eight days of birth. This, in turn, led to some creative flexibility on the part of Jews who needed to bend the strict rules. Other challenges facing Jews on the move related to finding Jewish “stuff,” such as kosher food, Torah scrolls, prayer shawls, and other elements of the faith that were used on a daily basis. And setting up a synagogue that helped to reinforce communal worship was also difficult as in some communities it was difficult to gather a quorum of believers to establish the congregation.

The final part of our conversation relates to how Jewish theology responded to the physical challenges of living as a minority in mobile times. Shari discusses two central figures in American Jewish history who were aware of these challenges and sought to shape religious identity to the new circumstances — Isaac Mayer Wise and Isaac Leeser. The former was a central figure in the creation of Reform Judaism, whereas the latter tried to preserve more traditional forms of Judaism. Despite their seemingly divergent approaches, Shari points out that these two religious entrepreneurs also shared much in common, using newspapers as a means of communication within the American Jewish community. She notes that the newspapers were not only there to broadcast to Jews the changes in Jewish culture that were occurring, but as Jews wrote into the paper describing their daily challenges, these men were able to keep their “ears to the ground” of the culture and diagnose the problems of the faithful. Their answers to these challenges often led to expanding notions of cultural authenticity, demonstrating that theology can be very flexible to one’s contextual environment. Shari also reveals that because Wise outlived Leeser by nearly three decades, he had a larger imprint on the nature of American Jewish culture. We sum up our discussion with the importance of the year 1877 and two important events. First Isaac Wise’s trip to California led him to write a series of travel letters that indicated his awe of how vibrant the Jewish culture remained in new lands, but also how he was concerned about how some changes (such as intermarriage with Christians) was threatening the long-term viability of the faith. The second major event of that year was the Seligman Affair, wherein a prominent Jewish businessman was prohibited from obtaining lodging in Saratoga, New York. This latter incident revealed that up until that time, Jewish life in American was largely individualistic and invisible, but as the population started to grow and find ways to enhance their communal relationships it often brought with it anti-Semitism and other forms of negative attention. We end the podcast with Prof. Rabin’s thoughts on what she has learned throughout her studies of Jewish life and migration. Recorded: February 23, 2018.

Prof. Rabin’s personal website (with links to her various writings).

Jews on the Frontier: Religion and Mobility in Nineteenth-Century America, by Shari Rabin.

The American Israelite, the newspaper founded by Isaac Mayer Wise (originally named The Israelite).

Carmel Chiswick on the Economics of Being Jewish in America.

Carmel Chiswick on the Economics of American Judaism (different than episode listed above).

Daniel Libenson on Present and Future Judaism.

Ken Wald on the Puzzling Politics of American Judaism.

Linda Weiser Friedman on Jewish Humor.

Click out “Jewish” category on the right hand side of our website for more episodes related to Judaism.

Michael Medved on Religion & Hollywood (encore presentation)

tonygill — Sun, 03 Dec 2017 09:00:54 +0000

While Tony is still on a short sabbatical and trying to make improvements to the audio files of our show, we invite you to enjoy this interesting podcast from five years ago. There are now over 350 unique episodes in our archives, so please feel free to search our archives and tell a friend.

Does Hollywood portray religion in a negative light? If so, why? And has it always been that way? We take up these questions and many more with film critic, radio talk show host, author, and cultural crusader Michael Medved. Michael is the author of numerous books on Hollywood and other topics (see below) and has served as a film critic for over 25 years. We discuss how he managed to find himself in that position as well as what life is like for a movie critic. He details his personal story within that profession as well as providing insights into how critics review movies. Michael discusses his role in the critics’ controversy surrounding Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ, wherein pundits became highly critical of this film even before seeing any footage! We then turn our attention to why Hollywood has shifted from making movies such as The Bells of St. Mary and Going My Way, wherein religious figures and institutions are presented favorably, to films such as Agnes of God and The Pope Must Die, theatrical releases that didn’t necessarily hold the same view of spiritual faith. Tony notes that this change seemed to have occurred in the late 1960s. Michael reveals how a change in the Motion Picture Production Code of 1930 (i.e., The Hays Code) occured in the mid-1960s giving way to the current rating system that we see today. This change paved the way for studios to make more “edgy” R-rated films. We discuss how the 1970s saw a dearth of G-rated theatrical releases. Michael points out that even though such family-friendly films make drastically more money than R-rated movies, producers still favor the latter. The incentive structure for filmmakers and producers is not always (or often) to make a profit, but rather to earn the accolades of those within the industry. This is why the demans of “Middle America” are often unmet at the local cineplex. Not to worry, though, there has been a trend over the past two decades to offer more films pitched to a church-going audience. We talk about how the ability to make movies has become more accessible and groups like Affirm Films can make highly popular films such as Fireproof, Facing the Giants, and Soul Surfer. Hollywood has noticed the success of these films as well as The Passion and we are seeing more options portraying religious folks as heroes rather than villians. Our conversation also includes a discussion not only of what we see on the silver screen, but what occurs with movie stars off screen. We look into the somewhat deviant culture of Hollywood and Michael provides his insights into why so many actors and actresses seem to engage in destructive behavior. Along the way, we find out what the worst movie of all time was, and Tony reveals three of his favorite films of all time dealing with the eternal themes of skyscrapers, fish, and football. Recorded: November 28, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

The Michael Medved Show.

Hollywood versus America, by Michael Medved.

The Fifty Worst Movies of All Time, updated version by Harry Medved (Michael’s brother and earlier co-author).

The Golden Turkey Awards: The Worst Achievements in Hollywood History, by Michael Medved and Harry Medved.

The American Miracle: Divine Providence in the Rise of the Republic, by Michael Medved.

The 10 Big Lies About America: Combating Destructive Distortions about Our Nation, by Michael Medved.

The 5 Big Lies About American Business: Combating Smears Against the Free-Market Economy, by Michael Medved.

Right Turns: From Liberal Activist to Conservative Champion in 35 Unconventional Lessons, by Michael Medved.

Saving Childhood: Protecting Our Children from the National Assault on Innocence, by Michael Medved and Diane Medved.

What Really Happened to the Class of ’65?, by Michael Medved and David Wallechinsky.

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Robert Joustra on Zombies, Cylons, Charles Taylor, and the Apocalypse.

Jon Sweeney on “Its A Wonderful Life.”

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John Errington on “A Long Way Off” and Religious Movie Making.

Corey Olsen on J.R.R. Tolkien, Religion, and The Hobbit.

Jim Houser on the Christian Music Industry.

Linda Weiser Friedman on Jewish Humor.

Margaret Taylor-Ulizio on Being a Canon Lawyer

tonygill — Sun, 06 Aug 2017 08:00:35 +0000

If the Catholic Church maintains a Code of Canon Law, one would assume that there are canon lawyers to mediate disputes that fall within the realm of that form of religious jurisprudence. It just so happens that canon lawyers do exist and we were to track down and invite Dr. Margaret Taylor-Ulizio – founder/principal of the Canon Law Advocacy and Mediation Services and part-time instructor at Georgian Court University – to discuss her career path and what canon lawyers do. After a quick introduction about what canon law is, we trace Dr. Taylor-Ulizio’s career path from an undergraduate student interested in theology at Duquesne University to her successful pursuit of a doctorate in systematic theology and ecclesiology at Marquette University. Following this, we learn that Catholic University of America is the only school in the U.S. that trains canon lawyers for the Catholic Church. Following a rigorous program of courses on canon law, along with some training in secular law, Margaret was able to take her exams and enter into the world of canon lawyering. She gives an overview of the profession and outlines what falls within the scope of canon law. We also cover how changes to the Code of Canon Law have been made over time, including recent revisions that were a response to the increasing involvement of the laity following Vatican Council II. Dr. Taylor-Ulizio then notes that most of her cases have involved marriage nullity. We spend time discussing what an annulment entails and some of the trickier aspects of these cases, including the differences between defect in consent and defect in exchange. We finish off with her reflection upon her theological and legal training and how she views the world differently today. Recorded: July 27, 2017.

Canon Law Society for America.

Code of Canon Law.

“Inside Katy Perry’s Real-Estate Soap Opera: Why Nuns and the Catholic Church Are Battling Over Her Dream L.A. Property,” in Billboard magazine.

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Sarah Dreier on Anglicans, Lutherans, and African Churches

tonygill — Sun, 14 May 2017 08:00:11 +0000

In recent years, movement towards progressive policies and values on gender and sexuality have caused cultural rifts within the Anglican (Episcopalian) Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA). Such tension is most apparent among their affiliated churches in the Global South, most notably Africa, with some African clergy becoming very outspoken against the policies adopted by Anglicans and Lutherans in Europe and the United States. Sarah K. Dreier, a Ph.D. candidate in political science at the University of Washington, engages research on transnational organizations to explore how these tensions arose and how they are being managed.

As often is the case, we begin our conversation exploring how our guest came to study her topic of interest. Ms. Dreier talks about the influence her parents had in her intellectual development and how certain mentors at Northwestern University also helped to shape her interests about the world. Sarah took these interests into a professional career working for religious non-governmental organizations, which further piqued her interests in the topic of how transnational groups in the developed North relate to their counterparts in the developing South. Sarah details some of the cultural changes that are manifesting themselves in policy changes within the Anglican Communion and the ELCA with a specific eye towards same-sex marriage, homosexuality, and women’s issues. Such changes have caused rifts within these denominations in Europe and the US, but have really risen concern within many parts of Africa such as Kenya and Tanzania, where Sarah did much of her dissertation fieldwork.

We then shift track a bit to discuss recent scholarship on transnational organizations, with Sarah pointing out that many researchers have not paid much attention, until recently, to how various development efforts by transnational groups headquartered in the OECD nations are received by the recipients of these efforts in the Global South. She regales us with a story wherein she was working with an African official of a Lutheran Church on a malaria initiative when the bishop told Sarah, at the outset of their interview, that he needs the ELCA to back down from their homosexual agenda, revealing that this cultural issue was of a huge importance to him and many others within his church. We explore this tension further and Sarah lays out her reason for why some African churches have been vocally opposed to these cultural issues whereas other ones have not. She explains that African churches that have a relatively stable source of funding outside the transnational network are more capable of raising critical voices as it doesn’t endanger their long-term viability as an organization as much as churches that are more reliant on international funding. Moreover, the presence of religious competition in the form of Pentecostals, evangelicals, and other charismatic religious movements that are growing rapidly in Africa, puts pressure on the African Anglican and Lutheran churches to signal their solidarity with the cultural norms of their home populations (which, by various polls, are overwhelmingly opposed to more progressive views on gender and sexual issues). When some Pentecostal ministers point to the policies of the Church of England and/or the ELCA and tag their local African affiliates as being part of the “gay church,” leaders of these mainline African congregations are compelled to signal their distance from their transnational partners. Many African Anglican and Lutheran members view the progressive doctrines as a “neo-colonial imposition,” an interesting conundrum in that both the Anglican Communion and the ELCA have been very critical of past colonialist practices. Tony then asks why some of these African churches don’t simply “go Pentecostal” and leave their denomination, prompting Sarah to provide an interesting response about the long-term benefits of a mainline denominational affiliation.

We further discuss how religious officials in Europe and the US are trying to do to respond to these concerns. While these officials have tried to note that such progressive policies are really only contained within Europe and the US, Sarah points out that “everything flows across borders,” making the situation rather difficult to manage. Sarah closes with some thoughts about what she has learned throughout her investigation of this topic and notes how culture is very dynamic and constantly shifting. Recorded: May 8, 2017.

Disclosure: Tony is serving as a member of Sarah’s dissertation committee at the UW.

RELATED LINKS

Sarah K. Dreier’s personal website and bio at the Dept. of Political Science, University of Washington.

Lutheran World Federation (mentioned in podcast).

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David Buckley on the Demand for Clergy in Politics

tonygill — Sun, 10 Apr 2016 08:00:32 +0000

Do religious individuals prefer to have their spiritual leaders directly involved in politics? Whereas the common assumption might be that religious adherents would like to see clergy directly involved in public policy decision-making, Prof. David Buckley (University of Louisville, political science) shows that the opposite is true. Using data from the World Values Survey, he noted an interesting pattern wherein the more spiritually-engaged a population was, the less likely those individuals were to support an active role for priests, pastors, and rabbis in the government. Prof. Buckley then explains this phenomenon can be explained by two causal mechanisms. First, in highly religious societies, there are many informal “back channels” wherein clergy already have influence over policy, thus necessitating less direct and formal roles. Second, direct and visible involvement in politics raises a set of risks for confessional leaders including political backlash for supporting losing politicians, deterioration of moral authority when clerics support unpopular (or unsuccessful) policies/politicians, and the chance that taking a political stand would divide their parishioners making them less likely to remain engaged with the religious institution. David illustrates these causal mechanisms using the debate over a reproductive health bill in the Philippines in the past decade. Recorded: April 8, 2016.

David Buckley on Academia.edu (access site for several papers).

Cosmos Club Foundation.

World Values Survey (main website).

Philippines’ Reproductive Health Act of 2012 (mentioned in podcast).

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James Patterson on MLK, Fulton Sheen, and Jerry Falwell.

Hunter Baker on the Past and Future of the Christian Right.

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Kevan Harris on Iran’s Islamic Revolution and the Green Movement.

David Dixon on Religious Rhetoric and the Civil Rights Movement.

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Gregory Popcak on Religion, Psychology, & Seven Longings

tonygill — Sun, 05 Jul 2015 08:00:45 +0000

Religion and psychology are often posed in contradistinction to one another, with the former focusing on faith and the later on science. Nonetheless, faith-based mental health and relationship counseling exists and can be very effective. To discuss this general topic, we invite Dr. Gregory Popcak, founder of Pastoral Solutions Institute and author of numerous books (see below), to talk about his work and how spirituality informs psychology and vice versa.

We begin our conversation with Greg’s personal background, noting a strong religious upbringing and then his educational trajectory that eventually landed him a Ph.D. in psychology. Tony inquires how he was steered in this professional direction and whether or not studying psychology ever challenged some of his religious beliefs. Dr. Popcak notes that while there has been some tension between religion and psychology, particularly with efforts of early advocates of behaviorism seeing this scientific endeavor as a substitute for religion, there has been a reconciling of these two seemingly diverse approaches to mental and relational health. Tony notes that clergy have long been a source of personal counseling for individuals, and Greg adds that recent studies in the field — mentioning Ken Pargament, in particular — have shown how a spiritual approach to counseling has numerous benefits for patients. Tony probes whether the tension between religion and psychology also emanates from those in the pews who argue that the answer to mental health issues is simply to “just get Jesus” and leave modern psychology out of it.

Dr. Popcak also discusses how and why he founded Pastoral Solutions Institute, and what it does. Here, the discussion winds through a number of different topics including Tony’s perception that people are becoming more anxiety-ridden over time. Greg also notes that he is seeing more individuals with these issues and advances his thoughts on why this might be happening with greater frequency. We also bring up the topic of tele-counseling. Greg’s institute does a significant amount of tele-counseling, in addition to in-person visits, and he covers the various benefits and drawbacks of this approach.

The last half of the interview focuses on Dr. Popcak’s new book, Broken Gods: Hope, Healing, and the Seven Longings of the Human Heart. Tony starts off by reading the opening paragraph of that work, which he notes may sound a bit controversial and blasphemous. In that passage, Dr. Popcak wonders what if “you had become a god [small g] overnight.” While working to become “a god” (not the God) seems rather megalomaniacal, Greg explains how this has a theological basis dating back to 2 Peter 1:4, and was a theme discussed by the likes of St. Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin, and C.S. Lewis. We then walk through what the “seven longings of the human heart” are and how they are set in opposition to the seven deadly sins. While not covering all seven in detail, Tony asks Greg how he would counsel someone on the issue of dignity, set against the sin of envy, noting that academics like himself often struggle greatly with this one. We also talk about how kindness plays into all of this and how grace has shown itself to have measurable empirical impacts in the realm of brain activity. Greg finishes off with some reflections on what he has learned over the years of practicing faith-based psychology. Recorded: June 29, 2015.

Broken Gods: Hope, Healing, and the Seven Longings of the Human Heart, by Gregory Popcak.

For Better, Forever: A Catholic Guide to Lifelong Marriage, by Gregory Popcak.

Parenting with Grace: The Catholic Parents’ Guide to Raising almost Perfect Kids, by Gregory Popcak and Lisa Popcak.

The Life God Wants You to Have: Discovering the Divine Plan When Human Plans Fail, by Gregory Popcak.

Holy Sex!: A Catholic Guide to Toe-Curling, Mind-Blowing, Infallible Loving, by Gregory Popcak.

More2Life Radio at Ave Maria Radio.

Faith on the Couch blog at Patheos.

The Psychology of Religion and Coping, by Ken Pargament (mentioned in podcast).

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Rob Moll on Religion and the Brain.

Jeff Levin on Judaism and Health.

Jeff Levin on Religion and Health.

Justin Barrett on the Naturalness of Religious Belief.

Carolyn Warner on Religion & Generosity.

Bradley Wright on SoulPulse.

Rod Stark on How Religion Benefits Everyone, Including Atheists.

Carrie Miles on Religion, Gender, and Missionaries

tonygill — Sun, 31 May 2015 08:00:50 +0000

What is the relationship between religion, economics, and gender? Dr. Carrie Miles — senior scholar in residence at Chapman University and non-resident scholar at Baylor’s Institute for Studies of Religion — discusses her path-breaking work on this topic, as well as her work as executive director of Empower International Ministries. Our conversation winds through Mormon theology, Genesis, the industrial revolution, and countries in Africa to explore how both economic production and theology can shape gender roles throughout history.

The podcast begins with Carrie reminiscing on how she started in such an interesting, and underexplored, topic. She recounts her Mormon roots and curiosity about the reshaping of gender roles in the LDS Church during the 1970s when she was working on her dissertation in organizational psychology at the University of Chicago. This discussion takes us on a path of examining how agrarian production in the household defined gender roles and how the industrial revolution, which took more and more production away from the home, impacted these traditional roles. We talk about everything from the work of Gary Becker to the transformative effect of the plow.

We next turn to some theology of gender, focusing on the first three chapters of Genesis. Carrie describes how the development of economic scarcity that arises when humans leave the Garden of Eden had an impact on shaping our understanding of the economic positions of men and women. She contrasts this with more egalitarian gender roles noted in the first two chapters of Genesis. Emphasis is placed upon the notion of “The Curse” in Genesis 3, as this will become important in our later discussion of Christian missionaries and their impact in Africa. We then do move on to a discussion of missionaries and how their biblical translations affected the economic and cultural structure of various African nations. Given that agriculture in Africa was still largely viewed as women’s work during the 19th and 20th centuries, whereas the plow had made it more of man’s work in Europe, missionaries preaching the Book of Genesis had the unintended effect of reinforcing agrarian gender roles at a time when household production was changing. Dr. Miles recounts a number of stories from her own personal work in Africa as to how such interpretations were seen.

We finish with a discussion of the work Carrie does with Empower International Ministries, which places a focus on gender issues as part of its general missionary strategy, and also what she has learned via the course of her studies. Recorded: May 20, 2015.

The Redemption of Love: Rescuing Marriage and Sexuality from the Economics of a Fallen World, by Carrie Miles.

Empower International Ministries.

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Hunter Baker on the Past and Future of the Religious Right

tonygill — Sun, 03 Aug 2014 08:00:01 +0000

The Religious Right has been a force to be reckoned with in American politics over the past four decades, but is its influence on the wane as many of its initial leaders and intellectuals pass from the scene? Prof. Hunter Baker, associate professor of political science and Dean of Instruction at Union University, talks about the past, present, and future of this movement based upon his most recent book The System Has a Soul.

Following some light banter about puppies, Prof. Baker provides us with a definition of what the Religious Right is, noting that it has been a term that has been ill-defined and often used to refer to poor and uneducated religious voters. Hunter points out that this movement has some deep and surprising intellectual roots. While religious involvement in American politics has a long history, he dates the current movement back to William Jennings Bryan and the Scopes Monkey Trial and then picks up the story in the mid-20th century with the emergence of a number of “neo-evangelical” thinkers such as Carl F.H. Henry and Frances Schaeffer. We review the interesting influence these thinkers had and note the surprising activist background of these individuals, including Schaeffer’s willingness to “listen to hippies” and pro-labor attitudes (things that are not normally associated with the media caricature of the Religious Right).

We then talk about the emergence of the movement in the 1970s with individuals such as Chuck Colson arguing for religion to take on a more public profile and events such as the Roe v Wade Supreme Court decision playing an important mobilizing effect. This is where Hunter explains how Christians began to reject “functional differentiation” and helps Tony understand what that social scientific-sounding terms means. While many neo-evangelicals supported Jimmy Carter’s bid for the presidency in 1976 and that many Democrats were supporters of the pro-life movement that was gaining ground, Hunter points out the shift that occurs to the Republican Party in the 1980s with Ronald Reagan’s embrace of these individuals with his famous quote, “I know you can’t endorse me, but I endorse you.” Our conversation also covers the extent to which this movement was merely an evangelical Christian movement or whether it entailed non-Protestant thinkers such as Richard John Neuhaus.

We review the public rise of the Religious Right in the 1980s with reference to Falwell’s Moral Majority and Robertson’s Christian Coalition, but Hunter points out that it was James Dobson’s Focus on the Family that probably had the bigger and more lasting impact on the movement. Again he points out that Dobson, who has a Ph.D., is indicative of the scholarly grounding of the movement contrary to a media opinion that paints the movement as anti-intellectual. Although the demise of the Moral Majority and the election of Bill Clinton as president are often seen as indications of the waning of the Religious Right in the 1990s, Hunter asserts that the movement took on a more grassroots approach and was able to develop a “deeper bench” by electing adherents to office and placing them in the Academy. He makes the claim that the real peak of the Religious Right movement was around 2005. Disillusionment with the presidency of George W. Bush and the apparent failings of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan aided in eroding the influence of Christian conservatives during this time. We also discuss the politics surrounding same-sex marriage and how losses in the battle to ban gay marriage have also chipped away at the movement’s strength.

We finally turn our attention to the future of the Religious Right. Tony asks to what extent the Tea Party represents a revitalization of the Christian conservatives, but Prof. Baker notes that the Tea Party represents a distinct social movement. Nonetheless, he raises the issue of religious liberty and how Christians are now seeing this as a major issue that may allow them to align with the more libertarian leanings of the Tea Party. We also chat about the recent writings of Jonathan Malesic and James Davison Hunter who argue that it may be a time for Christians to embrace secularism and perhaps take a “season of silence.” Hunter provides his thoughts on this topic and we ruminate about the future of Christian political activism in the United States noting that there have been periods of waxing and waning throughout the long course of history and we may be witnessing one of those waning moments. Recorded: July 23, 2014.

RELATED LINKS

Hunter Baker’s bio at his personal blog.

The System Has a Soul: Essays on Christianity, Liberty, and Political Life, by Hunter Baker.

The End of Secularism, by Hunter Baker.

Political Thought: A Student’s Guide, by Hunter Baker.

How Should We Then Live?, by Frances Schaeffer (mentioned in podcast).

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Hunter Baker on Secularism.

Hunter Baker on the Future of Higher Education.

Jon Shields on Democratic Virtues and the Religious Right.

Gerald de Maio on the Electoral Religion Gap.

Kevin den Dulk on Religion, Education, and Civic Engagement.

Luis Bolce on the Media and Anti-Fundamentalism.

William Donohue on Secular Sabotage.

Rodney Stark on How Religion Benefits Everyone, Including Atheists

tonygill — Sun, 05 May 2013 08:00:21 +0000

Welcome new visitors. Join (and like) us at our Facebook Fan Page for regular updates, and be sure to tune in next week when we talk about Jesus & Gin!

Religious folks would agree that religion is pretty good for them. But is a more religious society good for the entire society as a whole, including non-believers? We take a look at the “positive spillover effects” that spiritual belief and church attendance has on the population as a whole with Prof. Rodney Stark, frequent guest and co-director of Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion. (Disclaimer: Baylor’s ISR is the sponsor of our podcast.) Our conversation begins with a discussion about how religious America really is. Recent students appear to indicate increasing non-participation, particularly among the young, and the newly-defined category of “nones” has become a regular talking point in the popular media. Prof. Stark puts these studies into perspective noting some methodological issues with these studies, but also notes that the “nones” — when examined more closely — actually behave rather religiously, including engaging in regular prayer. Rod mentions that the problem may not be so much as a loss of faith amongst the population, but rather a current weakness among churches to provide an adequate set of services. We then talk about a variety of benefits that a religious, and churched, population brings to society as a whole, including atheists. Our first stop on this journey deals with crime and its flipside, “pro-social behavior.” Despite having an image of a society out of control, Rod points out that “secular” (or “unchurched”) Europe has much higher crime rates in almost all categories except murder. We then discuss how and why religion may help to ameliorate crime by promoting pro-social behaviors, a seemingly obvious notion that has often been overlooked by criminologists. Religion not only decreases crime, but it promotes pro-social behavior such as helping people on the side of the road and donating blood, which moves us into a discussion about voluntarism. Contrary to the oft-cultivated notion that religious folks only provide charity or donate time to their own religious organizations, Rod points out that religious individuals are more engaged in secular organizations than secular folks. This moves our conversation into the realm of civic (political) involvement, and again the data show that religiously-active individuals shine in this area as well, and this includes not only evangelical Protestants, but Catholics, Jews, and members of other faith traditions. Tony then notes that being a “community volunteer” is not the only way to benefit a community, but rather being successful in one’s own chosen profession and not becoming a burden on society is also a way of benefitting the society at large. Rod talks about how religious individuals are, on average, more successful in business than secular individuals and are less likely to become a burden on society. This move us then to the issue of education and how homeschooling, promoted largely by religious individuals, has transformed the educational system to the point where many institutions of higher learning are taking note. Again, this provides a great many “positive externalities” for the local and national community. We then tackle intellectual life by playing off Mark Noll’s famous book about the lack of an “evangelical mind,” and Rod shows — to the contrary of Noll’s assertion — that religious individuals contribute greatly to intellectual life and high culture in the U.S. We finish off the interview with a discussion of health-related issues, including both physical and mental health. Both Tony and Rod share their various outrages at some of the very odd studies that have looked at the interconnection between religion and health. And just to spice things up on RoR, we get into a bit of a discussion about s-e-x, as well as how that relates to a bigger issue facing the Western world — fertility. Recorded: April 30, 2013.

America’s Blessings: How Religion Benefits Everyone, Including Atheists, by Rodney Stark.

The Triumph of Christianity: How the Jesus Movement Became the World’s Largest Religion, by Rodney Stark.

America’s Blessings: How Religion Benefits Everyone… Including Atheists, by Rodney Stark (available November 2012).

Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion.

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Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part I.

Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part II.

Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part III.

Rodney Stark on The Crusades.

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James Felak on Vatican Council II

tonygill — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 09:00:13 +0000

In October of 1962, several thousand cardinals, bishops and other dignitaries met at the Vatican to initiate what would become a three year “meeting of minds” that became known as The Second Vatican Council (a.k.a., Vatican Council II or Vatican II). To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the beginning of this momentous gathering, we invite back our favorite historian of modern Catholicism, James Felak, professor of history at the University of Washington. James guides us through a brief history of Christian/Catholic councils dating back to the First Council of Nicaea. All told, there have been 21 general (major) councils. We talk about their general purpose and also note how there was a roughly 300 year gap in major councils before Vatican Council I was called 1868. We review what happened at The First Vatican Council as a way of setting the table for the second one, which was to follow a century later. Prof. Felak lays out the historical context of the mid-19th century that helped to motivate Vatican I, as well as the main issues that were debated and decided at that council, including papal infallibility and the role and autonomy of the bishops. Interestingly, the specific role of the bishops and collegiality was never fully resolved, something that had an impact on Vatican II. We then catapult ourselves into the 20th century to discuss the motivations behind the convening of VCII. James points out, contrary to some popular opinion, that the Catholic Church was not in crisis during the mid-1990s and “crisis” was not a motivating factor behind this council. Although VCII is most associated with John XXIII, James notes that Pope Pius XII was making plans for a general council to reaffirm what was decided at Vatican I. With Pius’s death, though, things change and Prof. Felak nicely summarizes the differences between these two popes and how this shapes what would become VCII. He notes that some of the changes that would occur within the liturgy began with Pius XII, contrary to his image as being more conservative pontiff. Likewise, John XXIII was not as theologically liberal as many people now assume; he just liked to hug people in public, which seems somewhat liberal. Interestingly, we learn that John XXIII was considered to be a “caretaker” pontiff, something that is not uncommon within Catholic history; given John XXIII’s age it was assumed that he would maintain the status of the Church while considerations would be given to who the next pope would be. But lo and behold, John XXIII, who was not likely in on Pius XII’s plans, suprisingly calls a council in 1959. This propels Tony into a little bit of mathematical calculation, noting that there is a 3 1/2 year gap between when Vacican II is announced and when it actually convenes. This generates a discussion about the logistics for such a large event. James fills us in on how decisions were made about who to invite, how much of the council would be open to the general public (via modern media) and other faiths, and who will be setting the intellectual underpinnings of the meeting itself. We even discuss the critical issue of how to house all these people, including members of the media and observers from other faiths who were invited as a means of opening a dialogue about ecumenism. After soliciting opinions about what should be discussed, we discover that the agenda starts to spiral in all different directions, which gives rise to the council’s three-year duration. We start that discussion by noting what was not talked about at the conclave, including birth control, clerical celibacy, and the role of the Curia. James then goes into the wide range of issues that were addressed and brings up the various important documents such as Dignitatis Humanae, Gaudium et Spes and Lumen Gentium. We also chat about the politicking that went on behind the scenes, how media leaks influenced the conference, and what role the US government might have tried to play during the proceedings. In the last 20 minutes of the interview, James discusses the impact that Vatican II has had on the Catholic Church since the 1960s and emphasizes the “spirit of Vatican II” and the tension of getting back to basics (ressourcement) and growing organically with a changing world (aggiornamento). Tony shares his experiences with the folk Mass that he remembers from his childhood. James then disavows some of his misplaced notions about how John Paul II has tried to reverse the reforms of Vatican II; just as John XXIII was not as liberal as popular media portrays him, neither was John Paul II the conservative that he is often made out to be. We finish with Prof. Felak’s thoughts about where the Catholic Church is heading over the next several years. Recorded: December 18, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. James Felak’s biography at the University of Washington.

After Hitler, Before Stalin: Catholics, Communists, and Democrats in Slovakia, 1945-1948, by James Felak.

RELATED PODCASTS

James Felak on Pope John Paul II and Communism.

James Felak on Pope Pius XII, The Wartime Pontiff.

Lan Chu on Catholicism in Vietnam.