fundamentalism
Financial dogma and faith without religion
For a few days this week, my son and I had some Muslim Arab kids from the Mideast, ages 8 and 12, up at the cottage. They've been in Canada for two years. Since it was Ramadan, we decided to fast with them. It's not mandatory for children but lots do it.
Evangelicals 'are here for the long term, not just Stephen Harper's term'
In 2006, the veteran journalist Marci McDonald wrote a feature for The Walrus magazine called 'Stephen Harper and the Theo-cons', a reportage story about her time spent among evangelical conservatives and their growing influence on Canada's political life. This article grew into her new book, The Armageddon Factor: The Rise of Christian Nationalism in Canada. It is described as an urgent wake-up call for all Canadians who think that this country is immune from the righteous brand of Christian nationalism that has bitterly divided and weakened the United States.
Where's the halal, Obama?
Barack Obama's speech in Cairo yesterday made me nostalgic. The feeling came on as he foresaw a time "when the Holy Land of three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it to be." In my undergrad years, I studied at Brandeis University, near Boston, a secular school but built by American Jews as their contribution to U.S. higher education. Its architectural centrepiece was a set of three chapels around a pool where, as the school catalogue said, "three faiths go their separate ways ... together."
Who's a terrorist?
There was a terrorist attack in the United States last Sunday. Dr. George Tiller was shot and killed while attending services at a Lutheran church in Kansas. Was it the work of radical Islamists? No,it was a terrorist crime committed by a right-wing Christian extremist. Will the killer be charged for terrorism? Probably not, but one could bet had it been a nut bar from some other religion, particularly Islam at this point in history, much ado would be made about terrorism.
Afghan politics: Let's be real
The outpouring of Western anger and shock earlier this month over a new Afghan law that legalizes marital rape and confines women to their homes demonstrates how out of touch Western countries are with the monster they have created in that benighted country.
Of course Hamid Karzai would support such a law. He wants to be re-elected president in August and to do so he must support his base: Islamic fundamentalists. Both sides of the conflict are fundamentalist Islamic. There is nothing else.
Indeed, while outrage caused Karzai to say he'd withdraw the law, many doubt he'll follow through.