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God, the Army, and PTSD

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Boston Review - By Tara McKelvey - Nov. 11 (Special Report) - During the Iraq war, however, the great difficulty veterans experienced in getting psychiatric care—greater than before—was not a product of cost-cutting, but of conviction: many Bush administration officials believed that soldiers who supported the war would not face psychological problems, and if they did, they would find comfort in faith. In a resigned tone, one prominent researcher who worked for the VA, and asked that he not be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the press, explained that high-ranking officials believed that “Jesus fixes everything.” Benimoff and the others who returned with devastating psychological injuries found a faith-based bureau within the VA. At veterans’ hospitals, chaplains were conducting spirituality assessments of patients.

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Blackwater Founder Implicated in Murder

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

The Nation - By Jeremy Scahill - Aug. 04 (News) - Sworn statements filed in Federal Court allege that Blackwater founder Erik Prince launched a "crusade" to eliminate Muslims and Islam and that the company may have been involved in murders to suppress information from federal investigators.

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religion

Sun, 02 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Link TV - Aug. 02 (Special Report) - (Global Pulse: April 24, 2009) Obama declassifies Bush administration documents that detail and attempt to legalize what some have called "torture techniques." While the U.S media seem focused on the political ramifications, media worldwide present the brutality of torture and point the finger of blame directly at Bush.SOURCES: FOX, CBS, ABC, CNN, The Daily Show, U.S; TV5, France; Press TV, Iran; TVN, Chile; Al Jazeera English, Qatar

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"Open the Gates that the Righteous Nation May Enter": Rumsfeld Used Biblical Quotes in Top-Secret Iraq War Briefings for Bush

Tue, 19 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Democracy Now - By Amy Goodman, Robert Draper - May. 19 (News Report) - GQ Magazine has revealed former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld repeatedly gave President Bush top-secret briefings adorned with Biblical quotes during the early days of the invasion of Iraq. One briefing paper showed an image of a US soldier in Baghdad below the Biblical quote, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.”

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Is the U.S. a Christian nation?

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Salon - Apr. 09 (Special Report) - So far, the most interesting thing to come out of all this is a debate on MSNBC's "Hardball" between writer and noted atheist Christopher Hitchens and former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, who's now with a Christian right group, the Family Research Center.

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Wash . Post latest to omit Sebelius' Catholic support

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Media Matters - Mar. 03 (News Analysis) - Washington Post article quoted the president of the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute saying of secretary of Health and Human Services nominee Kathleen Sebelius: "That she is a dissident Catholic is a further slap in the face to Catholics and the Catholic Church." But the article did not note that President Obama's selection of Sebelius has received support from Catholics United and numerous other Catholics.

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Atheists file suit to stop Warren invocation

Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Salon - By Alex Koppelman - Jan. 01 (News Report) - The latest organized effort against Warren's participation was launched by a group of atheists who have filed a lawsuit that contends prayer should not be allowed during the ceremony.

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The (Really) Moderate Muslims of Kosovo

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

City Journal - By Michael J. Totten - Dec. 21 (Special Report) - Kosovo’s brand of Islam may be the most liberal in the world. I saw no more women there wearing conservative Islamic clothing—one or two per day at most—than I’ve seen in Manhattan. There is no gender apartheid even in Kosovo’s villages. Alcohol flows freely in restaurants, cafés, and bars, where you’ll see as many young women in sexy outfits as you’d find in any Western European country. Aside from the minarets on the skyline, there is no visible evidence that Kosovo is a Muslim-majority country at all.

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Mall of America Moves to Accommodate Minnesota Muslims

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Mshale - By Mohamed Hassan - Dec. 16 (News Report) - Every year, as Muslims in America are compelled to engage in business, work and shopping during the holidays, many find themselves away from mosques and other places where they can hold prayers without interruption. They are forced to seek privacy in corners and alleyways, places that often subject them to unwanted attention. Some Muslims also worry that their repetitive calls of “Allah akbar!” (God is great!) during prayers could be misconstrued as calls for Jihad.

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The Top Ten Power Brokers of the Religious Right

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

AlterNet - By Rob Boston - Nov. 10 (Investigative Report) - "The Religious Right is not dead," said Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. "AU's new survey of its funding and power should help dispel the myth that the Religious Right is on the ropes. Forces determined to merge government with their narrow version of religion are alive and kicking, and it behooves us all to understand their goals and tactics."

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The Palin Payoff: How Sarah Brings in the Christian Cash

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

AlterNet - By Bill Berkowitz, Mike Reynolds, - Oct. 07 (News Analysis) - Thanks to Palin, McCain can now pay for expensive attacks on Obama, giving him the same kind of clout Bush had in battleground states.

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The pastor who clashed with Palin

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Salon - By David Talbot - Sep. 15 (Special Report) - A retired American Baptist minister who pastors a small congregation in nearby Palmer, Wasilla's twin town in Alaska's Matanuska Valley, Bess has been tangling with Palin and her fellow evangelical activists ever since she was a Wasilla City Council member in the 1990s. Recently, Bess again found himself in the spotlight with Palin, when it was reported that his 1995 book, "Pastor, I Am Gay," was among those Palin tried to have removed from the Wasilla Public Library when she was mayor. "She scares me," said Bess. "She's Jerry Falwell with a pretty face.

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Sarah Palin Assemblies of God

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Salon - By Sarah Posner - Sep. 11 (Special Report) - The McCain campaign has downplayed Palin's Pentecostal roots. But as her testimony at the Wasilla Assembly of God demonstrates, she is motivated by the idea that godly forces are locked in spiritual warfare with satanic forces. For many with a Pentecostal upbringing like Palin's, fighting that battle is part of God's plan for the end of days, when war will end the world as we know it, Jesus will come back, and non-Christians will convert or perish.

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Theocratic Sect Prays for Real Armageddon

Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

AlterNet - By Casey Sanchez - Aug. 30 (Special Report) - Todd Bentley has a long night ahead of him, resurrecting the dead, healing the blind, and exploding cancerous tumors. Since April 3, the 32-year-old, heavily tattooed, body-pierced, shaved-head Canadian preacher has been leading a continuous "supernatural healing revival" in central Florida. To contain the 10,000-plus crowds flocking from around the globe, Bentley has rented baseball stadiums, arenas and airport hangars at a cost of up to $15,000 a day. Many in attendance are church pastors themselves who believe Bentley to be a prophet and don't bat an eye when he tells them he's seen King David and spoken with the Apostle Paul in heaven. "He was looking very Jewish," Bentley notes.

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Dems' Godly God-Fest Ends with Prayer by Former Christian Coalition Leader

Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

AlterNet - By Joshua Holland, - Aug. 30 (News Analysis) - So there was a lot of God Bless this and that, although, interestingly, nobody asked God to damn America. And there were lots of "faith leaders" in attendance. Contrary to popular belief, I have no qualms with any of this, even if I question to what degree it might be effective. I did want to draw attention to one leader in particular -- the man who followed Obama, offering the prayer that closed the convention. 'Twas none other than Joel Hunter, mega-church pastor and, briefly, head of the rightwing Christian Coalition.

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McCain's Pastor Problem: The Video

Thu, 08 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Mother Jones - By David Corn - May. 08 (News Report) - During a 2005 sermon, a fundamentalist pastor whom Senator John McCain has praised and campaigned with, called Islam "the greatest religious enemy of our civilization and the world," claiming that the historic mission of America is to see "this false religion destroyed." In this taped sermon currently sold by his megachurch, the Reverend Rod Parsley reiterates and amplifies harsh and derogatory comments about Islam he made in his book, Silent No More, published the same year he delivered these remarks. Meanwhile, McCain has stuck to his stance of not criticizing Parsley, an important political ally in a crucial swing state.

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Benedict: The Last 20th Century Man

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

The Anchoress - By The Anchoress - Apr. 21 (News Analysis) - Benedict XVI is the last man of the 20th century to walk the global stage. He saw tyranny overtake his county and the minds and imaginations of his countymen, as well as his own liberty. He watched the cold war play out and worked closely with one of the destructors of that system. That he viewed all of these things through the lens of faith and mystery means that his perspective is not only singular, it is supernatural, as well. Before we knew him as Benedict, while he was still Joseph Ratzinger, he was telling us what he knew, but between his "rottweiller" caricature and all the religious wrappings, we missed it: "...the population of an entirely planned and controlled world are going to be inexpressibly lonely ... and they will then discover the little community of believers as something quite new. As a hope that is there for them, as the answer they have secretly always been asking for." He knows. Listen to this 20th century man who sees what comes ahead because he vividly remembers all that came before - all that we want to believe we've left behind. He recognizes the tyrant because he has seen it, has felt its breath on his very neck. And in that statement, he acknowledges for us that the tyrant this time will eat up liberty so thoroughly that only in the spirit will freedom be found, nourished and strengthened. A totalitarian world without a spiritual defense will be unsurvivable.

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McCain Can't Quit John Hagee: Right Wing Televangelist Blames Hurricane Katrina on Gay Pride and More [VIDEO]

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0800

AlterNet - By Adam Howard - Mar. 07 (News Report) - There's been a lot of chatter over the last few days about John McCain's embrace of Pastor John Hagee, who's well-known for a history of anti-Catholicism and claims that God will send terrorists to create a "bloodbath" in America for its support of a two state solution in Israel/Palestine. So what is it exactly that Hagee's said and just how much has McCain cozied up to him? We thought we'd put all the choicest moments into one quick video so you could take a look and make up your own mind.

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Embattled Veterans Official Resigns Post

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Inter Press Service - By Aaron Glantz - Feb. 29 (News Report) - Another high-ranking George W. Bush administration official has resigned. The Department of Veterans Affairs Undersecretary for Benefits Daniel Cooper quit Thursday amid mounting criticism over a backlog of disability claims for injured veterans that runs six months long and an appearance he made in a fundraising video for an evangelical Christian organisation where he said Bible study was more important than doing his job.

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Evolution battle flares in states

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Stateline - By Pauline Vu - Feb. 22 (News Report) - Creationism v. evolution in schools has been for many years a battle in the nation's culture war, and these days it's no different.

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House Passes, Considers Evangelical Resolutions

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

TruthOut - By Jason Leopold - Jan. 14 (News Report) - A Republican congressman, who has spent the better part of the past two years on a mission to ensure Jesus Christ has a place in all aspects of federal government, has introduced a resolution to designate a week every year to honor the nation's "rich spiritual, and religious history."

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The Cancer From Within

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 09:48:33 -0800

TruthDig - By David Antoon - Nov. 08 (Special Report) - I no longer recognize the Air Force Academy as the institution I attended almost four decades earlier. At that point, I had no idea how invasive this extreme evangelical "cancer" had become throughout the entire military, that what I had witnessed was far from an isolated case of a few religious zealots.

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Homeland Security Enlists Clergy to Quell Public Unrest if Martial Law Ever Declared

Wed, 15 Aug 2007 13:54:42 -0700

KSLA TV, Shreveport - By (no author named) - Aug. 15 (News Report) - Could martial law ever become a reality in America? Some fear any nuclear, biological or chemical attack on U.S. soil might trigger just that. KSLA News 12 has discovered that the clergy would help the government with potentially their biggest problem: Us.

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The Reckoning - The proper place for religion in politics

Sat, 19 May 2007 11:17:18 -0700

Boston Review - By Cathy Tumber - May. 19 (Special Report) - In the morose hours of reckoning that followed George W. Bush's 2004 electoral victory, many liberals were forced to conclude that their politics had lost its moral center, costing them the confidence of a decisive margin of American voters--with deadly consequences. Regaining a moral voice in time for 2008 is a tall order. Many liberals--those most closely indebted to the classical thought of Adam Smith and Thomas Jefferson--are attracted to the idea that politics neither has nor needs a moral center, that liberalism's genius lies in a scheme of political checks and balances that relegates life's sweetest rewards to the realms of religion and privacy. But even those who are comfortable with the rhetoric of public morality face troubles because of the peculiarly American fusion of morality and religion. Religion is risky territory for liberals, who generally wish to maintain a healthy respect for the legal separation of church and state and are also loath to criticize religious beliefs, though some have grown increasingly comfortable doing so.

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An Army of Christian Right Lawyers Is Waging War on the Constitution

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 00:00:00 -0700

AlterNet - By Sarah Posner - Apr. 06 (Special Report) - If Bill O'Reilly had a hero other than himself, it would be ADF and its courtroom crusaders lined up to fight the ACLU, Nickelodeon's homosexual agenda, and heathens who are hell-bent on censoring the words "Merry Christmas." ADF's president, Alan Sears, a former Reagan administration prosecutor who, according to the ADF's website, "God uniquely prepared" for his lead role in the organization, admits to being inspired by the right-wing commentator O'Reilly--hardly known for his jurisprudential acuity--to write portions of his book, The ACLU vs. America.

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