Archive for 'Doctrine & practice'

Faith and film: ‘Holywood’ goes to the Oscars

Faith and film: ‘Holywood’ goes to the Oscars

This year’s Academy Awards ceremony on March 7 features a bumper crop of films, many that are built around spiritual, and sometimes overtly religious, themes. Are 2009’s movies really more spiritually focused than films of recent years? Has Hollywood found religion? Or are producers just recognizing that religion sells?

Lent in a time of sacrifice: Resources on giving

Lent in a time of sacrifice: Resources on giving

The penitential season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17, and runs until Easter. The season is traditionally viewed as a time of personal spiritual reflection for Christians. In recent years that lens has broadened to include a focus on helping others. Is that outward charity affected by the widespread economic pain of the [...]

Beyond ‘Octomom’: Emerging issues in assisted reproduction

Beyond ‘Octomom’: Emerging issues in assisted reproduction

The ethics of fertility treatments are struggling to keep up with rapid-fire advances in biotechnology. The case of Nadya Suleman, the “Octomom” who gave birth to octuplets in January 2009 through reproductive technology, is just an extreme example of the ethical dilemmas that parents, medical professionals and religious leaders are facing.

Gods and games: From the Super Bowl to the Winter Olympics

Gods and games: From the Super Bowl to the Winter Olympics

After organized worship, athletic competition is perhaps the oldest communal impulse known to mankind, and today sports and religion mirror each other as never before, experts say. Nowhere will that be more evident than on Super Bowl Sunday on Feb. 7 and during the Winter Olympics that run from Feb. 12-28.

Health care CPR: Religious groups push for reform

Health care CPR: Religious groups push for reform

As President Barack Obama delivered his first State of the Union address on Jan. 27, 2010, religious groups that support health care reform were pressing the White House and Congress to continue to try to pass a comprehensive overhaul. Prospects for that dimmed considerably with the Republican victory in Massachusetts’ Senate election Jan. 19.

Splitting the baby: Religion and child custody

Splitting the baby: Religion and child custody

Religious differences are increasingly complicating child custody cases and are fueling a growing number of news stories. A generation ago, mothers almost always were granted custody and deemed responsible for most aspects of a child’s upbringing. Today these responsibilities are split more evenly between parents, and religion increasingly is a flash point.

The abortion debate heats up: RL’s resources and experts

The abortion debate heats up: RL’s resources and experts

The anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion always sparks discussions about this hot-button issue, and the annual March for Life on the National Mall in Washington is one focus of much media attention. But this year there are a number of developments driving the abortion debate in new directions.

Torture and terror: From ‘24′ to the underwear bomber

Torture and terror: From ‘24′ to the underwear bomber

The debate over torture is heating up on two fronts: politics and popular culture. The airline bombing attempt on Christmas Day brought renewed calls to use torture on terror suspects, and the Jan. 17 premiere of the new season of “24″ again thrusts that drama’s frequent depictions of torture into the mix.

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