It’s alliteration Wednesday, as you can tell by the headline, so make the most of your morning by reading the religion roundup and the latest from Mississippi’s faith-driven senate primary. Plus the ups and downs of that Rocky Mountain high, and why the Redskins are lobbying the UCC …
God and the GOP
In Mississippi’s hotly-contested (I think that’s what the political pundits call it) Republican primary for Senate last night, Tea Party insurgent Chris McDaniel defeated incumbent Thad Cochran but just missed the 50 percent threshold to avoid a runoff. So we’ll be at this again in three weeks. Says McDaniel:
“We owe everything tonight to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ — he is in control, so always remember that.”
Then again, the unknown other candidate in the race, Thomas Carey, won just enough of the vote — 1.6 percent — to force this runoff. And on primary day he said:
“I believe the Lord called me to do this. Not literally, but he woke me up a lot of times in the middle of the night.”
Not sure what that means. But the bigger question is: What’s God doing in Mississippi anyway?
At the Daily Beast, Brandy Zadrozny wonders why it is that Republican candidates so often say God told them to run, but he doesn’t let them win.
In the Vatican this morning …
Pope Francis had some choice words:
#Pope says being pious isn't squeezing eyes shut, pretending to be a saint. It's opening up yr arms to console others pic.twitter.com/T3jqpnsBDQ
— Catholic News Service Rome (@CatholicNewsSvc) June 4, 2014
Speaking of the pontiff …
A couple of our stories for your consideration:
- Catholic and libertarian? Pope’s top adviser says they’re incompatible
- The Audacity of Pope: The ‘Francis Doctrine’ puts the Vatican back on the world stage
- Pope Francis ‘deeply moved’ by letters from young U.S. prisoners
- Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew may join Vatican prayer summit
Don’t forget that back in 1944 …
This was happening:
Here a religious service aboard D-Day landing craft bound for Normandy 70 years ago this week: #NARA pic.twitter.com/Xl9ZA4DN9R
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) June 3, 2014
Redskins are lobbying the UCC over name change
The WaPo reports this morning that a top official of the franchise, which is facing increasing pressure to change its problematic name, called a United Church of Christ leader and asked him to speak to three Native Americans who support the controversial name. The effort comes 11 days before the mainline denomination will vote on a resolution calling for its 22,000 members to boycott the Washington Redskins over the name.
As a Giants fan, I’m cool with the name change as long as the team remains a cellar dweller in the NFC East. Yeah, I’m looking at you, Joshua Dubois.
Pot is up, MoDo is down
Maureen Dowd went to Colorado to write about the state’s experience with legalizing marijuana and this happened when she nibbled on a cannabis candy bar:
I felt a scary shudder go through my body and brain. I barely made it from the desk to the bed, where I lay curled up in a hallucinatory state for the next eight hours. I was thirsty but couldn’t move to get water. Or even turn off the lights. I was panting and paranoid, sure that when the room-service waiter knocked and I didn’t answer, he’d call the police and have me arrested for being unable to handle my candy.
Yet as Jonathan Turley points out, legal pot sales are soaring and crime is down. Moral of this story?
Freud and Faith
Ed Stetzer writes about Christians and mental illness, and whether believers look to scripture or science or both when the noonday demons seize the soul. Good stuff, fascinating topic.
Will conservative Christians support gay marriage?
Kirsten Powers writes in USA Today that it’s a good question to ask in light of new evidence that could change the way believers view same-sex relationships. “The church has done this before on issues ranging from slavery to the solar system,” she writes.
How to think about the Bowe Bergdahl release
As the saga of the POW and the controversy over his release continue, Matthew Beard at ABC’s indispensable “Religion and Ethics” site digs deeper into the moral framework of his case. “Seeking to label Bergdahl as ‘deserter,’ ‘traitor’ or ‘hero’ overlooks the nuanced lessons this case can teach us about the psyche of the modern soldier,” he writes.
- Also see our story: “Pastor says released soldier has mental toughness to recover“
“The Problem with Biblical Authority”
That’s the title of Tom Wright’s latest On Faith column, our must-read of the day.
Breaking Good?
Ahead of Friday’s Netflix drop of a new season of “Orange is the New Black,” Xarissa Holdaway wonders: ” In a show meant to portray the richness and diversity of the American experience, why is the show’s only serious religious character a whackadoo murderess?”
Me, I tried a few episodes and couldn’t get into it. Maybe I’m still on a “Breaking Bad” hangover. Should I try again?
The Best of the Rest from RNS:
- Murfreesboro mosque fight laid to rest after Supreme Court ruling
- Navy rejects request for first humanist chaplain
- The ballerina and the Bible: Q&A with Jenifer Ringer
That’s all for now. Carry on.