Austin

Church & state

What are the laws regarding how churches and religious institutions comply with government guidelines? By Charles Austin The Record* Because the phrase, “freedom of religion,” is a beloved mantra of American democracy, the relationship between religion and civil authority is one of the most complicated and misunderstood aspects of modern life. In fact, religion in […]

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Paul L. Gavrilyuk

Paul L. Gavrilyuk is an associate professor in theology at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. His publications include “Eastern Orthodoxy,” The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Religion (2007).

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Ron Sider

Ron Sider is founder and president of Evangelicals for Social Action, which promotes Christian engagement, analysis and understanding of major social, cultural and public policy issues. He is also Distinguished Professor of Theology, Holistic Ministry and Public Policy at Palmer Theological Seminary in St. Davids, Pa. He is the author of Rich Christians in an […]

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Lieblich

Revealing your religion

When do you reveal your religion to sources? By Julia Lieblich Chicago Tribune* Several years ago, I spent time with a Jehovah’s Witness family in Tennessee, hanging out with a mother and her children during home schooling, church services and door-to-door proselytizing. I didn’t tell the family about my faith, and I was relieved the […]

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Patrick Lynch

The Rev. Patrick Lynch is chair of the religious studies department at Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y. He is a Jesuit priest and has taught courses on Catholic social ethics, religion & politics and the Jesuits.

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“A Portrait of Mormons in the U.S.”

Read a July 24, 2009, analysis, “A Portrait of Mormons in the U.S.,” by the Pew Forum. The report, based on data from Pew’s U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, shows that “as a group Mormons are among the most devout and conservative religious people in the country.” But the report also shows that Mormons are “internally diverse, with […]

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