Huckabee’s Sermons Off Limits

Staff / Truthdig Dec 13, 2007 The Huckabee campaign has refused to give the media much more than scraps of the candidate's religious speeches, leaving his 12 years as a pastor relatively shrouded in mystery. We already know he doesn't believe in evolution, thought at one time that AIDS patients should be quarantined and isn't ashamed "to let you know that I believe Adam and Eve were real people," so what is he hiding? Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Romney Woos Wary Voters With Faith-Based Appeal

Staff / Truthdig Dec 7, 2007 Now that rival Republican presidential hopeful (and Baptist minister) Mike Huckabee is getting traction in Iowa polls, Mitt Romney has attempted to pull a JFK by giving a speech Thursday targeting voters concerned about his Mormonism. Romney pledged that church authorities wouldn't influence his presidential decisions, while also declaring that he endeavors to "live by" his faith and be "true to" his beliefs. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Marriage and the State: Not Exactly a Love Story

Staff / Truthdig Nov 27, 2007 Amid the fracas over who can marry whom, professor and author Stephanie Coontz poses a provocative question in Monday's New York Times that leads to some interesting history and shifts the focus of the debate: "Why do people -- gay or straight -- need the state's permission to marry?" Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Homophobic Church Ordered to Pay $10.9M for Picketing Funeral

Staff / Truthdig Nov 1, 2007 A Maryland court has ordered leaders of Kansas' fundamentalist Westboro Baptist Church to pay almost $11 million in damages to Albert Snyder, the father of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in Iraq. Snyder sued the controversial church after members picketed his son's funeral in March 2006. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

God’s Only Party

Will Durst / Truthdig Oct 8, 2007 The creator will campaign for a third-party candidate if Rudy locks up the GOP nomination. How do we know this? Well, it seems God whispered in the ears of certain evangelical leaders. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Prairie Justice

Ellen Goodman / Truthdig Sep 20, 2007 Warren Jeffs, a polygamist prophet, is on trial for aiding in the sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl he married off to her cousin. It's a sad story featuring an abhorrent man, but something about the case just doesn't feel right to Ellen Goodman. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

An Obituary for the Free Press

Staff / Truthdig Sep 20, 2007 A leading Los Angeles religious figure blasts media irresponsibility at a memorial service for one of the Los Angeles Times' top editors, Anthony Day. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

American Exceptionalism Meets Team Jesus

Tom Engelhardt / Truthdig Sep 18, 2007 There's a lot of talk about religious fundamentalism these days, but how much do we really know about the brand of Christian fundamentalism that has developed in America since, and in response to, the Enlightenment? Author James Carroll holds forth on the subject in this interview with TomDispatch editor Tom Engelhardt. Dig deeper ( 23 Min. Read )

Deported Activist Fights to Reunite Families

Staff / Truthdig Aug 21, 2007 After leaving the sanctuary of the Chicago church where she held off immigration authorities for a year, Mexican immigration activist Elvira Arellano was arrested and deported after speaking out at an immigrants' rights demonstration in Los Angeles. Now in Tijuana, Arellano will continue her efforts to reunite with her American-born son and will keep fighting for families divided by immigration laws. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Texas Church Calls Off Gay Vet’s Funeral

Staff / Truthdig Aug 12, 2007 The family of Navy veteran Cecil Sinclair says it's deeply insulted because a Dallas-area megachurch reneged on its offer to hold a memorial for the 46-year-old Gulf War serviceman just 24 hours before the service was to take place. The reason? Sinclair was gay -- a fact that Sinclair's sister insists High Point Church leaders already knew, despite their denials. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Pope: Only Catholics Go to ‘Church’

Staff / Truthdig Jul 11, 2007 In a move that strikes some as proprietary ecclesiastical politics, the Vatican released a statement Tuesday claiming that the Catholic Church is the only Christian organization eligible to use the term church to describe itself. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Sony vs. the Church of England

Staff / Truthdig Jun 11, 2007 Sony Computer Entertainment is in hot water with the Church of England because of a popular video game that simulates a shootout in the Manchester Cathedral. Among other concerns, the church is appalled that Sony would "encourage people to have gun battles" in a city known for gun crime. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )