This Week In the Media

The biggest story here this week was the provincial election; the spiritual and moral issues and a link to an excellent analysis are covered in Dean Michael Pitts' post on the subject, below.


Meanwhile, the British this week commemorated the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slave trade with a ceremony at Westminster Abbey that was disrupted by protest. A steady voice on this issue has been that of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who said the Church of England should consider reparations for slave trade; one of the most thoughtful commentaries I read on the protest was "Decorous", on the blog of Teju Cole, an American-African currently living in New York City. Discussing enslavement of another sort, "Gay Nigerians Appealed to the International Community."

Alternet published an essay, “For the Christian Right, Gay-Hating Is Just the Start,” by Chris Hedges, the journalist and divinity-school graduate who is the author of American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America. (His previous book, drawn from his years as war correspondent, was War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning.) People interested in this issue might also like to check out Theocracy Watch, a website devoted to analysis of the rise of the Religious Right in the U.S. Republican Party.

“For Some Black Pastors, Accepting Gay Members Means Losing Others”, in the NY Times, discussed how difficult the issue of homosexuality is among many black congregations, and a story in the Washington Post discussed the same issue in Conservative Judaism: “Conservative Jewish Seminary to Allow Gays and Lesbians to Apply.”

Thank you to Bill Converse, Earl Love, the Rev'd Alan Perry, and the Rev. Canon Joyce Sanchez for sending articles this week. Full details on these and other articles are on our website.

--Beth Adams