<p><a href="http://blog.sojo.net/2009/12/02/we-needed-a-new-approach-in-afghanistan-and-this-isn't-it/"></a>The decision by President Obama to send additional troops to Afghani ...

<p>This year alone, <a href="https://suwa.org.au/epyc">EPYC</a> has run nonviolent climate justice workshops with more than 8,000 young people (most with little or no contact with C ...

"Integration" and "diversity" do not express God's purpose for reconciliation deeply enough. What we need is a fresh paradigm that declares our <em>new</em> culture in Chri ...

<strong> </strong></p> The media coverage of Afghanistan focuses, on the one hand, on the evils of the Taliban and, on the other hand, on the necessi ...

Although there are several points I find troubling, inaccurate, or misleading in the recent <a href="http://manhattandeclaration.org/">Manhattan Declaration</a>, and although I noticed th ...

Nowadays <em>everyone's</em> talking about nuclear disarmament. Nowadays everyone's talking about nuclear disarmament. The Queen of England , Geo ...

When I went to hear a staged reading of Lynn Nottage's play "Ruined," about the price of the ongoing war in Congo, last week, I had a stronger than usual motive to be sure to turn off my cell ph ...

Last week at the Innovative Evangelism Conference, I got a chance to hear <a href="http://www.dineshdsouza.com/">Dinesh D'Souza</a> speak to a standing room only crowd. ...

<p><a href="http://go.sojo.net/campaign/afghan_8years?source=act_0911_afghan_bc"></a>Your voice is being heard. Already, thousands of you have <a href="http://go.sojo.net/c ...

<p>The gospel according to Aretha Franklin says: "R-E-S-P-E-C-T find out what it means to me."</p> <p>Biblical wisdom teaches: "Give everyone what you owe him. If you owe tax ...

The release of photos of Americans supposedly treating imprisoned suspected terrorists badly has been <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/11/15/scotus.detainee.photos/index.html">blocked by the ...

Compassion is, by one definition, "a deep awareness and sympathy for another's suffering."</p> Compassion is, by one definition, "a deep awareness and sy ...

<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316086371?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=sojo_blog-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0316086371">< ...

When all you have is a hammer everything seems like a nail. No famous line more aptly applies to the president's current dilemma of seeking the best solution for Afghanistan. ...

<a href="http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/11/8/802231/-Does-the-Evangelical-Movement-Belong-in-the-Democratic-Party">A recent Daily Kos post asks this question</a>: Does the Evangel ...

Nobody today will be able to celebrate our many veterans without the <a href="http://www.google.com/news/more?pz=1&amp;cf=all&amp;ncl=dGVEwVrxusKklQMKSmmL9hfvxDoyM&amp;topic=h">memo ...

<p><a href="http://www.ryanrodrickbeiler.com/International/Palestine-and-Israel/9000011_7mJL3#598690495_zMVcR"></a>As we celebrate the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, let us reflec ...

Almost exactly 4 years ago, more than 100 faith leaders from around the country went to jail together as we prayed for a moral budget and lamented the current one. Almost exactly ...

<a href="http://blog.sojo.net/2009/11/09/the-plank-in-australias-eye/">[continued from part 1]</a> Philosopher Emmanuel Levinas reminds us that "the other" is not an object for ...

Like so many across our country, I have been reeling about the news coming out of Ft. Hood, TX. Like so many across our country, I have been reeling about the news coming out of F ...

It may be too idealistic to believe that one day the U.S. will elect a pacifist as president or that Gen. It may be too idealistic to believe that one day the U.S. will elect a pa ...

One reader wrote me to ask: " "What effect will the Fort Hood shootings have on the American public's perception of Islam?" That question asks us to be foretellers, fortune tellers, to pr ...

There is a line in the <em>Riga Veda, </em>a collection of ancient Hindu scripture, that says "Truth is One, but the sages speak of it by many names." I had heard of this before, but hadn ...

<p>It's that time of year again -- you know, when Clint Eastwood releases a trailer for a movie that looks fascinating and completely different from the last thing he did, and your trio of reactions ...

<p>Jon Stewart courageously hosted an American Jewish woman (<a href="http://blog.sojo.net/2009/09/09/a-jewish-american-advocate-against-the-injustice-of-occupation/">Anna Balzer</a> ...

We've all been watching carefully as the Obama administration tries to decide how to move forward on U.S. policy in Afghanistan. We've all been watching carefully as the ...

<p>When it comes to Israel/Palestine, the human story often gets lost in the confusion of ideology and politics. Let me just highlight the story of one woman, a wife and mother named Isme. Prior to Octob ...

This morning as I was running on the treadmill, I was also watching CNN. A story came on about a shooting in Washington, D.C. The police chief was speaking, with the mayor of D.C looking on. ...

<p><a href="http://www.ryanrodrickbeiler.com/International/Palestine-and-Israel/9000011_7mJL3#598862440_oYtxc"></a>For the next few days in Washington, D.C., 1,200 people are gather ...

Activists greeted the Obama administration's <a title="http://www.enoughproject.org/publications/fierce-urgency-implementation" href="http://www.enoughproject.org/publications/fierce-ur ...

What if the soul of the world had an alarm clock and it began ringing What if the soul of the world had an alarm clock and it began ringing Taking the bait! And The LIES ...

I am a loyal supporter of your presidency. I worked hard in the campaign and have never been as proud of my country as I was when we elected you.</p> I am a loyal supporter ...

The day one is detonated, it will be the only thing anyone will think about ... which is why we need to apply the biblical vision of "turning swords into plowshares" to nuclear weapons. ...

I know it's been a week and a bit, which in the contemporary mode suggests that ancient history has already passed under the bridge since the Nobel Committee announced its decision, but I wanted to ...

<p><a href="http://www.ryanrodrickbeiler.com/Events/U2-Concert-at-FedEx-Field-2009/9812626_6qWPB#666574154_jUtaF"></a>Like many folks a couple weeks ago, I was stunned that Obama ha ...

<p>I had invited one of our regular bloggers to comment on the <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8295490.stm">"desert cross" controversy</a>--a Supreme Court ca ...

We are accustomed to standing outside the White House, protesting the policies of war and torture. We are accustomed to standing outside the White House, protesting the policies o ...

I'm trembling as I write this one. I'm trembling as I write this one. I'm already isolated within my own faith community (Pentecostalism) for my views on war and pe ...

On October 7, the U.S. On October 7, the U.S. Senate said " Happy Anniversary " one day early to the war in Afghanistan with a defense spending bill that puts the cost ...

I got the first call at 6:30 a.m. I got the first call at 6:30 a.m. from a reporter: "What's your reaction to Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize?" "What?" ...

I can't read the guy's mind, of course, but after the initial, natural response of "Yeah, I got it goin' on," I'm thinking this is what President Obama must've <em>real ...

Just peace theory proceeds from the premise that peace is a day by day effort. It is a process that requires vision, skill, and courage. Just peace theory proceeds from the premi ...

When covering film festivals, I find I have to be careful not to see too many war-themed flicks in rapid succession. When covering film festivals, I find I have to be careful not ...

A few days ago I received a mass e-mail from the ACLJ. For those who don't get their daily dose of Christian talk radio, ACLJ stands for the American Center for Law and Justice. ...

<p><a href="http://www.ryanrodrickbeiler.com"></a>Argentinian singer Mercedes Sosa died yesterday. I don't know much about her life, so you can <a href="http://en.wikip ...

<blockquote><p><em>"He who sings prays twice." -- Saint Augustine</em></p> <p><em>"What's going on?" -- Marvin Gaye</em></p> ...

Every dawning day we wake to the news of human violence against humanity. We see images of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan who've traveled a long way from home to fight terrorists. ...

As a struggling Catholic, the uproar and division caused by conservative U.S. As a struggling Catholic, the uproar and division caused by conservative U.S. Catholic groups (with t ...

In the nuclear security business, it's a good day when nothing goes wrong. It's a great day when something goes right. In the nuclear security business, it's a good ...

Just peace theory is the middle way between pacifism and just war theory. It recognizes the moral force of nonviolence and the goal of a world that solves its disputes through nonviolent means. ...