The Common Good

Results for Racial and Social Justice

Mass. Supreme Court to Hear Case Against ‘Under God’
Originally Posted: 10/30/2012 - 3:34pm | Type: Blog

Massachusetts' Supreme Judicial Court has agreed to hear the appeal of a non-religious family that's challenging the mandatory daily recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in their children’s classro ...

Looking For Undecided Voters? Check the Pulpits
Originally Posted: 10/30/2012 - 3:28pm | Type: Blog

Pollsters and politicians hunting for the rare and elusive undecided voter might want to train their sights on the pulpit. Pollsters and politicians hunting for the rare and elusi ...

Tony Campolo and Shane Claiborne: A Conversation About Politics
Originally Posted: 10/29/2012 - 6:04pm | Type: Blog

was that it was “Caesar’s,” he said, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s” (Mark 12:13–17). Tell me how ...

Woman Crusades to Save Sister’s Life, End the Death Penalty
Originally Posted: 10/29/2012 - 4:53pm | Type: Blog

SPOKANE, Wash. -- They stood in front of a shopping mall, shackled together, heads down, nameplates dangling around their necks, bearing the names of men and women who have died on America’s death row. Cal Bro ...

Monks Win Latest Court Battle in Bid to Sell Caskets
Originally Posted: 10/29/2012 - 3:30pm | Type: Blog

NEW ORLEANS -- In a sometimes harshly worded ruling, a federal appeals court last week smacked down the Louisiana funeral board's continued attempts to prevent a group of monks from St. Joseph Abbey from ...

Muslims Back Obama, But By Smaller Margin Than 2008
Originally Posted: 10/29/2012 - 2:57pm | Type: Blog

Nearly nine in 10 Muslim American voters pulled the lever for the Democratic candidate in the last two presidential elections, partly because of Republican policies and rhetoric that many considered anti-Musli ...

'The Line,' the 47 Percent, and the Food Stamp Professor
Originally Posted: 10/26/2012 - 10:56am | Type: Blog

Maybe my story makes me a part of the 47 percent that has grown dependent on government. When I was a 17-year-old senior in high school, I was in several Advanced Placement cours ...

Border Violence is Fast & Furious; Four Killed in Recent Weeks
Originally Posted: 10/25/2012 - 2:59pm | Type: Blog

Four deaths in six weeks across the border region, one common offender. Candles burn near the bloodstained concrete sidewalk where a youth was tragically killed when more than a d ...

Millennials' Reflections on the New American Values Survey
Originally Posted: 10/25/2012 - 2:17pm | Type: Blog

weekly or more, by a margin of 12 percent and 15 percent, respectively, believe the Church should focus ...

Turn Down The Noise: Fast, Pray, Vote
Originally Posted: 11/02/2012 - 9:41am | Type: Blog

(Romans 12:2)  On Nov. 2, we want to detox from the patterns of this world, and instead renew ...

The George McGovern I Remember
Originally Posted: 10/25/2012 - 3:39pm | Type: Blog

I will miss George McGovern. The former Senator from South Dakota and Democratic presidential candidate in 1972 died in a hospice on Sunday, at 90, surrounded by family and friends who loved him. Indeed, many ...

Watch the Vote: The Ground Game
Originally Posted: 10/25/2012 - 3:44pm | Type: Blog

For the next 12 days it’s all about the ground game. With most voter registration deadlines passed, the fight against voter suppression has shifted focus from registration drives to calling banks, ... suwan reunintr / Shutterstock.com For the next 12 days it’s all about the ground game. 2012 ...

Politics, Debates, and the Nones
Originally Posted: 02/06/2013 - 1:10pm | Type: Blog

It’s no wonder that more and more people of faith are identifying as the “nones”— or none of above the when it comes to religious beliefs. Who wants to be associated with Christianity — Protestant, Evangelical ...

On Scripture: God's Return Policy
Originally Posted: 10/24/2012 - 12:57pm | Type: Blog

Debates on immigration in the United States continue to move in the default direction of North/South. As such, the prominent debating points often direct public attention to the U.S./Mexico border fence and t ...

Obama's Biggest Religious Coalition? The Nones
Originally Posted: 10/23/2012 - 5:57pm | Type: Blog

The largest slice of President Barack Obama’s religious coalition -- at 23 percent -- is not very religious. They’re the “nones,” also known as unaffiliated voters, according to a new American Values Survey ...

Jews Rally Around Woman Arrested for Praying at Western Wall
Originally Posted: 10/23/2012 - 5:50pm | Type: Blog

JERUSALEM -- Jews from Manhattan to Mozambique held prayer vigils on Monday to protest the arrest and incarceration of an Israeli feminist as she was leading 250 American Jewish women in prayer at the Western ...

Ethiopia: How Foreign Aid Has Helped a Generation
Originally Posted: 10/23/2012 - 6:41pm | Type: Blog

and 44 percent of all children in Ethiopia are stunted Only one in every four children 12-23 months ...

What Americans Think About U.S. Foreign Aid Might Surprise You
Originally Posted: 10/24/2012 - 8:23am | Type: Blog

It might come as a surprise to learn that less than one percent of the U.S. budget is spent on foreign assistance. It might even be shocking to discover that, despite this relatively small amount, these funds ...

Survey: Gap Between 'Social Justice' and 'Right to Life' Catholics
Originally Posted: 10/23/2012 - 1:09pm | Type: Blog

More American Catholics believe their religious leaders should be focused on issues related to poverty and social justice during this election season, rather than spending time and energy on other issues such ...

NumbersUSA Stirs Up Division With New Immigrant Attack Ad
Originally Posted: 10/22/2012 - 3:59pm | Type: Blog

We all know the conversation on immigration in the United States can oftentimes become contentious, with inaccurate portrayals of immigrants inhibiting progress. The most recent attempt to fuel the debate with ...

Women, Foreign Policy, and the Presidential Debate
Originally Posted: 10/22/2012 - 2:37pm | Type: Blog

Thanks to Melanne Verveer’s article in Foreign Policy magazine, I’m going to be listening for what the presidential candidates say tonight about women in this foreign policy focused debate. ...

Evangelicals Mobilizing for Romney Campaign
Originally Posted: 10/22/2012 - 3:52pm | Type: Blog

million evangelicals in battleground states, and each household will be contacted seven to 12 times before ...

Values of a Public Faith (Part 3)
Originally Posted: 10/22/2012 - 11:10am | Type: Blog

to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12). Debate ... (Matt. 5:44). “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21). Debate : ... and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12). Debate : The debate should not be whether religious voices should be excluded. ...

Give Us This Day Our Daily Vote
Originally Posted: 10/22/2012 - 9:16am | Type: Blog

While several years pass between presidential elections, we vote for the collective benefit of our global common good on numerous occasions with each passing day. In a few week ...

Meet the Nones: Building Bridges Between Nones and Nuns
Originally Posted: 10/19/2012 - 6:07pm | Type: Blog

The label “none” lumps together atheists, agnostics, and, well, me. I am not an atheist. I might be kind of agnostic, but there really is just something about that Jesus guy. ...

Values of a Public Faith (Part 2)
Originally Posted: 10/19/2012 - 1:42pm | Type: Blog

to Ask : Will the candidate push to abolish capital punishment, and if so, how hard? 12. Criminal ...

Watch the Vote: Is the Voting Rights Act Still Needed?
Originally Posted: 10/25/2012 - 7:06pm | Type: Blog

When the Supreme Court announced recently that one of the cases it would take up in this session was a challenge to Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, the hairs rose on the back of my neck. ...

I Support Mix It Up At Lunch Day BECAUSE I am a Christian
Originally Posted: 10/19/2012 - 8:43am | Type: Blog

Luke's Gospel is a Gospel that proclaims love for the marginalized. And out of the four, Luke has the most meals. One of my current writing projects has me spending a lot of ...

Meet the Nones: Politically Active
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 4:01pm | Type: Blog

PBS Religion & Ethics Newsweekly has launched a new mini-series on the rise of the unaffiliated. Editor's Note: Sojourners has launched this new blog series to hel ...

Values of a Public Faith (Part 1)
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 3:33pm | Type: Blog

In this year of presidential elections, I have decided to summarize key values that guide me as I decide for whom to cast my vote. There are three basic elements of choosing a candidate for public office respo ...

Just Peace Theory and Foreign Policy
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 2:19pm | Type: Blog

Just peace theory begins with the idea that peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peace building is a day-by-blessed-day proposition. Unlike just war theory, it does not begin when violent conflict is imminent. ...

Please Do Not Dress Up for Halloween in Blackface, Brownface, or Yellowface; Don’t Be Stupid
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 1:15pm | Type: Blog

Please don’t dress up in a blackface, yellowface, brownface, or any other costumers that stereotype, denigrate, or mock another culture. Don’t caricature another real culture. Why? Because we’re a culture and ...

Ohio 'Voter Fraud' Billboards a 'Perversion of Truth'
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 1:17pm | Type: Blog

American community in Cleveland and noticed a billboard that read: "Voter Fraud is a Felony: 3 1/2 ... a billboard that read: "Voter Fraud is a Felony: 3 1/2 years & $10,000 fine."  ... the sign through peripheral vision. Felony ... Vote ... Fraud ... 3 1/2 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. ...

Young Evangelicals and the 'Nones'
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 1:02pm | Type: Blog

Young evangelicals are changing, and so is what it means to be an evangelical, or Christian at all, in our country today. And it is exactly the kind of Christianity that they are living out which might, just m ...

Immigration Reform: The Only Way to Solve America’s Agricultural Woes
Originally Posted: 10/18/2012 - 11:14am | Type: Blog

As a Georgia resident I can tell you first hand the negative effects hardlined immigration policies have on rural communities whose economies depend on agriculture. America is in ...

Thou Shalt Follow These 10 Commandments for the Presidential Election
Originally Posted: 10/17/2012 - 11:44pm | Type: Blog

Since there’s sure to be drama this week and next following the debates — and each day leading up to Election Day on Nov. 6, and likely some weeks afterward — I thought I’d share with you my 10 Commandments of ...

Anti-abortion Priest Frank Pavone is Back With Eyes on Obama, Bishops
Originally Posted: 10/17/2012 - 1:56pm | Type: Blog

of $12 million two years ago, and that the conflict with Zurek led to a 10 percent drop-off ...

After Romney Meeting, Billy Graham Website Scrubs Mormon ‘Cult’ Reference
Originally Posted: 10/17/2012 - 8:29am | Type: Blog

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association removed language labeling Mormonism a “cult” from its website after the famed preacher met with Republican nominee Mitt Romney last week and pledged to help his presid ...

Young Evangelicals, Election 2012, and Common Ground
Originally Posted: 10/16/2012 - 3:48pm | Type: Blog

What culture war? At a survey release of young evangelicals and proceeding panel discussion, common ground was the pervading theme. What culture war? At a survey release of young ...

Evangelical Coalition Rallies Behind Family Planning
Originally Posted: 10/16/2012 - 10:35am | Type: Blog

A coalition of evangelicals is calling on fellow Christians to support access to family planning across the world, saying it does not conflict with evangelical opposition to abortion. ...

Bhutan Bans Religious Activities Ahead of Elections
Originally Posted: 10/16/2012 - 10:35am | Type: Blog

Political leaders in the tiny Buddhist nation of Bhutan have announced a nearly six-month ban on all public religious activities ahead of the upcoming elections, citing the Himalayan nation's constitution ...

Five Misconceptions About Men
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 3:56pm | Type: Blog

Rather than dissecting the points of friction I found with author David Murrow (which were many), I thought I’d try to outline a few major distinctions between traditional “modern” male identity and what some ...

Serving Joyfully
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 1:50pm | Type: Blog

How could he do something as mundane as washing dishes and do it with joy? Washing dishes. This is how I remember Momadu. Washing dishes is a chore, you know. In the pre-dishwa ...

How the VP Debate Emphasized ‘Single-Issue’ Catholicism
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 1:10pm | Type: Blog

Catholicism’s social justice teachings have often been called the church’s “best-kept secret,” and after the Oct. 11 vice-presidential debate between Joe Biden and Paul Ryan – the first such showdown between t ...

Death Penalty for Jesus
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 12:20pm | Type: Blog

of Proposition 34 and asked how they would vote, the result was a statistical tie, with 12 percent of the voters ...

Where Does Faith Fit in Today’s Politics?
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 11:27am | Type: Blog

Depending on your perspective, it could be argued that the landscape of presidential candidates either reflects such religious diversity, or that it’s still more of the same old majority rule at play, with a f ...

The Nones: Skeptics Are the New Religious
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 10:59am | Type: Blog

In fact, the latest data from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life say that a record-high one in five Americans -- and one in three adults under age 30 -- are religiously unaffiliated. Why? ...

Standing Up for the Vulnerable: A Community Response to 'The Line'
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 10:53am | Type: Blog

On a conference call with people from across the nation who held screenings of The Line, you could hear frustrations mounting from people struggling with the challenge of reducing poverty in America. ...

Just the Facts Ma’am: Economic Analysis from the Congressional Research Service
Originally Posted: 10/15/2012 - 10:49am | Type: Blog

When we listen to political debates about which public policies will strengthen the economy, it is easy to get lost in a statistical maze. When we listen to political debates abou ...

Educating Girls Reduces Poverty.
Originally Posted: 10/12/2012 - 7:04pm | Type: Blog

One of the surest ways to reduce poverty is to provide an education for girls. It’s been said before, but it’s worth saying again. One of the surest ways to reduce poverty is to p ...