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Magazine

Sojourners Magazine: November-December 2001

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Cover Story

For 20 years I have worked as a mediator in violent situations, from Northern Ireland to Somalia, from Colombia to Nicaragua...
Many of us feel a deep desire for revenge and violent retribution. We know how natural that is. We want to strike back at the perpetrators.
War was so much easier before the world's borders began to seep like a sieve.
A few weeks ago, the Jewish community celebrated the harvest festival by building "sukkot." What is a "sukkah"?
The bin Laden organization and other terrorist networks are obviously fired by an intense hatred of the United States.
The United States will never be the same again; these are watershed days of irreversible change.
Politicians have given the president a military blank check. The church, however, cannot write a moral blank check.
When the Visigoths sacked Rome, the Eternal City, in 410 C.E., the attackers used the city's own mighty transportation system-the Appian Way-as the weapon of its downfall.
A religious response to terrorism
Our broken hearts are indeed the proper place to begin theological reflection. Wounded hearts, the tears of suffering and death, however, can lead divergent ways.

Feature

While Britain's church attendance plummets, the remaining core is engaged in a nationwide tapestry of social altruism. And now the government's getting involved.
Ever since I gave Jesus a ride, my car smells like urine.
Friends of Sojourners embraced, sang, laughed, and prayed for four days last July in celebration of our first 30 years.
It's about truth. And listening. An interview with musician David Wilcox.

Commentary

With friends like these, the tobacco industry is on the rebound.
A little political honesty here, please.
We can't sacrifice our deepest convictions for the sake of a false unity.
What's wrong with a one-size-fits-all energy policy?

Columns

This edition of Sojourners went to press just as the U.S. military strikes in Afghanistan began, which makes this special issue even more critical. 
This is to all who serve on the human front, wearing any mask that will get you home. A word: While we are all dying to get out, there is one who died to get in.
This has been a year of major milestones for our family, not the least of which was the realization that I might finally be allowed to use our bathroom.

Culture Watch

Although a "show about nothing" may seem to offer us little to ponder theologically, we need only look at the Jewish tradition of seeking wisdom to see connections to Seinfeld.
Four culture recommendations from our editors
Besides watching baseball (especially Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners), here are a few other favorites of poet and writer E. Ethelbert Miller:
Christopher Hitchens, in this illuminating assessment of Henry Kissinger's war crimes, reports on a filmed 1998 interview with Michael Korda, senior editor of Simon and Schuster. 
Birminghamians live with their history more than most Americans, and Birmingham's story is linked to the nation's history more than most cities.
It is the late 1970s in El Salvador, when peasants read the Bible and discover that they are God's hands, feet, and voice; if El Salvador is to be a savior, for which it is name
‘‘The [Harry Potter computer] game will feature a series of challenges, all inspired by the original book's storyline..."
For more than 20 years, Elie Wiesel has been America's official bearer of memory, keeper of accounts, and arbiter of propriety regarding the Holocaust.

Departments

Having lived in Israel for a number of years studying for my Ph.D., Jim Wallis' characterization of the conflict was full of presuppositions and biases.
While the U.S. government condemns the weapons programs of impoverished nations such as Iraq and North Korea, it remains a world leader in the production and sale of small arms...
Pram Time. Fifteen nonviolent demonstrators, including four children, occupied the Colombian consulate in Sydney, Australia, in August...
James A. Corbett, 1933-2001
"How do you want to spend your life? We all know you can ruin it.
Employment Opportunities
Thank you for discussing "the other side" of the Israeli-Palestinian crisis in the latest Sojourners magazine.
Never one to miss out on market share, Mattel's Girls Division has added "Quinceañera Barbie" as their first "Hispanic-tradition" theme doll. 
Would you be willing to pay a fourth of a penny more for your chalupa if it meant that farm workers could earn a living wage?
The Christian Information Service in Croatia has published a small but powerful book titled RefuJesus. Author and activist Boris Peterlin meditates on Jesus in today's refugee camps.
A year of voluntary service has become a rite of passage for thousands of socially conscious young Christians.
The Navy's Blue Angels have used 5.5 trillion gallons of kerosene-based jet fuel for training alone. New Yorkers used 2.2 billion gallons of kerosene in 1997 to stay warm.
The sky is gorged with snow. 
Ryan Beiler's review of the Christian publishing community's fascination with The Simpsons was excellent.
Like the rest of America, we were dazed and shattered by the events of Tuesday morning, Sept. 11.
"Thank you for your letter expressing concern about the use of Abbott's sodium thiopental in capital punishment procedures."
Folks in Midland, Texas, are fed up with slavery and they aren't going to take it anymore.
Letter to the Editors
The faith-based anti-globalization movement is learning some new words.
Jim Wallis compares the Israeli settlement policy in the West Bank and Gaza to the practice of apartheid in South Africa.
I have just finished reading Rose Marie Berger's excellent article, A Devout Meditation in Memory of Timothy McVeigh.
26: St. Stephen's Day: Give to the poor all that you don't need.
In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of Sept.
Your magazine seems to be taking a direction that will alienate many Christians and de-legitimize being considered a Christian magazine.
Americans are looking for socially responsible corporations, but many corporations haven't yet caught on.