Posts in Politics
25 Years Later, The World That Made 9/11 Still Casts A Shadow

The 9/11 attacks are often remembered as a single event. That morning, 19 terrorists turned commercial airliners into weapons and the modern era of terrorism began. A total of 2,977 people died in the terrorist attacks, the deadliest to ever take place on U.S. soil. To understand 9/11, one need to take a look at the Islamic radicalization of a movement that few in the West took seriously.

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Was Marx Right About Religion?: The Human Brain Has Entered the Debate

(OPINION) Marx saw religion as a top-down sedative administered by elites to dull the pain of feudalism. History offers a different perspective.

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Nigeria Responding Better To Terrorism, But Killings And Abductions Up

Civilian deaths increased 51 percent and abductions rose 153 percent between October and December 2025, compared to the same period a year before, researchers said. Months later, beginning in April, the government began arresting and convicting Boko Haram terrorists and others of related crimes.

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Looking Back On 9/11: Faith, Memory And Hope 25 Years Later

(ESSAY) For millions, 9/11 divided life into a “before” and an “after.” From a Christian perspective, looking back on that day reminds us of the fragility of life. The events of 9/11 changed the world, but they did not change the character of God. He remains the God who sees the brokenhearted, strengthens the weary and promises that one day suffering will end.

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The Texas Campaign To Treat Islam As Something More Than A Religion

(ANALYSIS) Texas politicians, however, portray sharia as a threat to American law. That suspicion has now produced official action against the Islamic Tribunal, a Dallas-based organization that offers religious arbitration, a process where parties agree to submit disputes to a religious panel, the way any two businesses might agree to skip court and use a private arbitrator instead. Much of the tribunal’s caseload is Muslim women seeking religious divorces.

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Why French Officials Placed A Muslim War Memorial In The Heart Of Paris

(ANALYSIS) The Paris Grand Mosque — a cultural landmark located in the heart of the city — is celebrating its centenary. Built as a war memorial to honor Muslim soldiers killed during World War I, it was the first permanent mosque in the French capital and remains its only mosque built with a minaret and a dome.

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The Gospel According To Hobby Lobby

Some billionaires buy yachts, rocket ships or art. The owners of Hobby Lobby bought something else entirely: Biblical artifacts and manuscripts.

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5 Years Of The Taliban’s Return To Power In Afghanistan: What’s Next?

(ANALYSIS) As the situation in the country continues to deteriorate, important questions must be asked about where to go from here. What is the future of Afghanistan for women and religious minorities?

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India Will Not Be Divided Over Religion: Student Protests Show Interfaith Solidarity

(ANALYSIS) Members of the Christian community arrived at the protest site in New Delhi alongside Hindu, Muslim and Sikh groups. The participation of religious groups and leaders is part of a broader, interfaith effort to show solidarity with youth and students demonstrating against the Indian government.

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Vance’s Faith Memoir Evidences America’s ‘Invigorated Public Christianity’

Little over a decade ago, J.D. Vance was an atheist Yale Law School graduate obsessed with pursuing achievement in private life. Today he is a United States vice president who professes faith in Christ and rejects upward mobility as a means of fulfillment. Things have changed. Vance explains the change in his book “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith,” released this summer.

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Why We Don’t Really Know What America Believes

(ANALYSIS) Let me start by stating a fact that seems incomprehensible to even type out, but it undergirds almost every single graph that I produce: We don’t actually know the religious composition of the United States with any real precision. I know that sounds bizarre. The truth is that we are relying on a whole bunch of “best guesses” based on sound methodology and replication.

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Before Greek Myths Reached Movie Theaters, They Were Weapons Of Political Satire

(ANALYSIS) Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has brought Homer’s epic tale back to the big screen. The film is the latest retelling of a story that is almost 3,000 years old. But why do these ancient Greek stories continue to captivate new generations? Nolan aside, Stephen Fry’s retelling of Greek myths in 2017 and Disney’s “Hercules” film, for example, are part of a much longer tradition of repackaging the ancient world for contemporary audiences.

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What Would It Look Like To Try And Build A Utopia?

In times of unrest, our impulse is to seek solutions in painfully precise increments. But what if the only way to bring lasting change is to shoot for the stars?

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How Will Democrats’ Israel Shift Affect Jewish Voters?

(ANALYSIS) Is it conceivable that the 2026 and 2028 election cycles will erode the Democratic Party’s lock on Jewish voters, one of the iron laws of American politics? Or instead, will Jewish Democrats increasingly turn against support for Israel? The results of the upcoming midterm elections could give us a glimpse of what’s to come.

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When Does Criticizing Israel Become Antisemitism?: Ask Mark Ruffalo

Since the Hamas attack on Israel, the actor has frequently called out Israel’s military action in Gaza, notably wearing an Artists4Ceasefire pin to the 2024 Oscars. In 2024, he was among more than 700 SAG-AFTRA members who signed a letter demanding the actors’ union publicly call for a Gaza ceasefire and protect pro-Palestinian members from what they described as industry blacklisting.

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ChinaAid Petitions For Trump’s Help In Bringing Detained Pastor Home To US

ChinaAid is seeking 100,000 signatures petitioning President Donald Trump to urge Pastor John Cao’s safe passage to the U.S. when President Xi Jinping visits Washington in September.

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Why Nepal’s Political Mood Has Become Religiously Charged

(ANALYSIS) Nepal underwent major political upheaval just a year ago, toppling the government in a fashion few could have imagined. An even more dramatic development followed. Voters handed a near-supermajority to the Rastriya Swatantra Party, which was founded only four years earlier. Its senior leader, Balendra Shah, became the youngest prime minister in Nepal’s history.

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As Religious-Based Violence Rises, What Needs To Be Done To Stop It?

(ANALYSIS) News from around the world gives little hope for the prospects of addressing violence based on religion or belief — nations need to act now in accordance with UN policies to ensure everyone has freedom of religion.

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Birmingham Bombing Wasn’t Isolated: Black Churches Were Attacked Across The South

(ANALYSIS) This Sept. 15 marks the anniversary of an infamous terror attack: The 1963 bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. On that Sunday morning, members of the Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist group, planted dynamite on the east side of the brown brick building. The bomb went off in the midst of Sunday school, at 10:22 a.m., murdering four girls.

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