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Spring books: Reviews
Our spring books issue's reviews include Stanley Hauerwas on David Gushee, Shirley Hershey Showalter on Sonia Sotomayor, Ralph Wood on Rowan Williams and more.
Jerusalem court upholds women’s right to pray at Western Wall
Women who want to wear prayer shawls while praying in the women’s section of the Western Wall are not breaking the law, according to a landmark decision ...
Archiving M.E.M.O.
One of my tasks as the Century’s online-editorial intern is to archive past issues on the website. It can be tedious, but it’s also quite fascinating to see various subjects develop in the magazine’s pages over time. At this point I’ve worked back as far as Christmas 1998, meaning the Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky scandal is front and center. I was 11 when that happened; I know the present-day Clinton everyone loves much better than the 1998 Clinton no one knew what to do with.
But by far the highlight is reading Martin Marty’s old columns.
"No child's died yet, so they stay open."
In case you missed it last week, when the breaking-news kind of media kept dominating our attention: Jonathan Cohn's cover story on home-based child care is pretty startling.
Friday digest
New today from the Century: Katherine Willis Pershey reviews Glennon Melton and Rachel Srubas, John Turner reviews Catherine Brekus, more.
Sarah Osborn’s World, by Catherine A. Brekus
Catherine Brekus introduces us to a disturbing, heartbreaking and improbably inspiring life....
Carry On, Warrior and The Girl Got Up
Shortly after Glennon Melton was plucked from obscurity thanks to a series of enormously viral blog posts, Scribner beat out nine other major publishers in the bidding for her first book, Carry...
Back to centered
When I cling to anxieties or resentments, my whole body is like a clenched fist. Contemplative prayer requires unclenching it.
Americans: Marijuana isn't sinful but not sure it should be legal
c. 2013 Religion News Service...
Black pastors: Gun violence isn't just a problem for white suburbs
c. 2013 Religion News Service...
Bob Edgar, ex-congressman, NCC general secretary, dies at 69
Bob Edgar, a Methodist minister and former congressman who used his fund-raising and organizational skills in leading the National Council of Churches, died suddenly at his Virginia home on April 2...
Movie about Robinson misses Christian dimension
A new film about Jackie Robinson, titled 42—the number he wore during his historic career—tells the triumphant story of how Robinson integrated professional baseball by playing for the Bro...
Ignoring Kermit Gosnell
Like a lot of folks, I’ve been following the whole story on the role of the media concerning abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell. There’s a lot to be said about media ethics and double standards....
The Marketplace Fairness Act doesn't raise taxes
When I filed my taxes earlier this month, I paid my use tax to the State of Illinois. A lot of people don't pay use tax, and enforcement is almost nonexistent. But there it was on the form I had to sign, and it was all of 50 bucks or something, so I paid it.
Those of us who live in a state with a sales tax are required to pay tax on online purchases.
Thursday digest
New today from the Century: Rodney Clapp on contemplative prayer, Ralph Wood reviews Rowan Williams, more.
The Lion’s World, by Rowan Williams
Who would have thought that a new book on C. S. Lewis could bring fresh, even revolutionary insight to perhaps the most overstudied Christian writer in the anglophone world?...