williamlobdell.com

Author of “Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America — and Found Unexpected Peace”

williamlobdell.com header image 4

Entries from August 2008

Palin and creationism

August 31st, 2008 · 15 Comments

At first, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin seemed to be an inspired vice presidential choice by Sen. John McCain, the soon-to-be Republican nominee for president. Reformer, female, bright, outdoors woman, young, winning personality and Washington D.C. outsider. A gamble, but a good one.
But then news emerges that Palin wants creationism taught in public schools. Here’s what [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

W: The Rick Warren magazine?

August 29th, 2008 · 2 Comments

Sources say Rick Warren is in talks with Reader’s Digest to publish a magazine based on his Purpose-Driven LIfe book.

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

The death of the religion beat

August 29th, 2008 · 4 Comments

When I first was put on the religion beat for the Los Angeles TImes, I was the fourth full-time reporter covering faith for the newspaper. Today, there is one reporter — who months past — has often been pulled to cover other types of stories.
Terry Mattingly of GetReligion.org has an interesting blog post headlined: RIP: [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Biden and cafeteria Catholicism

August 28th, 2008 · 5 Comments

Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden is a “pro-choice Catholic.” This highlights a problem in the Catholic Church that won’t go away: the disconnect between the attitudes and behaviors of the people in the pews and official church doctrine.
What happens when the majority of Catholic decide to ignore Vatican doctrine? Let’s leave aside the [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Hamlet Lives!

August 25th, 2008 · 2 Comments

Just got back from seeing Hamlet 2. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked the movie — it’s a wilder version of Waiting for Guffman set in high school. Ultimately, it’s a sweet (if crude) film.
There’s been buzz in the Christian community that this film — with its “Rock Me, Sexy Jesus” number [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Why there still might be a God

August 23rd, 2008 · 1 Comment

Click here and listen.

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Blind faith in the pews

August 22nd, 2008 · 5 Comments

One of the contributing factors to my loss of faith was the unwavering devotion of Catholics to their molesting priests.
For example, in 1986, Father Andrew Christian Andersen faced up to 56 years in state prison after being convicted of 26 felony counts of child molestation.
Letters from parishioners and brother priests flooded into the courthouse, [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Dangers of a godly presidency

August 22nd, 2008 · 15 Comments

Mega-Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest told the world Monday on CNN’s “Larry King Live” that the President of the United States should believe in God.
Polls show that Americans would rather vote for a Catholic, Jew, Mormon or Muslim than an atheist. But how wise it that?
I wouldn’t feel comfortable with a [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Dumb religion traditions

August 21st, 2008 · 24 Comments

Watching the Olympics, I’ve seen two crazy religious traditions on display.
First, New Zealand women’s basketball players Charmian Purcell and Nonila Wharemate decided that playing on Sundays is against the principles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which mandates that Sunday is a day of rest (but feel free to attend endless services). [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt

Thank God for Shawn McEvoy

August 21st, 2008 · 1 Comment

Shawn McEvoy of the Christian website crosswalk.com gives me hope for evangelical Christians. Read his comments on the California court decision mandating that doctors not discriminate against homosexual patients. Here’s his key paragraph about the ruling:
“Thank God,” I said to myself. Goodness, a lesbian is still a woman, and still has reproductive capabilities, does she [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Faith and Doubt