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politics and religion
Some of these are pretty old, just set down for linkage.
Trump and Capitol Protests
Australia's part in right-wing extremism
Rev. Rafael Warnock
Interestingly, I got pushback from Repub!(former?)friend about this on FB, who said something to the effect of, "he's not the good person you think he is". I didn't ask. She's from GA but living in TX, didn't seem to be going as far with the 'stolen election' rhetoric and hasn't bought in to Q but certainly is of the "Democrats in power spells the end of USA freedom" line. I admit to not bothering to engage politically anymore in the last two months, largely because I don't have the mental space. Also, I'll save my breath for people whose minds might actually be changed; she might have been one back four years ago, but not anymore.
The Martyrdom of Mike Pence.
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Citizen Strangers and the Cost of Compromise: faith and politics.
Follow The Recipe Exactly, And Walk A Kitchen In Someone Else's Culture: given the Cookbook Challenge this year, this is certainly an interesting point!
The Wasting of The Evangelical Mind: or how American Evangelicalism doesn't lend itself to intellectual rigour. We might have escaped this somewhat in Australian Evangelicalism due to our habits coming more from the British traditions, but I have seen elements of it in Australian Evangelicalism from time to time. More so in the last couple of years with culture wars and Christian panic.
--
Women have had a rough few weeks in Australian politics.
If Australia Was A Country That Cared About Women, This Government Would Be Gone
This is an older article, more about the 'one woman a week' statistic that we have for women killed by their intimate partners.
Moving Beyond The Billy Graham Rule: or how to bring gender relations in the church up to moderan standards.
This article - one among many - is part of a reckoning about sex and sexuality that was initially kicked off by the revelation that Ravi Zacharias, famed Christian apologist, sexually assaulted women. The Billy Graham Rule, for those who don't know, is the rule that a man should never be alone in a room with a woman to whom he is not married. It's usually a Christians-and-church rule and intended to protect against the appearance of sexual immorality. It's become a big purity culture thing, though, and like all things purity culture, has several dark aspects to it.
Evangelicalism is certainly having a reckoning right now. I just wish I could believe that Evangelicals would come out a little more shaken in their beliefs. Not likely, alas.
These next two articles are written by a woman I interact with regularly on FB: Australian, Christian, local. She's a minister in the Baptist church (conference?) of Australia (very different to the SBC) and vocal on women's issues, feminism (although she doesn't call it that), and evangelicalism (the Australian kind).
We Still Need A Revolution; Just Not The One You Think.
Sex and Power: The Need For A New Reformation
The gist of both is: conservative Christians think porn is the big problem and want sexual mores to go back to before the sexual revolution; but that's not the answer. The answer is respect for women.
...anyway. That was a links dump and a half. What a week. What a week to be an Australian woman - and specifically a woman of Asian descent living in a western country.
I think the terrifying thing is that the US at least has leadership who seems to be willing to move in the direction of doing the right thing.
Australia does not, and although we seem easygoing, we are overall a very conservative culture beneath our larrikinism.
Some of these are pretty old, just set down for linkage.
Trump and Capitol Protests
Australia's part in right-wing extremism
Rev. Rafael Warnock
Interestingly, I got pushback from Repub!(former?)friend about this on FB, who said something to the effect of, "he's not the good person you think he is". I didn't ask. She's from GA but living in TX, didn't seem to be going as far with the 'stolen election' rhetoric and hasn't bought in to Q but certainly is of the "Democrats in power spells the end of USA freedom" line. I admit to not bothering to engage politically anymore in the last two months, largely because I don't have the mental space. Also, I'll save my breath for people whose minds might actually be changed; she might have been one back four years ago, but not anymore.
The Martyrdom of Mike Pence.
No evangelical leader has stepped forward to defend his honor. No Republican leader has vouched for his virtue, obligations and higher loyalty. Abandoned and alone, the object of hatred, the target of threats. Pence had taught his flock to worship its lord and cast out heretics. He delivered everything to Trump, and Trump delivered Pence to the mob as a scapegoat. Pence had shown them the way to follow Trump as a true servant. And they did.
“Hang Mike Pence!”
--
Citizen Strangers and the Cost of Compromise: faith and politics.
Follow The Recipe Exactly, And Walk A Kitchen In Someone Else's Culture: given the Cookbook Challenge this year, this is certainly an interesting point!
The Wasting of The Evangelical Mind: or how American Evangelicalism doesn't lend itself to intellectual rigour. We might have escaped this somewhat in Australian Evangelicalism due to our habits coming more from the British traditions, but I have seen elements of it in Australian Evangelicalism from time to time. More so in the last couple of years with culture wars and Christian panic.
--
Women have had a rough few weeks in Australian politics.
If Australia Was A Country That Cared About Women, This Government Would Be Gone
This is an older article, more about the 'one woman a week' statistic that we have for women killed by their intimate partners.
Moving Beyond The Billy Graham Rule: or how to bring gender relations in the church up to moderan standards.
This article - one among many - is part of a reckoning about sex and sexuality that was initially kicked off by the revelation that Ravi Zacharias, famed Christian apologist, sexually assaulted women. The Billy Graham Rule, for those who don't know, is the rule that a man should never be alone in a room with a woman to whom he is not married. It's usually a Christians-and-church rule and intended to protect against the appearance of sexual immorality. It's become a big purity culture thing, though, and like all things purity culture, has several dark aspects to it.
Evangelicalism is certainly having a reckoning right now. I just wish I could believe that Evangelicals would come out a little more shaken in their beliefs. Not likely, alas.
These next two articles are written by a woman I interact with regularly on FB: Australian, Christian, local. She's a minister in the Baptist church (conference?) of Australia (very different to the SBC) and vocal on women's issues, feminism (although she doesn't call it that), and evangelicalism (the Australian kind).
We Still Need A Revolution; Just Not The One You Think.
Sex and Power: The Need For A New Reformation
The gist of both is: conservative Christians think porn is the big problem and want sexual mores to go back to before the sexual revolution; but that's not the answer. The answer is respect for women.
...anyway. That was a links dump and a half. What a week. What a week to be an Australian woman - and specifically a woman of Asian descent living in a western country.
I think the terrifying thing is that the US at least has leadership who seems to be willing to move in the direction of doing the right thing.
Australia does not, and although we seem easygoing, we are overall a very conservative culture beneath our larrikinism.