The theme of President Obama’s 2011 State of the Union address was “winning the future,” which — much like “war on terror” and “defeating evil” — strikes me as one of those impossibly vague and overly simplistic turns of political phrase. But aside from that, I thought it was an effective speech, with enough new/unexpected material…

First, the Anti-Defamation League took the odd position against Park51, the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque,” despite agreeing that it’s wrong to discriminate against Muslims, who have the same right as anyone to build a house of worship on private property. Now, the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberties Commission has pulled out of an interfaith group (founded by the ADL, incidentally) dedicated…

Aside from the Roe v. Wade anniversary — featuring a huge anti-abortion crowd at the March for Life in Washington — the top two religion newsmakers today each concerns an elderly white male Christian leader with an unexpected message: Pope Benedict (age: 83) issued some cautionary advice about social networking — YouTube, Facebook, blogging, etc. — while the Rev. Billy Graham (age: 92)…

Today is the 38th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion, and predominantly Christian pro-life activists are gearing up for a March for Life in Washington D.C. and for political gains in 2012. Some faith-related headlines: Abortion Opponents See Political Openings (Christianity Today) Abortion Foes Have High Hopes For…

More from Beliefnet and our partners
More from Beliefnet and our partners