Idol Chatter

Glory be, hallelujah! The headline on the front page of the New York Times yesterday was, and I quote: “Writers Reach Tentative Deal With Producers.” Michael Cieply reports: An end to Hollywood’s long and bitter writers’ strike appeared close, as union leaders representing 12,000 movie and television writers said Saturday that they had reached a…

There are very few Westerns that I have been able to sit through, much less actually enjoy, and at two-plus hours I didn’t think I would really make it all the way through the latest adaptation of the life of outlaw Jesse James , “The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford.” Even…

How can you hear God above the din of your daily life? That’s a question acclaimed worship artist Jaime Jamgochian (pronounced “jam-GO-shzun”) asked herself as she prepared to record her sophomore album from Centricity Records. Her 2005 debut album “Reason to Live” spawned the hit inspirational single, “Hear My Worship.” She’s spent much of last…

If you’re a fan of the rap rock/nu metal sound, you’ll like Family Force 5, formerly known as The Phamily and The Brothers. I’ve just been introduced to their music, and I must say, they’re winning me over. They sound a bit like Linkin Park. Click the photo below to listen to their single, “Face…

One day, while casting a reality show in Dallas Texas several years back, I happened to drive our rental car down Elm Street in Dealey Plaza. Thinking I was touring a random downtown street, I quickly recognized the distinctive white Bryan colonnade, infamous grassy knoll, and “Triple Underpass” bridge. When I glanced over my shoulder…

Apparently retirement does equal death, even for world famous gurus who once tirelessly toured the world like a rock star, spreading his message and hobnobbing with celebrity seekers. Less than a month after announcing his retirement from handling the daily business of his global Transcendental Meditation empire, said to have 5 million adherents and be…

One of the more profound news stories of the day surfaced this morning via a clip on the MSNBC website and “The Today Show.” I was struck by the ugliness, the beauty, the comic relief, and the missing link. There was quite a bit of cultural revelation going on in this little incident.Ugly. In a…

I go beyond a cliché when I say that Monty Python’s “Life of Brian,” finally out on DVD, couldn’t be made today: not because the theocrats have won, but because the anti-Christians take themselves so seriously it’s hard to imagine them blaspheming just for the fun of it. Though they hadn’t performed together for years,…

Television’s crankiest yet most lovable doctor, Gregory House, has finally returned with fresh episodes, and last night’s storyline proved that the doc is an equal opportunity religious offender. House has mocked Christians many times for faith in a God who, he says, doesn’t exist. But last night he turned his disdain for religous zeal toward…

Here at Beliefnet, we’re frequently asked to comment in the media about religious happenings and headlines, and this morning I was a guest on the local NPR station’s “Brian Lehrer Show,” discussing the death of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The other guest for the segment was Donovan, one of the Maharishi’s most dedicated and outspoken celebrity…

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