Idol Chatter

Kristin Chenoweth has what’s called crossover appeal. Already, she’s a Broadway diva (“Wicked”), television actress (“The West Wing”), and celebrity spokeswoman (Old Navy commericals), and has a burgeoning film career (the upcoming “Pink Panther”). She’s also a good Christian girl with a Contemporary Christian Music recording career, as well as a gay icon (see “Broadway…

The pioneer of Second Wave Feminism, Betty Friedan, author most famously of “The Feminine Mystique” (first published in 1963), died Saturday, February 4th, on her birthday. Her book, which has sold several million copies over the last four decades, is credited with giving a voice, words, and description to the soul-killing angst of the classic…

This week’s new episode of Veronica Mars, called “Rashard and Wallace Go to White Castle,” finally gave me the opportunity I’ve been looking for: an excuse to introduce the UPN series, which airs Wednesdays at 9, to Idol Chatter readers. After many recommendations from friends and fellow “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” addicts (still looking to…

A Slate article chronicles how intelligent design advocates have come to identify with Galileo, the 17th-century scientist who was rebuffed by the Church for saying the Earth went around the sun. The analogy hinges on a recent statement by a Vatican official rejecting the claims of intelligent design, and the logic goes like this: If…

I often write about chocolate in relation to, well, anything spiritual, religious, or divine–anything that I can find to justify my oh-so-out-of-control addiction to this confectionary delight. In my most recent book, “Becoming a Goddess of Inner Poise: Spirituality for the Bridget Jones in All of Us,” I not only paid homage to the milk…

Things been slow for you lately? Try picking up the pace with “The World’s Fastest Indian,” a new Anthony Hopkins film. The movie explores the journey of a New Zealand man, Burt Munro, who dreams of making his classic Indian motorcycle the fastest bike on earth. Munro devotes his life to perfecting his motorcycle by…

It’s not only the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Seattle Seahawks who have a lot riding on Sunday’s Super Bowl. The entire city of Detroit, a city that has been trying for years to recover from economic recession and urban flight, is looking to Super Bowl XL and the deluge of visitors it is bringing to…

In his book “Season to Season,” Joseph L. Price declares, that for Americans, “sports constitute a form of popular religion.” And while it can be argued that sporting spirituality is just as strong across the pond, there is perhaps no better exemplar in America than Super Bowl Sunday, with its religious holiday-like reverence, fervent prayers,…

On an upcoming episode of “Will and Grace,” Jack’s “OutTV” network is bought by a Christian TV network… great idea. Casting Britney Spears as a conservative Christian who hosts a cooking segment on the new network… another great idea. Calling said cooking show “Cruci-fixin’s” and airing the episode on April 13th, the day before Good…

I certainly agree with my fellow Idol Chatterer Paul’s observation that we haven’t exactly seen a post-“Passion” wave of successful, thought-provoking, overtly religious films coming out of Hollywood, much less being nominated for this year’s Academy Awards. But before those in the religious community pass judgment too quickly, there is one important point to consider.…

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