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Steven Waldman

Saddleback removed a page on their website that stated: “someone unwilling to repent of their homosexual lifestyle would not be accepted at a member at Saddleback Church.” Now they’ve posted a new audio commentary from Pastor Tom Holladay — #22 on this page — that is intended to clarify this point. In it, Pastor Tom…

Rick Warren has just posted a video in which he declares point blank that he doesn’t believe gay relationships are equivalent to incest, pedophilia or polygamy. He’s apparently scrubbed some anti-gay language from his website. He’s also encouraged that he’s reached out to Melissa Etheridge, and hope that their new friendship will help to bring…

According to our Beliefnet’s “Where Did Christmas Customs Come From?” feature… “In medieval times, women wrapped mistletoe around their waist and wrists to boost their chances of conceiving. Mistletoe’s reputation as a magical life force arose from the fact that the plant, which grows at the top of apple trees, is able to live through…

Nothing says Christmas like this ornament of George W. Bush in his flight suit at the Mission Accomplished event. I think I got it at the 2004 Republican National Convention. Email me your favorites!

Rev. Tony Jones offers some good advice for Rick Warren: if you aspire to be like Billy Graham — a widely respected pastor to the presidents — you have to hold your tongue. “The evangelical intelligencia liked (not loved) Billy Graham because, though he wasn’t a theologian, he usually spoke carefully (anti-semitic comments in Nixon’s…

Now that Rick Warren has been selected to deliver the invocation (and a firestorm has ensued), there’s another important question: what kind of prayer will he deliver? Billy Graham, who has done quite a few of these, would usually close “in the name” of the Prince of Peace or some other allusion to Jesus. In…

Juan Cole, a liberal Islam scholar, has a fascinating account of last night’s Muslim Public Affairs Council event — featuring Rick Warren reaching out to Muslims…at the same event as Melissa Etheridge, the singer who is lesbian and was prevented from getting married by the passage of Prop 8 in California. Cole reports that Warren…

A statement on the Saddleback Church website declares, “someone unwilling to repent of their homosexual lifestyle would not be accepted at a member at Saddleback Church.” The full statement on homosexuality: What does the Bible say about homosexuality? The Bible very clearly says that homosexuality is a sin. “Homosexuality is absolutely forbidden, for it is…

Over at Progressive Revival, there’s some fascinating (and wise) disagreement breaking out over the Rick Warren selection: Marianne Williamson is sharply critical: “The person who leads the nation in prayer on January 20th should be someone asking God to forgive us our sins, not someone who dresses up one of our baser national instincts in…

Bernard Madoff, alleged master of the $50 billion ponzi scheme, was turned in by his own sons, according to the Wall Street Journal. As Madoff is a major Jewish philanthropist, I wondered what Jewish tradition says about turning in papa, especially given the commandment to honor your parents. Rabbi David Wolpe of Temple Sinai in…
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