First, you need a name. Not just any name. A weird name: a Biblical misspelling, maybe, or an invocation of…
Religion and the 2008 election
During the campaigning leading up to the 2008 election, scholars reflect on the role of religion in American politics.
This is our moment, this is our time
For a long time after November 4, I found it hard to believe that Barack Obama had actually been elected…
The justice we need
The 2008 election provides a significant occasion to rethink our assumptions about justice and politics---concepts we rarely link together, least…
The cooling embers
Politics is not reducible to elections, of course. Yet these contests---particularly the quadrennial spectacle that is a Presidential race---usually conclude…
Post-election roundups & more
In conjunction with recent post-election reflections at The Immanent Frame by Howard Adelman, Arjun Appadurai, John Esposito, Conrad Hackett, D.…
Magic, comedy and civic religion
Barack Obama's victory needs to be recognized and celebrated---not simply recognized for the fact that he won, but recognized by…
A public theologian
Americans have elected the most theologically astute president since Jimmy Carter.
An internationalist president
In the Muslim world, as in Europe and much of the world, Obama is welcomed as an internationalist president.
The magic ballot
I regret that we are forced to catch the special aura of this election without a deep and serious space…
Changing of the guard
In the wake of the presidential election, who now speaks for American evangelicals?