In the Boston Globe, James Carroll explores how American experience has put a slant on the interpretation of Catholic teachings.

Killing the Buddha is featuring a special online version of Jeff Sharlet's profile of Cornel West, which appeared in the May 28 issue of Rolling Stone.

At his Beliefnet blog, Steven Waldman writes that the murder of George Tiller, a Wichita abortion provider, should "force a re-assessment of the Department of Homeland Security's maligned report on 'right wing extremism.'"

While moral values were considered by voters to be the single most important issue in the 2004 elections, E.J. Dionne points to recent polls that show a steady decline of interest as the economy fails.

Bennington President Liz Coleman speaks at the 2009 Ted lectures, pushing for a radical reform in higher education.

Sociologist Amy Adamczyk finds that "factors such as grades and parents' education are more influential than religious involvement for pregnant teens and young adults who face abortion decision."

At the Huffington Post, Frank Schaeffer places some of the blame for George Tiller's murder on himself and his father, Francis Schaeffer, both of whom helped construct the evangelical anti-abortion "hate machine" in the 1980s.

In Wisconsin, a small monastery supports itself by hosting a company that sells ink and toner cartridges, Laurie Goodstein writes at the New York TImes.