Legal and political battle lines have been drawn across the country over the teaching of "intelligent design"--the view that life is so complex it must be the product of a "higher intelligence." The central issue under debate is whether "intelligent design" is, in fact, a
Does morality depend upon religion? Most people believe it does, which is a major reason behind the appeal of the religious right. People believe that without faith in a supernatural authority, we can have no moral values--no moral absolutes, no black-and-white distinctions, no firm demarcation
Religion is becoming a political issue in the culture at large. Abortion, stem-cell research, euthanasia, homosexuality, intelligent design--even the "war on terror"--each of these debates is linked to religious beliefs. With the conservatives strengthening ties to the Christian religion and a Supreme Court that has
The ongoing controversy over the teaching of creationism in public schools is portrayed by some as a battle between superstitious ignorance and scientific enlightenment. So far, from this perspective, the race has gone to the swift and the battle to the strong: in the '80s,
Last December, a Pennsylvania Federal District court ruled that the Dover School District cannot teach "intelligent design"--the theory that the complexity of life indicates the existence of a divine "designer"--as a scientific alternative to Darwin's theory of evolution. Judge John E. Jones argued that intelligent
The buzz about Christian propaganda couched in Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe seems to have subsided. With the film's premiere, the suspense about ideology has largely been replaced by universal commendations of its "enchanting animations" and portrayal of "family values." Secular
I must confess, I love to go shopping. Although my meager grad student stipend doesn't generally afford outlandish spending sprees, I delight in simple, gratis pleasures such as testing lotion samples at Bath & Body Works and visiting boutiques to try on colorful, lush silk
On February 9th, the Daily Illini at the University of Illinois published the controversial cartoons of Mohammed that have exploded into a world-wide Muslim protest against the right to free speech. The original publishers of these cartoons are hiding in fear of their lives. Embassies