On Independence Day, A Different Kind of Revolution for Boston
If Boston’s complaint was once no taxation without representation, today it might be no rent increase without a corresponding Consumer Price Index hike. Case in point: The Consumer Price Index increased 3.2% this past year. However, the company that owns the building my husband and I live in raised rent by 11.5%. In other words, [...]
Did We Miss Jesus in Osama bin Laden’s Death?
This Sunday, many churchgoers heard the story of two disciples walking on the road to Emmaus, shocked by the recent crucifixion. Along their way, they meet a stranger with whom they travel and later share dinner. The disciples tell him what they believe to be the truth of the previous days’ events: A prophetic voice [...]
How Hoops Can Fix Your Oops (or, A Lighthearted Treatise on the Wisdom of Basketball’s Justice)
Let’s talk about the cost of the clink: With the United States having the highest incarceration rate in the industrialized world, with costs to maintain it soaring, and with high recidivism, most Americans agree that some drastic improvements to our criminal justice system—and we’re talking Ty Pennington drastic—are in order. The trouble is that the [...]
Averting Your Eyes: The Devastating Consequences of Ignoring Women’s Rights
I was walking down the crowded, cobblestoned streets of Jerusalem’s Old City when a bearded man with narrow eyes reached out his hand and tried to grab my breast. I did not know him. I had not made eye contact. I was not acting provocatively—in fact, despite a heat wave that added insult to the already injurious desert [...]
Boo and the Big Bad Bully
Last Halloween, the Internet went viral with the story of a preschool boy who wanted to dress as Daphne for Halloween. His mother supported the plan, but the child—given the ghostly pseudonym Boo—was concerned about a potentially negative reaction from his peers. His mother said not to worry, but the boy continued to have concerns. [...]
Is Our Neighbor…In Akron?
Recently, Kelley Williams-Bolar left jail after serving a ten day sentence for falsifying documents in order to send her daughters to the prestigious Copley-Fairlawn school district and keep them from the low performing schools in Akron, Ohio, where they lived. Her case has sparked national outrage, with some commentators claiming racial and gender discrimination, while [...]
The Real News Story
Here’s a news headline for you: The trial begins in Phoenix today for Faleh Hassan Almaleki, the Iraqi immigrant accused of killing his daughter for becoming too Westernized. The prosecution’s argument goes like this: Almaleki ran over his 20 year old daughter with a Jeep Cherokee because she was abandoning their traditional Muslim values, having [...]
What Mary, Joseph and Reality TV Share in Common (or how “I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant” teaches something powerful about Christmas theology)
When my husband I got married, we moved into a new apartment and signed a cable agreement, the kind where you get a bundle with far more than you need because getting less actually costs more. As a result, we’ve been watching far more television than normal—case in point, while eating lunch the other day, [...]
On Civility, Discourse, and Elizabeth Edwards
I am not interested in talking about the stance of the church or its members this morning. Rather, I want to use this space to raise the larger issue of civility. Put differently, I might ask: “Is a woman’s funeral—attended by her children—really the moment for a protest like this one?”
Learning from Harry Potter
Today Evanna Lynch told the world that J.K. Rowling helped her recover from anorexia. The Toronto Sun reports that she composed a letter to Rowling to thank her for the books, which gave her hope, and particularly to thank her for the character of Luna Lovegood, who inspired her. Rowling wrote back, encouraging the young [...]
Danielle Elizabeth Tumminio
The Reverend Danielle Elizabeth Tumminio is ordained in The Episcopal Church and has taught a variety of educational institutions, including Yale University. She is completing a doctoral degree in practical theology at Boston University, where she researches reproductive loss and assisted reproductive technologies. She is also the author of "God and Harry at Yale: Faith and Fiction in the Classroom" (Unlocking Press, 2010).
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Contributing Scholars
Ian BurzynskiIan Burzynski served as the first Assistant Director of Operations for State of Formation. He is a non-profit worker, intercultural communication practioner, and secular advocate for intertraditional engagement. He has worked with Pathways for Mutual Respect and the Cordoba Initiative and now serves as Chief Development Officer at Distressed Children & Infants International.
Nicole EdineNicole Edine is a recent graduate from New York University with a Masters in Religious Studies. Her academic interests include South Asian religions in diaspora, American religion and identity, and sacred spaces and objects.
Charlotte DandoCharlotte is an interfaith activist and self-confessed Religious Studies geek currently undertaking a Masters at SOAS, University of London. Charlotte’s interests include religious diversity, pluralism, multiculturalism, Quakerism, equality and blogging: all fueled by oolong tea. @CharlotteDando