In the News: Wendy Vitter Refuses to Affirm Support for Brown v. Board in Federal Judgeship Hearing; Americans Display Appalling Ignorance of History of Evangelicals Vis-a-Vis Slavery

Two stories in today's news I'd like to share with you, both showing the effects of religious thinking and influence on the political and cultural life of the U.S. The first has to do with federal judge nominee Wendy Vitter of Louisiana, the second with recent findings about how little of the real history of American evangelicals and their relationship to slavery even well-educated and liberal Americans actually know.

The Roseanne Débacle: Time to Talk About Roseanne's Roots in Salt Lake City and Mormon Culture?

Literally all that Roseanne had to do was NOT call a black woman a monkey and she... just.... couldn't 😂😂

White supremacy is a hell of a drug.

— Ijeoma Oluo (@IjeomaOluo) May 29, 2018

Quote for Day: Michael Gerson on Selective Biblical Inerrancy of Christian Republicans

Michael Gerson, "Trump Exposes the Hypocrisy of Christian Republicans":

Baptist Pastor-Theologian Molly T. Marshall: "Biblical Inerrancy Was a Mere Tool for the Preservation of Patriarchal Power and White Male Privilege

Molly T. Marshall, "The peril of selective inerrancy":

I contend that biblical inerrancy was a mere tool for the preservation of patriarchal power and white male privilege.

Theologian Tina Beattie on Irish Abortion Referendum: "It Can Be Seen As the Assertion of the Common Good Over and Against a Corrupted and Dysfunctional Institutional Church"

Tina Beattie's reflection on the results of the Irish referendum on abortion is, in my view, exactly right — balanced, thoughtful, theologically dense and well-informed:

Quote for Day: How American Religious Right Tried to Sway Ireland's Abortion Vote

The Guardian, "Irish Abortion Referendum: Official Results Show Big Lead for Yes"

Sarah Jones, "How American Christians Are Swaying Ireland’s Abortion Referendum":

Ireland Apparently Knocks Down Abortion Ban; Children Being Taken from Parents by ICE; Pope Francis Does Usual Two-Step with LGBTQ Humanity and LGBTQ Lives: My Commentary

What does it mean to be pro-life if you defend the life of a child in the womb, but not the life of a child on the border?

— James Martin, SJ (@JamesMartinSJ) May 25, 2018

Father James Martin tweets the above (as it happens, on the day that the predominantly Catholic nation of Ireland votes overwhelmingly, election results are suggesting, to strike down its draconian anti-abortion law — and see here), and all hell breaks loose. All hell breaks loose from so-called "pro-lifers," who issue ugly insinuations about immigrants being in thrall to organized crime outfits — so that it's justified for ICE officials to rip the children of immigrants from the arms of their parents, these "pro-lifers" want to maintain.