Sightings Articles
Shunning Religion
Prof. William Schweiker reflects on recent attempts to politicize the Amish and the implications for religion in the U.S....
October 28, 2019
Sharpiegate, or the Origins and Ends of Democracy
What does #Sharpiegate teach us about the place of religion in the future, or the end, of democracy? ...
September 23, 2019
Festivals of Forgetting
Perhaps more than other years, this July in the United States has been filled with festivals. President Trump’s excessive “Salute to America” was filled with jets, armored vehicles, marches, and a Presidential speech. Many have also enjoyed the mont...
July 22, 2019
Defending the Ideals of Freedom in Our Non-Ideal Public Life
Democratic public life at its best...
June 24, 2019
Politics and Priestcraft: Oh, Where’s Our Voltaire?
In our postmodern, global, and increasingly divided society, few thin threads of shared conviction seem to bind us together. One of those spindly threads has been a rejection by many people of our Enlightenment heritage, which fueled democratic revo...
May 27, 2019
On Black Holes and Human Significance
Events from recent weeks raise questions about the connection between size (physical or otherwise) and human significance. Of course, there are homey sayings like “good things come in small packages” or “bigger is better” that, truth be told, experie...
April 22, 2019
Defiant Hope
Ed. Note: Today's column is the third in a three-part series by Divinity School faculty reflecting on the Christchurch mosque shootings in New Zealand during Friday Prayer on March 15, 2019. Last Monday, Richard Rosengarten wrote about the challenges...
March 25, 2019
Raw Religion
This Sightings column is about "religion in the raw," and even the rawest—and most damaging—forms of religion. That is because Sightings is keen to catch a glimpse of religion wherever and whenever it appears in public life, and we can’t ignore "raw ...
February 25, 2019
On Gods and Kings
How are we to “sight” the always intricate, sometimes chaotic, and too often hidden relationship between religious convictions and political order? More often than not it requires piecing together a jigsaw puzzle with hints from hither and yon, in bo...
January 28, 2019
A Season of Myths, Part Two
Come what may, the Christmas season is inescapable in America this time of year. ...