Sightings Articles
Why Secularization? -- Martin E. Marty
Who and what are responsible for "secularization" in the West, including the United States? Many charge that a "secular humanist conspiracy" and "governmental acts" -- especially Supreme Court decisions -- force God and godliness from the public sphe...
July 25, 2001
Finding Religion among Solutions That "Work"
Religion makes only a brief appearance in a fine, thick, fine-even-in-spite-of-being-thick report called Wanted: Solutions for America. What We Know Works. In a page on "After-School Programs" we read that "Schools are frequent sponsors, as are nonpr...
July 23, 2001
Citing the Sighters
Change gives us the chance to take stock of where we are, think about where we have been, and speculate as to where we may be going. I would like to take the occasion of a change in our editorial guard to say a thank you, make an introduction, and de...
July 20, 2001
More News of Religion News
Though enticed by the debate over stem cell research and similar stories, this week we'll follow-up on last week's column regarding religion coverage on national television. The purpose this week is to help subscribers keep developing their own do-it...
July 16, 2001
Christian History
Whatever happened to Christian history? This is the title of a recent article by Tim Stafford in Christianity Today. Intrigued by the increasing visibility of evangelical scholars in leading history departments, Stafford decided to interview ...
July 11, 2001
News of Religion News -- Martin E. Marty
Regular readers of Sightings know that part of our mission, inherited from the three-year Public Religion Project and carried over to the (more academic) program of the Martin Marty Center at the University of Chicago, is observing the way mass media...
July 9, 2001
Trying to Neuter a Lion
Like the lion Aslan himself, the controversy over HarperCollins's handling of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia just won't die. Last Monday's Sightings column referred to the publishing company's plans to "reissue the Lewis's Chronicles of Na...
July 5, 2001
Religion and Social Work
Sighting "spirituality" alongside or overlapping with "religion" and "faith" is easier to do every week. Call the evidences of it also evidences of the "de-secularization" of American life. The newest field in which one can do spotting and sighting i...
July 2, 2001
Thinking about Patriotism -- Kevin Jung
Patriotism is certainly not unique to the United States, but in America the spirit of patriotism is especially high around this time of the year. As we commemorate those who have sacrificed their lives for the country. Hollywood moviemakers also join...
June 29, 2001
School Vouchers and Segregation -- Robert K. Vischer
In the school voucher debate, one critical issue still unaddressed is the potential for vouchers to increase racial segregation. Specifically, the widespread implementation of vouchers could increase segregation by fostering the creation and expansio...