tfdl

From time to time we will create some space to look at religion in America – how it is being expressed in the public square, and how it is being used or misused by various political persuasions. The editorial bias here (that hopefully will shift with more education!) is that religion and religious expression has become the exclusive prevue of the political right over the last thirty years.

While there was a decidedly secular quality to the Civil Rights Movement, and to the early sit-ins and the bus boycott, it is easy for some of us to forget that the impact of this movement as a potent political force in this country was due largely to a progressive coalition of Christian denominations (along with a number of secular folks as well).

Also, it is easy to forget that many priests, rabbis and ministers were in the forefront of the anti-war movement in the Vietnam Era, and that their churches and synagogues were touchstones for those protesting in the streets.

Those were heady times – times full of controversy and questions about war and peace, about environmental justice, racism and stuff like that. Nowadays, we have conservative religious leaders dealing with issues as noteworthy as altar girls at a Catholic Mass. We have come a long way - not.

So, with that mildly depressing send up, here is a link to a well-written piece by one “Maura in VA” about altar girls in Alexandria and also about something even more compelling – about being both a progressive and a practicing Catholic in one of the most conservative diocese in the country.

Again a good read here.