Free Republic

Anglican woman bishop: Pope took 'risk' inviting her to address cardinal advisersAn Anglican woman bishop who addressed Pope Francis and his advisory Council of Cardinals says she believes the pontiff took a "risk" in extending her an invitation to speak to the group and hopes that the Catholic Church will continue to explore the topic of women's leadership with "courage.""I'm aware — not least from various reactions in the aftermath — that to many such an opportunity feels rare, if not historic. I'm thankful for the privilege, and equally want to honor the risk Pope Francis surely took in welcoming...

Earlier this week, the Pew Research Center released a survey on the views of religious Americans regarding torture. They survey found that white evangelical Protestants were the most supportive of torture--only 16% of evangelicals reject the use of torture. A whopping 62% of white evangelical Protestants think that torture is justified in most or many circumstances. Since the findings became public, numerous columnists, pundits, and bloggers have opined on why evangelicals support torture. The unaddressed question is, however, why white mainline Protestants--those belonging to the historic "brand name" churches--do not support torture. Indeed, approximately twice as many mainline Protestants (31%)...