Winds of Change0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

I saw one of those shadowy figures of evil on television a few weeks ago. A false and anti-Messiah figure named Osama bin Laden reached out from the desert of Afghanistan to offer a few more vague threats. And then he said something with the ring of profundity. “The winds of change are blowing,” he

The Hijacking of Religion0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

For a country to move from general tolerance to extreme intolerance in just a few short years speaks to the power of religion and its ready exploitation by those seeking political authority and control. The fuel is human competition. Where there is enough food, land, water, and other resources, the need to fight other communities

No Sects, Please; We're French0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

The United States views the new legislation as another step toward restricting religious freedom in France and is concerned about the example France is giving to the rest of the world. France has solid democratic institutions; not the case for many of the countries likely to follow its lead. The United States’ reaction echoes the

Liberty Briefs0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

Indonesia: Protesters Demand Islamic Law Hundreds of protesters in Jakarta staged a demonstration calling for the Islamic Sharia law to be imposed on the country’s 212 million inhabitants, according to a British Broadcasting Corporation report. Indonesia is 83 percent Muslim and 7 percent Christian. Nigeria: Former Ruler Calls for Imposition of Islamic Law Muhammadu Buhari,

Home-Grown Intolerance in France0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

Passed by the French Parliament, and signed into law in June 2001, the “To reinforce the prevention and repression of groups of a sectarian nature” aims to restrict the free expression, growth, and development of religious groups. Amazingly, many of those targeted are from mainstream religious beliefs, which flourish in the United States under the

For God and Country0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

He remembers the screaming KC-135s and C-5s; the roars, the lights, the vibrating windowpanes, the low buzz in his ears. It ignited his mind with the images and fantasies that only children can create. From those early days living near the Robert Gray Army Airfield in Texas, Allen Davis had one goal: to be a

Cover Image0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

Care For Your Rites0

• January/February 2002
• January 1, 2002

Jim Raines (a pseudonym) was hired as a service writer by a major auto dealership in a large Southwestern city. A service writer is the guy who prepares the service order on your car when you take it to the dealer. Jim was scheduled to work Monday through Friday, plus one Saturday a month. He