God's Politics Blog » Cathleen Falsani

Four Friends’ Perspectives on Tiger Woods’ Buddhism

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 14:00:17 +0000

Apart from the Dalai Lama, who reportedly had never heard of him until earlier this week, Tiger Woods is the most famous Buddhist on the planet.

But until Woods invoked his Buddhist identity during a televised mea culpa for cheating on…

Crazy Heart: One Journey Ends, Another Begins

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 17:31:55 +0000

We love a redemption story.

The profound appeal of rags-to-riches-to-rags-to-riches or the fall-from-grace-followed-by-a-spectacular-comeback is about as ingrained in our American psyche (and soul) as rooting for the underdog, generosity to those in distress, and second chances.

When I walked into the movie…

The (Second) Worst Religious Idea of the Decade

Cathleen Falsani — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:00:59 +0000

Earlier this month, the nice folks over at The Washington Post’s Outlook section asked me to write an essay about what I thought the worst religious idea of the past decade was. I ended up giving them two essays, as…

The Charter for Compassion

Cathleen Falsani — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:29:26 +0000

Compassion is, by one definition, “a deep awareness and sympathy for another’s suffering.”

Karen Armstrong, the former Roman Catholic nun and one of the foremost writers on religion of our generation, and the renowned African spiritual leader and peacemaker Archbishop Desmond…

Push Pause Now!

Cathleen Falsani — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:00:19 +0000

Do you find yourself adding more to your to-do list, even though you already feel overwhelmed?

Are your weekends just as jam-packed as your workdays?

When you try to pray, do you find your mind swimming with yesterday’s worries?

If, like me, you…

The Coen Brothers Get ‘Serious’

Cathleen Falsani — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:00:38 +0000

Recenly, I had a bad day. Epically bad.

I ran out of cash.

I lost my credit card.

I missed my flight.

And then, standing outside the United Airlines terminal at O’Hare, I dropped my cell phone, and as if in slow motion, watched…

‘Apology Porn’ and Yom Kippur

Cathleen Falsani — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:00:56 +0000

If there had been a way to power-wash my brain, I would have done it.

The words, images, and emotions left with me after I watched a half-dozen video clips of actress Mackenzie Phillips’ interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this week…

Labor Sunday: What Can We Do to Honor Workers?

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:30:23 +0000

To work is to pray.

It’s a Latin phrase that the Order of St. Benedict adopted as its motto.

St. Benedict, the founder of the order, recognized the sacred value of hard work, the notion that through the sweat of our brows…

Beer Diplomacy: What Would Jesus Brew?

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 19:00:08 +0000

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.”

— Jesus in the gospel of St. Matthew

“From man’s sweat and God’s love, beer came into the world.”

— St. Arnold of Metz, patron saint of brewers

When President Obama popped…

Water of Life: Wee Man Doesn’t Take it for Granted (And Neither Should You)

Cathleen Falsani — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:30:35 +0000

One of the everyday things Vasco has enjoyed most since arriving in Chicago from Malawi five weeks ago is being able to go into the kitchen and pour a cool glass of crystal clear water, from the sink or the…

Travels with Bruce Cockburn: Into the Soul of this World of Wonders

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 16:00:05 +0000

There’s roads and there’s roads
And they call, can’t you hear it?
Roads of the earth
And roads of the spirit . . .

— Bruce Cockburn’s “Child of the Wind”

Mali. Mozambique. Central America. The Himalayas. Kosovo.

I’ve never been to any of these exotic…

Witchhunt: I Was in Prison and You Visited Me

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:15:51 +0000

Twenty-seven years ago this month, Brenda and Scott Kniffen, a homemaker and an inventory manager of a diesel shop, were arrested and charged with sexually abusing their two young sons, Brian and Brandon, ages 6 and 8.

Under intense questioning by…

Wendell Berry’s Whitefoot

Cathleen Falsani — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 14:40:47 +0000

Walking in botanical gardens one recent, perfect, early spring day, a quick burst of movement in the thicket of a yellow Carolina jasmine hedge caught my eye.

It was a mouse. A Peromyscus leucopus to be precise — a white-footed mouse with…

U2’s Sacred Pilgrimage: ‘I Found Grace, It’s All That I Found’

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 16:29:25 +0000

Without a line on the horizon, we may feel like there is no limit to how far we can go. But it also makes the seas difficult to navigate.

That is, in many ways, where we find ourselves today. It’s as…

Gender, Genetics, and God

Cathleen Falsani — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 21:07:26 +0000

“The difference between men and women,” the humorist Dave Barry says, “is that, if given the choice between saving the life of an infant or catching a fly ball, a woman will automatically choose to save the infant, without even…

There’s Just Something About Madea

Cathleen Falsani — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 19:00:16 +0000

The first three screenings of Tyler Perry’s new film, Madea Goes to Jail, that I tried to go to last week were sold out. When I finally did get a ticket, I had one of the last single seats in…

Is A-Rod Forgiveable?

Cathleen Falsani — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 21:30:49 +0000

Over brunch with my husband and one of my best guy friends last weekend, conversation turned, as it does, to Major League Baseball, doping and the nature of sin.

“A-Rod, possibly the greatest baseball player in the history of the game,…

Lord, Save Us From Your Followers: Neo-Apologetics and a Return to Civility

Cathleen Falsani — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 16:30:22 +0000

Chicago’s own Dwight L. Moody, the great American evangelist of the 19th century, once said that of 100 people, one would read the Bible, and the other 99 would “read the Christian.”

Let’s face it: Christianity has an image problem.

When you…

Jimmy Carter Interview: ‘We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land’

Cathleen Falsani — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 21:31:09 +0000

Former President Jimmy Carter just published a new book about the ongoing violent unrest in the Middle East titled, We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan That Will Work.

In the book, Carter, 85, revisits the contributions of…

Obama’s Inauguration Speech: Tough Love

Cathleen Falsani — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:50:55 +0000

President Obama’s inaugural address might not have been one for the ages.

But it certainly was the right one for the moment.

Somber, sober, and almost stern, our new president placed a mantle before the nation — We, the people — and gave us…