Dispensing with the commitment to political "civility" that leads so many lawmakers to prioritize good manners over justice, Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) ignored House rules on Friday and played audio of detained immigrant children crying in an effort to highlight the thousands of young kids who have been ripped from their parents by the Trump administration.

"I think the American people need to hear this," Lieu said as Rep. Karen Handel (R-Ga.)—who was presiding over the House chamber—repeatedly slammed the gavel and ordered Lieu to suspend his time, citing the congressman's breach of a "decorum" rule barring the use of electronic devices to play sound in the House chamber.

"I can't play the ProPublica audio of their cries for help because of 'decorum'? F*ck decorum. Donald Trump engaged in the functional equivalent of kidnapping. The American people need to hear this."
—Rep. Ted Lieu

As part of the final week of Poor People's Campaign demonstrations leading up to the movement's Mass Rally and Moral Revival in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, hundreds of protesters joined together in chants and songs as they marched to and then were arrested outside of the U.S. Capitol Building on Thursday.
Organized by Rev. Drs. William Barber and Liz Theoharis, the movement takes inspiration from a campaign of the same name launched 50 years ago by Martin Luther King, Jr. Through a series of nationwide demonstrations in recent weeks, supporters have called for an immediate end to "systemic racism, poverty, the war economy, ecological devastation, and the nation's distorted morality."

In a talk co-sponsored by organizations examining the intersection of faith and science, Collins told his audience of more than 300 about the wonder and the cautions that come with biotechnology. He also gave them a look inside his perspective as an atheist-turned-Christian.

“How do we feel about the opportunity to actually reinvent ourselves?” he asked. “Is this something we can embrace because it has great potential in medicine or is it something we should think a little more deeply about before we plunge in?”
The event, titled “Moving Beyond Conflict: Science and Faith in Harmony,” was the last in a series on “Discovery and Doxology” co-sponsored by the nonprofit Trinity Forum; BioLogos, a foundation Collins founded; Church of the Advent, an Anglican congregation in Washington; and Templeton Religion Trust.

So, there it is. Belief in the "divine" is a belief in the existence of deities. Atheism is the disbelief in deities
or the certain belief that no deities exist. The two things are incompatible, by definition.

THE U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis really does epitomize the bourgeois rule of law when it comes to workers: They have the freedom to work for a boss on the boss’s terms, and no other — or starve.
The 5-4 decision announced in May upholds the power of corporations to force individual arbitration on workers.

The Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue (PCID) released a message on Friday greeting the world’s Muslims on the occasion of Eid Al Fitr to mark the end of month of Ramadan. It also provides guiding principles for meaningful Christian-Muslim dialogue to improve relations between the world’s two largest religious groups.

In the midst of the crackdown, Catholic Church leaders on the twin island are working to ensure Venezuelans receive compassion and a place to feel at home.

Archbishop of Port of Spain Charles Jason Gordon. Photo courtesy of Archdiocese of Port of Spain
Following the April deportation, Archbishop of Port of Spain Charles Jason Gordon spoke out against the government’s treatment of Venezuelans and other migrants. He warned citizens against being “stingy” — and his new initiative is anything but.

The allegations of sexual abuse and other misconduct made against acclaimed writer, professor and social justice activist Junot Díaz have led to an intense debate among some in the academic world. Some have protested both the media coverage of the controversy and the charges made against Díaz, while others have drawn connections to the backlash against #MeToo when allegations of sexual assault and sexist behavior are made against men who are liberals or leftists.
The left needs to take up difficult discussions and stand against the silencing of survivors in any circumstance. Here, Akua Gyamerah, one of the signers of a letter challenging those who would side with Díaz against his accusers, explains how this discussion has developed—and why she took the stand that she did.

Amid news reports about children separated from their parents at the border and sex abuse victims being denied asylum, religious leaders have spoken out this week in new, significant, and surprising ways...…

Unfortunately, nativist hardliners in the Republican Party have the power to thwart any legislative solution. They have exercised that power for years, as House Speakers John Boehner and Paul Ryan (both Catholics) cowered.
The problem that has brought us to this point on immigration is the GOP’s decision to stake its survival on being a white identity party.

Franklin Graham, the son of famous evangelist Billy Graham, has been one of Trump’s strongest supporters since he announced he was running for president.
But now he has come out strongly against an administration policy which has been separating children from their parents at the US-Mexican border, calling it “disgraceful.”