My latest review for the International Examiner. The film is playing in Seattle from Sept. 5-11, and the director will be doing a talk about it as part of the International South Asian Film Festival at the end of the month.

Quoted: The film explores the complex and controversial relationship between homosexuality and Islam.

So interesting. Heavy metal seems to have quite a following in India, as well...

Quoted: Click here for a video slide show on metal heads in the Islamic world.

A great cover story by Pico Iyer on the Dalai Lama. I hadn't thought about what could happen when the Dalai Lama passes away - he is in his 70s. Scary!

Quoted: As China cracks down in Tibet, the Dalai Lama faces his greatest challenge since going into exile 49 years ago. Can his message of peace bring his people freedom?

Fascinating piece on how early Christians grappled with the idea of resurrection both literally and symbolically.

Quoted: Easter represents the foundational claim of Christian faith, the highest day of the Christian year as celebration of Jesus' resurrection. But many Christians are unsure what the claim that Jesus had been raised to new life after being crucified actually means—while non-Christians often find the idea of resurrection bemusing and even ridiculous.

Sweet! Looks like I'm going to be interviewing Pico Iyer about this book!

Quoted: One of the most acclaimed and perceptive observers of globalism and Buddhism now gives us the first serious consideration—for Buddhist and non-Buddhist alike—of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama’s work and ideas as a politician, scientist, and philosopher.

A great Explainer on how the Catholic church decides on new deadly sins...

Quoted: The Vatican released a list of seven new sins on Monday. Dubbed the "social sins," they include conducting stem-cell research, polluting the environment, and causing poverty. Along with the old standbys—like lust, pride, and greed—these seven are considered to be of the "deadly" variety.

Beware next time you hear the phrase "peer-reviewed" attached to academic research on Creationism!

Quoted: Here the goal is not to ensure that research meets academic standards of scientific inquiry, but rather to ensure that the scholar's conclusions conform to a literal interpretation of the Bible.

I didn't realize that Chinese New Year celebrations had been so stifled by China's government.

Quoted: The government has banned many of the traditions associated with Chinese New Year—but the holiday may be staging a comeback.

A Slate slide show on the evolution of the nativity scene.

Quoted: New York's Catholic League sent a letter to the Dept. of Education, protesting the ban of Christian Nativity scenes in area schools—where Jewish menorahs and Muslim emblems of Ramadan are permitted. Is this a clear case of discrimination against the majority and favoritism of the minority? Christmas envy? Or is something else going on?