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In the Cherry Tree Carol Mary asks Joseph to pick some cherries for her, but he lashes out in anger: "Let the father of the baby gather cherries for thee." The story itself may go back to the 9th Century “Infancy Narrative of the Pseudo-Matthew” in which the tree is a date palm. Joseph was unable to climb the tree, so Jesus, now an infant fleeing King Herod, commands: "O tree, bend thy branches and refresh my mother with thy fruit." The tradition about Jesus' illicit birth is most likely unfounded, and it probably arose because of the later doctrine of the Virgin Birth. See full version here with scholarly citation at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/JosephAnger.htm. [more]

In agreement with the Quakers, Roger Williams refused to swear any civil oaths in the name of God. His main reason—that this would violate the conscience of atheists— revealed an incredible generosity of spirit on his part. For him religious liberty meant not only the freedom to believe but also the choice not to believe. For the full version go to www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/Williams.htm. [more]

My heart goes out to the families and friends of those killed or injured in the Mumbai terrorist acts. As Condi Rice said yesterday in India: Pakistan must cooperate fully with Indian investigators to bring the ring leaders to justice. The base where the terrorists were trained is just outside of Lahore and it is still open for business. Read the full version with picture at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/MumbaiAttack.htm. [more]

I was out of town for Thanksgiving, so I'm a little late in posting my Thanksgiving column. With regard to the Quaker women who were arrested in Boston, each of the them were stripped and checked for bodily signs of witchcraft, specifically a third teat by which a "familiar" was nursed. Thirty-four years later, a special Puritan court would execute 20 male and female witches, many with Quaker lies, in an unprecedented superstitious frenzy. Stay tuned for a column on the witch trials. Full version of this column can be read a www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/Quakers.htm. [more]

At recent meeting of the American Academy of Religion conference in Chicago, I attended a session on evangelical Christian responses to the Muslim document "A Common Word." The panel consisted of two Muslims and two evangelicals, both of whom had refused to sign the Yale Divinity School response to "A Common Word." I was very disappointed that the evangelicals chose to focus on differences rather than common ground. Read the full column at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/commonword.htm. [more]

One Swedish town outside of Stockholm already had a Iraqi Christian community and a Chaldean Church, and Sodertalje's 60,000 citizens took in twice as many Iraqis in 2006 than the entire U.S. did. The pastor of the church, the Rev. Ragheed Ganni, decided to return to Iraq in November of 2006. Ganni was shot to death, execution style, after celebrating Mass at the Holy Spirit Church in Mosul. See full version at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/ChristPersecution.htm. [more]

During the month of the 10th Anniversary of the Crucifixion of Matthew Shepard, one gay man at the University of Idaho and one gay man and three transgendered persons at the Washington State University were attacked. Necessary legislation that add extra sanctions for these crimes is in place in Washington but absent in Idaho and Wyoming. Read the full column at www.class.uidaho.edu/ngier/shepard.htm. Read "What Part of Equality Don't You Understand" at /equality.htm. [more]

Michael McConnell, a conservative colleague of Antonin Scalia at the University of Chicago Law School and now federal appellant judge appointed by George W. Bush, was so impressed by the way Obama edited one of his articles for the Harvard Law Review that he recommended Obama to the Chicago faculty for a teaching job. Since 1991 Joe Biden has also taught constitutional law. No attorney general will be able to pull a fast one on this executive team. See complete version at www.home.roadrunner.com/~nickgier/Obama08.htm. [more]

The meager credibility that McCain had on major issues was essentially lost when he picked Sarah Palin as his running mate. His demand that serious candidates have years of experience has fallen flat by choosing a little known 20-month governor and mayor of a town of 6,000. His long standing criticism of earmarks now rings hollow in the face of Palin's $800 million as governor and $27 million as mayor. McCain's already strained credibility on the environment has now collapsed because of Palin's abysmal record. Read the complete column (including a picture of Palin's dead Lake Lucille at www.home.roadrunner.com/~nickgier/McCainEnviron.htm. [more]

Recently John McCain commented that the Iraq War was our country's longest military campaign since the Vietnam War. As we note the 7th anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan, where more Americans now die each day than in Iraq, McCain needs to be reminded, once again, he and Bush took "their eyes off the ball" in the War on Terror. Read full version at www.home.roadrunner.com/~nickgier/McCainForeign.htm. [more]

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