Good thing some US colleges are closing their Religious Studies departments—definitively not “useful” at all or an area of expertise that might be relevant for understanding our present…
03.03.2026 03:21 — 👍 193 🔁 77 💬 4 📌 1@soraaad.bsky.social
SORAAAD.org, allowing people to gather w/o being religious since 2011. Qual Research on Religion, Religion-like stuff, and Religion & stuff best not studied as religious but key to understanding those doing, being, saying & feeling stuff labeled religion
Good thing some US colleges are closing their Religious Studies departments—definitively not “useful” at all or an area of expertise that might be relevant for understanding our present…
03.03.2026 03:21 — 👍 193 🔁 77 💬 4 📌 1Here's a mini-thread on how Reign of Error episodes can help you understand how different parts of the MAGA Christian nationalist base are driving and understanding Trump's war in Iran: 🧵
02.03.2026 14:15 — 👍 78 🔁 29 💬 1 📌 6
On Hegseth's religion, with @julieingersoll.bsky.social:
redcircle.com/shows/fbed71...
On charismatic Christians, prophets, apostles, spiritual warfare, and how they see Israel and Iran, with @matthewdtaylor.bsky.social:
redcircle.com/shows/fbed71...
Finally, on the growing rift within MAGA, spurred by far-right, antisemitic Catholics, against the important Christian Zionist part of Trump's base, with @mjcressler.bsky.social:
redcircle.com/shows/fbed71...
This is a treasure trove of relevant content.
03.03.2026 04:55 — 👍 8 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0I continue to find it embarrassing when smart social scientists who should know better succumb to saying AI is better, which frankly shows a lack of appreciation for good writing (AI is bad at that) and for doing the kind of important work that AI can’t do (interview-based research, etc.).
03.03.2026 04:18 — 👍 43 🔁 3 💬 3 📌 1
“One NCO said they were told the U.S. war is to bring about Armageddon and the return of Jesus”
Well I guess we have gotten the answer to a number of questions all at once
The fact the military is openly saying it is being told this is the Christian war to “bring about Jesus return” is.. bad.
Here's a full write-up on the judge tossing out Columbia's unprecedentedly harsh disciplinary actions against students accused of occupying Hamilton Hall in 2024:
hellgatenyc.com/columbia-exp...
While there are numerous aspects of the current military action taken by the U.S. and Israel against Iran that are anchored and sustained by religion, we suggest following news organizations with the capacity to cover these events across the region 🧵
1-e8259.azureedge.net/news/liveblo...
In 1920, Hampton University was stripped of its land grant status during a wave of segregation-era policies — cutting the university off from decades of potential federal funding.Now, a bill in the Virginia legislature aims to make amends and help the university recoup the money lost.
bit.ly/4l6uz5o
My friend & colleague @nelsontebbe.bsky.social has an Article on "First Amendment Inversion," just recently published by the Texas Law Review. It documents a fascinating and important shift in how different political groups have conceptualized free speech: texaslawreview.org/first-amendm...
02.03.2026 20:22 — 👍 3 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 1"For movement conservatism the attack on perceived wokeism only fits w 1st Amendment doctrine in certain situations, such as the defense of conservative speakers on campus In other situations, such as the attempted regulation of social media by red states, speech rules cut in the opposite direction"
02.03.2026 20:41 — 👍 2 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
The first Tibetan Buddhist monks came to Europe amid the surge of interest over attempts to summit Mt. Everest in the 1920s.
Capitalizing on this excitement, a promoter in Darjeeling recruited men to pose as Tibetan cham dancers for the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley in 1924. 🧵
🗃️ 📜 #Tibet
Always like to remind people that Penn still hasn't located all of the remains of victims of the MOVE bombing but they did give one of the families the remains of a dog instead of the 12 year old girl they were supposed to be returning.
prismreports.org/2024/12/11/m...
maybe an under-discussed aspect of academic job market insanity is how higher ed workers are likely subject to greater physical safety risks than other knowledge workers (with risks likely increasing in the future as one of the two major political parties declares higher ed its nemesis)
02.03.2026 18:58 — 👍 36 🔁 13 💬 4 📌 0
Are you a current or former Education Dept. employee?
Have information about civil rights investigations or discrimination in schools?
Reach out to @jsmithrichards.bsky.social on Signal at jsmithrichards.93 or @jodiscohen.bsky.social at jodireporter.88 👇
speaking as a someone in the daoist side of things I am equally delighted and concerned at this. Daoist texts have been translated via AI (eg the Northern Dipper Scripture deltoi.com/zh/anonymous...).
However this translation so far involved no input from daoist practitioners at all...
!!!
02.03.2026 17:40 — 👍 3 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
Etcetera etcetera we are all LowerEd
www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...
This software of missionary colonizer white Nationalist Christianity is platforming messages (that may/ not get through given internet access restriction) targeting people who have had decades of watching the U.S. betray/sell out allies it solicits, on a foundation of the U.S. installing the Shah
02.03.2026 17:18 — 👍 3 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 1
ProPublica has sued the U.S. Department of Education
W/ @jsmithrichards.bsky.social
www.propublica.org/article/educ...
I live for admissions data and this stuff will likely be a mess that I can barely trust
02.03.2026 13:30 — 👍 16 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0
Unholy alliance of xtian nationalists & tech bros.
“Screenshots…show messages urging Iranian military personnel to surrender their weapons with the promise of amnesty. They also urged army personnel to join ‘the forces of liberation’ and to ‘defend your brothers.’”
www.wired.com/story/hacked...
🗣️ New color family in the JECS cover rotation!! 🗣️
02.03.2026 14:02 — 👍 17 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 1This is bleak.
02.03.2026 04:29 — 👍 140 🔁 25 💬 1 📌 0
Unlocking the secrets of an ancient plague : NPR
www.npr.org/2026/02/28/n...
A recent NYT op-ed blamed the Trump's regime's lawless violence on 'paganism' while conjuring Christianity as the source of good values. I think this is a terrible way to think about history and gets in the way of cleaning up the messes Christians have made. My latest from @religiondispatches.org
23.02.2026 23:36 — 👍 292 🔁 71 💬 8 📌 8
Congrats to @ncaaup.bsky.social & all who fought against this surveillance policy that would've allowed admin to hijack microphones in the classroom for secret recordings.
This move would've chilled classroom discussion & suppressed students' willingness to ask questions & take intellectual risks.