Wednesday’s News & Ideas - 3/11/2026
- Inaccurate view of US history
- GOP to use faith against Talarico
- Mourning for Khamenei
- Synod defends women
- TEC official pleads guilty to fraud
- The Pokemon tree of life
Trump’s Freedom 250 sparks debate over America’s Christian origins
USA Today: Historians say a White House prayer anthology and 250th anniversary events promote a Christian-centric view of U.S. history.
How the GOP plans to use Talarico’s Christianity against him*
New York: Talarico’s views would be familiar to millions of Presbyterians, Methodists, Congregationalists, Episcopalians, Unitarians and others. But these are not the faith communities aligned with the GOP.
From shock to ritual: Inside Iran’s 40 days of mourning after Khamenei’s killing
Religion Unplugged: Across Tehran, worshippers gather for the 40 days of official national mourning — a timeline that mirrors the traditional Shiite cycle of remembrance known as arbaeen.
Synod defends women’s leadership in Catholic Church, criticizes ‘machismo’
National Catholic Reporter: In a frank assessment of the role of women, a Vatican study group called for broader access to positions of authority for Catholic women and for the church to confront persistent patterns of clericalism and “machismo.”
Former executive of Episcopal Clergy Assurance Fund pleads guilty to $1.6 million fraud
Anglican Ink: John A. Miller has pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from the misappropriation of over $1.6 million intended for widows and orphans of deceased Episcopal clergy.
The Spark
The Pokemon tree of life
From complex ecosystems to ancient folklore, the Pokemon universe is a mirror of our own. To celebrate three decades of catching ’em all, explore the parallels between fact and fiction in this tree of life from The Straits Times.
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