Summary: It has been called a gateway to eternal salvation and an incitement to holy war. It has unified peoples yet divided nations. Religion: would society be better off without it? That is the question in this Oxford Union-style debate as panelists make their case. Speakers for the motion underscore that rampant interfaith and intrafaith violence vastly outweighs any social benefits of religion and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
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Summary: In this program, philosopher and theologian Conor Cunningham argues that only extremist viewpoints-Creationism and ultra-Darwinism-make evolution and religion mutually exclusive. Experts from across the gamut of opinions frame the debate and trace its origins, including Father Gregory Tatum of the Ecole Biblique; University of Oxford historian Pietro Corsi; Darwin scholar Nick Spencer, author...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
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Summary: A self-proclaimed "freelance monotheist," Karen Armstrong is on a mission to bring compassion, the heart of religion, as she sees it, back into modern life. In this edition of the Journal, Bill Moyers sits down with Armstrong for a nuanced discussion of her Charter for Compassion initiative, a global call for all people-religious and non-religious alike-to apply the Golden Rule in their...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
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Summary: The capacity for awe in the face of the transcendent: that is how Paul Woodruff, one of America's foremost interpreters of Plato and other venerable thinkers of ancient Greece, defines reverence. In this program, Bill Moyers and the author of Reverence: Renewing a Forgotten Virtue examine this crucial yet frequently misunderstood and misapplied concept and its implications for the world today....
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
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Summary: Traditional monotheistic religions are characterized by a hierarchical model in which a paternalistic deity, assisted by ascended saints and angelic beings, oversees the unfolding drama of life on Earth. This program questions the suitability of that model to the challenges of the 21st century as it presents the idea that humankind should step forward to accept greater responsibility for its...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
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Summary: Is the new genetics running ahead of society's ability to supervise it, or does genetic science bring huge benefits that humanity should willingly embrace? In this thought-provoking program, Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan Williams asserts the need for religious belief in the modern world to Sir John Sulston, Nobel Prize winner and the guiding spirit behind the Human Genome Project, and to...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
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Summary: On August 9, 2001, President George W. Bush announced his support for federal funding of limited embryonic stem cell research. This NewsHour program offers a revealing snapshot of that historic intersection between science and public policy. It features a panel of ethicists and researchers expressing their views on the President's decisions-including University of Chicago professor Leon Kass,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
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Summary: As controversy swirls around the issue of same-sex marriage, gay and lesbian couples in North America and abroad are speaking out for the right to marry. Filmed in British Columbia after the legalization of same-sex unions, this program introduces the victorious litigants, who share their views on marriage, religious and political opposition, child adoption, and, most of all, love. Interviews...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
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Summary: The separation of church and state represents one of the most fundamental principles of American democracy. While some contend that the United States needs to return to its roots as a "Christian nation," others point out that the Founding Fathers crafted a system specifically designed to guard against any form of state-sanctioned religion. After reviewing the substance of the debates that took...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
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Summary: Martin Luther's most effective strike against the Church may have been his decision to marry. This program shows how Luther's radical choice and the Protestant movements of the 16th and 17th centuries transformed Western attitudes toward sex, love, marriage, gender roles, and family life. Viewers will learn about the contributions of several historical figures, including Thomas Cranmer's...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
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Summary: In the years since the U.S. Supreme Court's legalization of abortion, the political scene has changed dramatically enough to threaten this landmark decision. On the 30th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, this ABC News program surveys the current landscape of opinion and political alignment, examining the shift of momentum concerning abortion rights. Correspondent Dave Marash reports from Minnesota,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
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Summary: America's history has been repeatedly marked by debate over how the Bible applies or does not apply to social and scientific issues. Even strictly within the realm of religion, conservatives and liberals are divided about the authority and meaning of the Bible. This program examines Bible-related points of polarization and explains how different readings can coexist and even enrich each other....
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
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Summary: Many who followed the Terri Schiavo case struggled to make sense of the flurry of opinions it generated. This NewsHour program, recorded during the last days of Terri Shiavo's life, presents two opposing yet thoroughly reasoned perspectives on the issues. Beth Israel Medical Center neurologist Dr. Russell Portenov explains the medical justification for removing the feeding tube, while Dr....
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
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Summary: In the 21st-century landscape of shopping malls and skyscrapers, capitalism appears irreligious-but beneath its secular veneer lie theological principles born in the 1500s. This program examines the rise of the Protestant work ethic and the religious foundations of Western industry; it also reveals a Protestant consciousness at the heart of social activism and the opposition to extreme...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009