Latest news with #Protestant
Boston Globe
12 hours ago
- General
- Boston Globe
From numbers to names in a forgotten graveyard
This cemetery covers about two-thirds of an acre, with a shrine at the rear holding rosary beads, painted rocks, pieces of paper with unsigned and sorrowful messages, shells, and dollar bills. The grass is diligently mowed between rows of stone markers without names. It was created in 1947, with numbers signifying the order of burials until they ended in 1979, and letters dividing right and left sides: P for Protestant, C for Catholic. Jewish and Muslim patients are also buried here. Back in 2018, over the course of several years, a group of students from Gann Academy, a nearby Jewish high school, Advertisement Ten years after burials ended, I trained in one of the psychiatry units at Metropolitan State Hospital. We sat on the floor next to catatonic patients, tried to speak their language we could not understand, and prescribed medications with many clear bad effects and fewer clear good effects. I had no idea a cemetery existed just down the hill, out of sight. No one buried here would have chosen these biographies for themselves. The 8-year-old boy who fell from his wheelchair and fractured his skull. The 66-year-old who died of terminal burns from a faulty shower. The man who lived in Fernald for 47 unimaginable years before tuberculosis killed him. The resident who worked as a laundress in the hospital for 31 years. Each life story is conveyed with imperative respect. 'As you read,' cautions the website, 'please do so with the same spirit of kindness and communal reckoning that brought us to this work.' The project they created has a holy feel, especially in these times. After the dog and I would finish our pentagon, she liked to bound back across the bridge again. The bridge always made her feel young and, of course, there were biscuits waiting in the car. She knew she was adored. Every aging, fragile need of hers was tenderly met. Advertisement She did not know there was any other way. Elissa Ely is a psychiatrist.
Spectator
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Spectator
Can Scotland learn to love Farage?
There's not much that's green in Larkhall, Scotland. So staunchly Protestant unionist is the ex-mining town in South Lanarkshire that it has scrubbed itself of anything associated with Irish Catholicism. The local Subway franchise has grey panelling on its front, and local pharmacies have opted for blue signage. The 15,000-strong area has one football team: Rangers FC. Go deeper into Larkhall's suburbia and you'll find Union Jacks on flagpoles interspersed with those bearing the Red Hand of Ulster. Kerbstones have been painted in the colours of the British flag while rumours abound of youths trying to set fire to the grass. 'In our schools, the wains aren't taught that traffic lights are red, amber and green,' one resident chuckled proudly. 'It's red, white and blue.' He was not joking. Some unsuspecting emerald lights were subjected to £17,000 worth of damage many years ago, and they remain boxed off by wire mesh to this day. It is in this town, as well as in neighbouring Stonehouse and Hamilton, that voters will head to the polls on Thursday 5 June to choose their representative in the Scottish Parliament, following the passing of SNP incumbent Christina McKelvie in March.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Civil rights groups to sue Texas over Ten Commandments bill
AUSTIN (KXAN) — The ACLU and other civil rights groups announced plans Thursday to challenge a newly passed Texas bill requiring public schools display a copy of the Ten Commandments in each classroom, according to press releases. That bill, Senate Bill 10, passed in the Texas House of Representatives on May 25 with an amendment, as KXAN previously reported. The Senate concurred with the House's changes on May 28. The final bill sent to Governor Greg Abbott clarified that Texas, not its school boards, will be responsible for any legal challenges. Abbott has yet to sign the bill into law, but he said that he would sign it in a May 1 social media post. The ACLU will be joined in its challenge by Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom From Religion Foundation. SB 10 author Sen. Phil King, R-Weatherford, argued in his statement of intent that the law could survive a legal challenge under the US Supreme Court's (SCOTUS) 2022 ruling in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District. Read more: What the Supreme Court's football coach ruling means for schools and prayer 'For 200 years, the Ten Commandments were displayed in public buildings and classrooms across America,' wrote King in his bill analysis. 'The Court has … provided a test that considers whether a governmental display of religious content comports with America's history and tradition. Now that the legal landscape has changed, it is time for Texas to pass SB 10 and restore the history and tradition of the Ten Commandments in our state and our nation.' ACLU Staff Attorney Chloe Kempf said that SCOTUS's ruling in Stone v. Graham, which struck down a similar Kentucky law, still applies. 'The Supreme Court has never overruled it. And in fact, in more recent years, including in the Kennedy case, the Supreme Court has affirmed that there is a special constitutional concern when we are indoctrinating students in school with religious messages,' she said. 'The Kennedy case … really has no relationship to a bill that requires a religious text to be posted in schools.' A similar law in Louisiana was to take effect in 2025, but was blocked by a US District Court ruling. It is currently before a US Fifth Circuit Appeals Court. That law did not require school districts to fund the posters with taxpayer money. SB 10 allows such an expense but doesn't require it. 'The result in either case is the same — you have children being religiously coerced in schools, and you have the government favoring a very specific religious translation above all others. So I would say the outcome is unconstitutional in either way,' Kempf said. SB 10 requires schools use specific text for their Ten Commandments posters, which Kempf identified as an additional problem with it. 'It's a Protestant translation … we heard from a lot of concerned Texas families that even in their religious traditions … that do recognize the 10 Commandments, their versions are meaningfully different than the version that the Texas Legislature chose here,' she said. Earlier in the legislative session, 166 faith leaders in Texas signed a letter of opposition against SB 10. 'The responsibility for religious education belongs to families, houses of worship, and other religious institutions — not the government,' the letter reads. 'The government oversteps its authority when it dictates an official state-approved version of any religious text.' In fact, the biblical books of Exodus and Deuteronomy contain a total of three different versions of the Ten Commandments. These passages also vary by religion and translation: The King James Version (KJV) of Exodus 20:13 reads, 'thou shall not kill,' while the New International Version of the same verse reads 'you shall not murder.' SB 10's version is also found on a monument outside the Texas State Capitol. A legal challenge over that monument went before the US Supreme Court in 2005, with SCOTUS ruling in Texas' favor, allowing the monument to remain as it constituted a passive display. 'The placement of the Ten Commandments monument on the Texas State Capitol grounds is a far more passive use of those texts than was the case in Stone, where the text confronted elementary school students every day,' wrote former Justice William Rehnquist in the court's opinion. The monument's and SB 10's take on the Ten Commandments appear to be cut-down from the King James Version of the Christian Bible, removing some text and changing 'thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife … nor his ox, nor his ass,…' to 'thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife … nor his cattle, … .' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The National
2 days ago
- General
- The National
Is Larkhall all that 'staunch'? Local historians say maybe not
With its caged-in green traffic lights and the world's only black Subway sandwich shop, Larkhall has long-held a reputation for being deeply anti-Catholic and pro-Unionist — local historians, however, want to set the record straight. Members of Larkhall Heritage Group spoke to The National about the town's history, its community spirit, and why they believe Larkhall's sectarian reputation may be unfair. READ MORE:£150m renewable energy site proposed for former coal terminal The history of Larkhall Helen Moir, head chairperson of the group and local historian, gave a brief overview of the town's history: 'Larkhall as we know it now really didn't come into being until the 18th century, around 1740, but when they were digging up the foundations to build the Asda they found evidence of habitation that went back 8000 years. 'What really made this town grow was the fact that Larkhall sits in the main Glasgow to Carlisle coach road.' Moir explained that Larkhall was initially a domestic weaving town, where families would work with looms in one room of a cottage and live in the other, but the discovery of a coal seam — like many towns in South Lanarkshire — was what really put it on the map, leading to an influx of new residents and the creation of both a cooperative and the Larkhall Victualling Society. Larkhall's victualling society, pictured above, was set up to provide essential goods and services at affordable prices for community members (Image: Larkhall Heritage Group) It was described by Moir as a place that has always been forward thinking, being an early adopter of a cooperative movement and having tram and train links by the early 20th century, but acknowledged the sectarian reputation it holds. 'It's always been a forward thinking wee village, and I know we get a reputation for sectarianism but that's not totally true — this group has studied Larkhall inside and out. 'There was a huge mix of Catholic and Protestant Irish people who came to the west of Scotland and settled in Larkhall, and local records show absolutely no evidence of sectarian violence.' Whilst still a predominantly 'Rangers' area, and being home to a historic Orange Lodge, Moir said that interest in Orange Walks had died down in recent years and stressed there is a thriving Catholic congregation in the area — as well as setting the record straight on the infamous red-white-and-blue railings. 'They were painted that colour for Queen Elizabeth's father's coronation and they just remained that colour — it wasn't a deliberate act," she explained, referencing how the fence was green prior to the coronation. She added: 'I think this all needs to be kind of put to bed now.' Shifting the focus Instead of Larkhall being known for its sectarian roots, Moir wants people to focus on the wealth of history the area has, the revival of train services following the Beeching cuts, its tight-knit and pro-active community, and the fact it still has a thriving high street amongst other things. READ MORE:Drivers to face permanent 20mph limits across Highlands 'We should talk about the fact there's been habitation here for thousands of years, talk about how Larkhall had advanced with trains, trams and all of its shops; it has always been a village that's moved on', she said. 'The aim of this group is to archive as much local history as possible and to present it and save it for generations to come, rather than talk about Rangers and Celtic and Orange Parades and all of that stuff. 'Since the trains were brought back, the town has expanded like many others. It brought investments, new houses and with that more folk. Anything that brings more diversity, more community spirit — that can only be a good thing, no matter the faith background.'
Canada Standard
3 days ago
- Sport
- Canada Standard
Hockey night in Belfast: How Canada's sport could be bridging longtime sectarian divides
In its simplest form, the protracted tensions in Northern Ireland have at their foundation two separate sectarian identities deeply divided over how, and by whom, they are governed - Protestant/Unionist populations wishing to maintain British rule and Catholic/Nationalists desiring a united Ireland. The 1998 Good Friday Peace Agreement brought an end to armed hostilities that devastated cities and towns through years of urban guerilla conflict. Yet divisions remain sewn into the everyday lives and patterns of the Northern Irish people - 90 per cent of students attend segregated schools and there are few friendships spanning the sectarian divide. One setting sits identifiably apart from these entrenched divisions: the ice hockey arena. Now in their 25th season, the Belfast Giants, Ireland's only professional hockey team, impressively draws an average of 6,480 spectators to their games. They've also built a large and enthusiastic fan base known as the "Teal Army." As a spectator sport with limited opportunity to play the game competitively and no significant history on either side of the conflict, the hockey arena has emerged as something of a neutral ground where fans from different backgrounds come together side-by-side. The arena is a place where symbols of division, so common across Northern Ireland via flags, murals and graffiti, are not allowed. The lack of a historical association with one side of the conflict, the fact that the sport is played predominantly by men from outside Northern Ireland - mostly from North America and Scandinavia - and a name and logo rooted in the shared regional lore of mythical giant Finn McCool has allowed the team to forge its own path post-peace agreement. In 2015, after years of planning, the Belfast Giants hosted the inaugural Friendship Four hockey tournament. Held over the American Thanksgiving weekend, the tournament has since become an annual event that sees four Division I hockey teams from American universities come to Belfast for a two-day experience that includes intercultural exchange, educational visits to local schools and a hockey tournament. Since the tournament began, it has hosted teams from the New England and Boston areas as a means of fostering stronger ties between the sister cities of Belfast and Boston. In 2024, the Friendship Four tournament notably included a school with a long association with Ireland, the University of Notre Dame. As a prominent American Catholic university with a team name - the Fighting Irish - that is directly connected to the island's divisive history, the team's inclusion in the Friendship Four had the potential to tarnish the neutrality of the event. As a researcher who has engaged significantly with supporters of the Belfast Giants, and as an alumnus of the University of Notre Dame, this tournament drew me to Belfast. Before the 2024 tournament in November, the Notre Dame Hockey account posted guidelines on X for their supporters in Belfast, including an image of what to wear, and what not to wear, around the city. It noted: "Just a reminder to avoid our Irish symbolism, that may be deemed offensive to some, while out around town." The post was deleted a few hours later, and an apology was issued acknowledging the tournament was meant to build bridges, not stoke division. Nonetheless, the original post drew significant attention and criticism. Belfast media and British news outlets picked up the story about the Notre Dame post. Many of the comments on social media about the story were situated in ethno-sectarian views or pointed fingers of blame. The outrage that greeted the Notre Dame X post demonstrates the tension and complexity of identity and symbols in Northern Ireland. But it thankfully wasn't replicated in the Belfast hockey arena because the groundwork of social capital among hockey fans in the city has been built over the last 25 years. On Nov. 29, 2024, the Notre Dame team took to the ice to play against Harvard without any extra fanfare. The afternoon game was filled with school groups carrying homemade signs and cheering for the teams whose players had visited their schools earlier in the week with overt hopes of seeing themselves on the jumbotrons. The game could have been in Saskatoon given the lack of any sectarian tensions. In an age of rising polarization and lack of human connection, the hockey arena in Belfast is worthy of attention. Hallmarks of post-conflict reconstruction include the development of a shared understanding of the truth about past events and directly engaging with contested acts and issues. Neither effort has been particularly well-executed in Northern Ireland. Nonetheless, as people wait for a more fulsome peace in the region, they have managed to live peacefully side by side in places like the Belfast hockey arena. As peace and conflict research continues its attempts to understand how those in conflict-affected communities navigate their everyday lives, the importance of non-traditional, non-partisan activities that can bridge divides should not be overlooked.
