Faith, Fundamentalism, and Conscience: or Why We Need to Think Critically About Our Religious Institutions

This morning on Public Radio I heard someone quote a line that Mark Twain spoke when speaking to a group of teachers in New York City, way back in March 1901:

Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, but your government only when it deserves it.

What a great line (and relevant today even more so than 124 years ago), but as I listened to it, I couldn’t help but think about it terms of how contemplatives relate to Christianity. Imagine this:

Mysticism is remaining devoted to spiritualit...