I must admit that I was somewhat sceptical as I approached this week’s “White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism” (CVE). I was concerned that it might end up being nothing more than a “box-checking” exercise.

US President Barack Obama’s remarks, last week, at the annual National Prayer Breakfast were theologically sound and politically smart. In spite of this, his comments set off a storm of criticism from conservative critics who took him to task for both his theology and his

A few weeks ago, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal delivered a speech to the Henry Jackson Society in London, focusing on the dangers “radical Islam” poses to the world’s “freedom-loving people”. Far from a serious discussion, the speech amounted to l

The election season has just begun and for those who have a consuming passion for presidential politics, the 2016 cycle promises to be a delight. A few months ago, pundits were writing about the likelihood of a Hillary Clinton/Jeb Bush contest, but that speculation was clearly p

When I was growing up, I remember a saying that was used to describe the behaviour of persons who were so cocky that they did really dumb things: “He’s so smart, he’s stupid.” I thought of this expression when I heard the speaker of the House of Represent

The perpetrators of the horror at Charlie Hebdo were not devout Muslims outraged by insults directed at their faith.

It should be clear after four bloody years in Syria that if we are to move forward, it is necessary to shed illusions and fantasies that have shaped too much of the discussion about the conflict. From the beginning, it was inevitable that this conflict, however it began, would m

The closing weeks of 2014 spelled disaster for US leadership and the rule of law. During the last two weeks of December, the US countered three different efforts designed to affirm Palestinian rights. It was unfortunate since in doing so, the US undercut its stated commitment t

Bethlehem has always loomed large in our imagination.