Religion and Faith

Friday, November 20, 2009

Cool Places | Religion and Faith

Look North: Praha Soars for Veterans Day

11/11/2008

A tiny town, remembering its huge sacrifice in World War II, honors all veterans. Praha, Texas, swells ten times in size and looks to the heavens.

Arts and Culture | Religion and Faith

More Rural Americans Call Themselves Pro-American

10/23/2008

Since vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin raised the issue of "real America," at a Greensboro, N.C., fundraiser last week, the calf muscles of many candidates have been strained -- there's been mad pedalling away from, around, and straight to the heart of what constitutes patriotism.

Palin told the crowd, "We believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America."

Leaving aside whether Greensboro is a small town, James Gimpel of the University of Maryland, supports Palin's claim. In the National Review, Gimpel points to the greater proportion of rural Americans serving in the military and also cites research from the University of Michigan. Its American National Election Study (2004) surveyed Americans directly on "love of your country" and the importance of "being an American."

Nearly 3/4ths of respondents from counties of fewer than 25,000 people said their love of country was extremely strong, "compared to only half of those in counties with more than 300,000 inhabitants....And over two-thirds of respondents from small counties reported that it is "extremely important" to be American, compared to about half of big-city folk."

Education | Religion and Faith

The Flight to Rural Private Schools

10/07/2008

Citing academic rigor and the teaching of moral standards, many rural parents are choosing private schools, even in states without voucher programs.

Arts and Culture | Education | Religion and Faith

The Backroad Librarian: Remember the Chautauqua

09/12/2008

With autumn in the air, Marcel LaFlamme looks at bygone summers, vacations of "eloquent discussion" before Jet Ski was born.

Cool Places | Religion and Faith

Group Offering Cash For Jewish Families Who Move To Dothan

09/09/2008

An organization in Dothan, Alabama, is offering up to $50,000 to Jewish families that will move to what is known as the Peanut Capital of the World. (Peanut art in Dothan above.) Stay five years — and be involved with Temple Emanu-El — and the money doesn't have to be repaid, according to the Associated Press.

Dothan is a large city (by Yonder standards) of 64,000 people in the far southeast corner of the state. Although there are now more Jews living in the South than ever, younger people are leaving places like Dothan for the region's larger cities. "A lot of the older people have died, and not many of the younger ones have stayed," said Thelma Nomberg, a member of the Dothan temple. The Dothan temple is down to 50 families

This is not a new concept. There was a fund set up to bring Jews back to New Orleans after Katrina. And there is a fund to bring Jewish families to an area near Boston. The Dothan temple was founded in 1929.

Religion and Faith

Standing Tall for the Odalen Church

08/22/2008

A historic Lutheran church in northeast North Dakota burned last summer. The people of Edinburg (pop.275) have replaced it with a memorial as tall as the steeple.

Arts and Culture | Religion and Faith

Speak Your Piece: My Own 'Big Sort'

08/05/2008

Bill Bishop's book on cultural segregation comes alive -- fiercely -- for Tom Sexton when he mixes it up in Ohio. Hold the ketchup!

Arts and Culture | Cool Places | Religion and Faith

St. John Picnic: Follow That Tuba

07/05/2008

Okay, every town has a special celebration on July 4th. But the picnic at St. John Parish in Fayette County, Texas, is an event with homecooked dinner, three polka bands and sawdust on the dance floor.