Saturday, May 18, 2013
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Religion and Faith

Religion and Faith
Thankfully, One Size Doesn't Fit All the Faithful
11/26/2008
Churches in the towns near Oregon's Mt. Hood are diverse, in scale and in many other ways, too. David Nelson profiles two very different congregations in the rural region east of Portland.
Cool Places | Religion and Faith
Look North: Praha Soars for Veterans Day
11/11/2008
praha flag thumbA 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
elks hall upstate new york
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
egg hunt thumbCiting 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
scientistthumbWith 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
odalen burning side view thumbA 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

hulk thumbBill 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.

Environment | People to Know | Religion and Faith
Backyard Burial ~ What a Way to Go
05/13/2008

laurel dawn smiththumbA Virginia family picks up the shovel and handles the arrangements. R.I.P., just up the hill from the house.

 

Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural
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