James Rowell

Dr. James L. Rowell received his PhD in religion at the University of Pittsburgh and has been a full-time teacher of world religions at Flagler College since 2006. He is the author of Making Sense of the Sacred, a book about comparative world religion, and also Gandhi and Bin Laden: Religion at the Extremes. His interests in comparative religious ethics focus on such figures as Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Reinhold Niebuhr, and Abdul Ghaffar Khan. His website can be found at https://www.meaningofreligion.com. He also has a YouTube Channel titled Meaning of Religion.

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National Security is Not an Abstraction

“National security” may sound like an abstraction, but in reality it’s anything but

Just War in One Principle: The Reality of Sin

There are many arguments in favor of Just War Theory, but none so potent as the reality of human sinfulness

Does Civilization Need Religion?

Reinhold Niebuhr asked the question “Does civilization need religion?” in 1929 and his answer is relevant as ever

The Burmese Military and the Separation of Military and State

Aung San Suu Kyi won a Nobel Peace Prize before, shockingly, declining to condemn genocide in her own nation. What happened?

India at 76 Years: What Was Gandhi’s National Vision?

What was the vision Gandhi had for a post-British India?

Tibet: The Just War that Wasn’t

China’s invasion and annexation of Tibet in 1950 has too long been a forgotten episode of history

Thomas Paine’s Enduring Wisdom

Thomas Paine was an inspiration to the founders and still has lessons for today

The Ten Commandments and Political Paradox

We must always foster a love that has a capacity for forgiveness with a vigilance to observe and enforce the law.

Sudan: The Ongoing Conflict

When the variable spirit of human justice stands against the relative constant of greed and power, sadly it is the latter that often wins

Ambiguity and Violence:  A Christian Perspective

There is a fundamental ambiguity in the ability of humans to both good and evil