There are many proposed origins for the exclamation of surprise, holy Toledo! But the most likely one involves not the city in Ohio, but instead Toledo, Spain, which has been a major religious center for centuries in the traditions of both Islam and...
When politicians, authority figures, or bureaucrats ignore those who need help, they’re said to be sitting high and looking low. This idiom, almost exclusive to the African-American community, goes back to 1970s. It’s also used in a...
steeplejacking n.— «Let me now explain “steeplejacking.” This is what happens when mainstream denominational churches lose their congregational members to a nearby evangelical church. In very simple terms this is where members are...
A caller wonders why some versions of the Lord’s Prayer include the phrase “forgive us our trespasses,” while others substitute the word “debt.”
none n.— «Commonly referred to as the “nones” or “unchurched,” those who don’t identify with a religion went from making up 8.2 percent of the population in 1990 to 15 percent in 2008, according to the American Religious Identification...
buzzard Baptist n.— «I am what some ministers call a Buzzard Baptist. I never go to any regular service at the church, but I attend all the funerals.» —“Church members coin new definitions of their religion” by Jim...
