The 12th Carnival of the Liberals takes the stage - or - a few words from the reality-based community

The 12^th Carnival of the Liberals is up at Daylight Atheism where a host of bloggers chime in on the various aspects of being a liberal. In the process of introducing the posts, our host writes a great little essay on what it means to be a liberal.

Among other things, he notes (and I most heartily concur) that "being a liberal means belonging to the reality-based community." He also explains that "being a liberal means supporting the right to privacy," and very kindly links to my post "Polite debate, cultural controversy, or civil war: What's the next step in the sex wars?" Many thanks for the link and the recommendation!

Our host, who writes as Ebonmuse, says his blog Daylight Atheism, is primarily aimed at bringing “to light the hate-based agenda of the religious right, the better to organize opposition to their noxious policies.” Again, a round of cheers.

But on the following comments, I have to respectfully disagree and offer a bemused chuckle. Ebonmuse writes (the emphasis is mine):

I'd like to make one remark in closing. Recognizing that the last few Carnivals of the Liberals have been hosted by atheists, and not wanting religious progressives and liberals to feel underrepresented, I put out a call for them to submit posts for this edition. However, none did. Perhaps this is because religious liberals are less engaged on the Internet or because they are unaware of the Carnival of the Liberals specifically, but I can't help wondering if this is another manifestation of whatever underlying cause has kept them so underrepresented in politics more generally. Although I am an atheist, I bear no ill will toward religious progressives; if anything, I wish they would speak out more often. With that in mind, I issue a challenge to the liberal religious people whom I know are out there: If you don't want your tradition to be defined by the evil of the religious right, then speak up! Show the world that you are out there and that the likes of James Dobson and George W. Bush do not represent you.

While I’m not exactly a Christian, at least not in any traditional sense, I am a member of a church (in Kansas of all places), and I do consider myself to be deeply spiritual if not down-right religious. Committed to science, I am also a firm believer in mysticism and things you can’t always see and measure. And yes, I guess that puts me firmly in the camp of the elusive religious liberal.

To understand my perspective, take a look at The Lesbian and The Fundamentalists.

I am a lesbian, feminist, single mother whose spirituality is closer to New Age and Buddhism than Christianity. This spring I battled the constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and civil unions in Kansas. Imagine my surprise when I realized how much I have in common with fundamentalists.

To find some more very politically active religious progressives online go to Talk To Action, which includes a mixture of folks like Mainstream Baptist and very secular bloggers. Also check out the Network of Spiritual Progressives.