1. At her other blog, The Point, Catherine Claire writes a brief, well-written and potent post on the scandal of the 500% growth in US prison population during a time when the overall population only grew 40%.

2. Yale Law professor Stephen Carter reviews John Sommerville's new book, The Decline of the Secular University.  Read the review (here).

3. Speaking of secular universities, Pastor Mark Upton of Hope Community Church in Charlotte, NC  emailed me info about the brouhaha at Brown University rescinding the affiliation status of Reformed University Fellowship (the campus ministry of the PCA). 

If you read the FIRE report first it might tempt you to anger (as it did me).

If you read the Brown Daily Herald report by Mary-Catherine Lader you get another side to the story. Brown's Chaplain Office made some mistakes but when I read that the RUF student leader admits to insulting the administrator I am appalled.

4. New Testament scholar Ben Witherington reviews The Nativity, a movie about the birth of Jesus that recently hit theaters.

5.  Do you know the song/game for teaching kids about "head, shoulders, knees and toes"? If you come to CGO only for serious reflections please skip this-- this is pure silliness.  If you are easily amused by pure silliness, click away. 

The link is to an animated video of Bono singing and doing the motions for "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" with Pope Benedict XVI, Oprah, Tony Blair and a hilariously out-of-synch George W. Bush.

Hat Tip:  Jared of  the Thinklings.