c. 2005 Religion News Service
Observant Jews Say Daylight Savings Extension Hurts Morning Prayer
(RNS) Observant Jews are expressing concerns over legislation extending daylight savings time by two months, saying that the late sunrises would impact their ability to pray in the morning and still reach work by 9 a.m.
The provision, which set daylight savings time between March and November instead of April and October, was approved Tuesday (July 19) by a joint House-Senate conference committee. The committee met to finalize the energy legislation package Congress will present to the president by Aug. 1.
The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ) had written a letter to the members of the committee, explaining that an extension of daylight savings time would place a hardship on observant Jews.
According to Jewish law, certain prayers, including the prayer recited each day by people in mourning, cannot be recited without a minyan, or a quorum of 10 members, present. Further, those prayers, which last between 30 and 40 minutes, cannot be recited before sunrise.
Under the daylight savings extension, sunrise in the month of November would come between 8:30 and 8:45 in most locations, said Mark Waldman, director of public policy for the USCJ.
Waldman said that he did not believe the legislation intentionally levied this hardship, but that nonetheless it was something he wished they had considered.
“These unintended consequences in terms of the religious hardship on religious Jews saying their morning prayers do not make this provision worth it,” he said.
Supporters of the provision say that extending daylight savings time would save 100,000 barrels of oil each day by extending daylight hours into the afternoon and requiring businesses to use less energy to stay open.
_ Holly Lebowitz Rossi
Pope to Visit German Synagogue as Part of World Youth Day
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Vatican officials have announced Pope Benedict XVI’s plans for World Youth Day, in Germany, and it includes a boat trip down the Rhine River, a visit to a synagogue and a Sunday Mass expected to draw a massive crowd.
The Vatican released the pope’s schedule on Wednesday (July 20), announcing that Benedict will leave Rome on the morning of Aug. 18, and will return late on Aug. 21.
The trip will be the German pontiff’s first to his native country since being elected as the spiritual leader of the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics, following the death of John Paul II in April.
The most noteworthy entry on the agenda is the Aug. 19 visit to the synagogue, in Cologne. It will be only the second time in the church’s history that a pope visits a Jewish place of worship. The first took place in 1986, when John Paul visited a synagogue in Rome.
On Benedict’s first day in Germany, he will travel along the Rhine river from Cologne to an audience with young people at the Rheinwiesen wharf outside the city and then back again for a tour of the famous Cologne Cathedral, the largest Catholic Church in Germany. On the day following the synagogue visit, Benedict will receive several Germany political leaders, including Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.
The pope also will meet informally with local Muslim leaders.
On Aug. 21, a Sunday, the pontiff will celebrate an outdoor Mass and pray the Angelus. He then will meet with leaders of the 27-million-member German Church before heading back to Rome on an afternoon flight.
The World Youth Day event was created and embraced by John Paul, who continually emphasized the importance of young people to the church. Experts said Benedict’s choice to attend the event for an extended period and to use the visit to reach out to other faiths is reminiscent of John Paul’s vision of the church.
“Many of the things Benedict is scheduled to do (in Germany) are the exact things one can imagine John Paul doing,” the Rev. Alistair Sear, a church historian, said in an interview.
_ Eric J. Lyman
Human Rights Group Calls Pakistan Blasphemy Laws `State-Sponsored Terror’
WASHINGTON (RNS) Freedom House’s Washington-based Center for Religious Freedom is calling on the U.S. government to pressure Pakistan into repealing its blasphemy laws, which the groups calls “state-sponsored terror.”
The center pointed to the case of Yousaf Masih, 60, a Pakistani Christian who was arrested on June 28 for allegedly desecrating the Quran, a charge that carries a mandatory life sentence because it’s considered blasphemy.
Masih’s Muslim neighbors originally filed the complaint against him. Under Pakistani law, Masih’s testimony would be given half the weight of that of his neighbors because he is not a Muslim.
Masih’s life could be in jeopardy, according to the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance, a human rights group based in Pakistan. The APMA has reported that local Islamic organizations have held protests demanding that Masih be executed.
“The U.S. government considers Pakistan an ally in the war on terror, but these blasphemy laws are a form of state-sponsored terror against its own people,” said Center for Religious Freedom Director Nina Shea in a July 13 statement. “The U.S. should immediately reconsider its plans to sell F-16s to Pakistan until these laws are repealed.”
Approximately 80 Christians are imprisoned under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, and 650 people have been arrested under the laws since 1988, according to the Vatican’s Zenit news service.
“Pakistan’s blasphemy laws violate due process and have been persistently used to persecute religious minorities … and to press personal grievances,” Shea said. “These discriminatory laws should be abolished.”
_ Hugh S. Moore
Religious Minorities in Iraq Worried Constitution Won’t Protect Them
(RNS) With an Aug. 15 deadline looming for completion of a permanent constitution in Iraq, the country’s religious minorities are increasingly fearful that it will create an Islamic government that doesn’t protect their rights.
In the draft constitution, the role of Islam in the state has changed from “a form of legislation” to “a main form of legislation,” said Nina Shea of the Center for Religious Freedom. In addition, a proposal has been made to impose Shariah law, the strict and conservative Islamic law, above women’s rights and the bill of rights, Shea said.
On Tuesday (July 19) in Baghdad, a group of women representing multiple religions protested the inclusion of the law in the constitution under the sponsorship of the Christian political party, the Assyrian Democratic Movement.
“I’m fighting for the name of Christianity to be remembered in the constitution with the same rights of other religions,” said Yonadam Kanna, the only representative of the Christian party in the 275-seat National Assembly and the leader of the Assyrian Democratic Movement.
Kanna made the comment in a telephone interview from Iraq.
Including the conservative Sunni Muslims in the constitution _ which many National Assembly officials had hoped would provide balanced representation _ has had its drawbacks, assembly officials have said. The Sunnis have not approved the proposed system of federalism or dual citizenship for Iraq’s exiled citizens and maintain the Kurdish language is unofficial, Kanna said.
Earlier in the week, the faith-based group World Compassion said it was launching a petition drive to urge a guarantee of religious freedom be included in the Iraqi constitution.
“We’re not asking that a specific religion be practiced in Iraq,” said World Compassion President Terry Law. “We just want Iraqis to have the freedom to choose for themselves.”
The petition, available at http://www.worldcompassion.tv, will be sent to top Iraqi officials.
In a meeting last week in Washington, three uncommon allies representing Iraq’s religious minorities urged the U.S. government to recognize their unequal treatment, particularly in the ethnically and religiously diverse north where Kurdish Muslims have been affirmed the ruling majority.
The panel was a union of Iraqi religions typically at odds: the Chaldo-Assyrian Christians, which include Catholics and members of the Orthodox Church of the East; Mandaeans, who claim John the Baptist as their prophet; and Turkmen Muslims.
_ Ashtar Analeed Marcus
Despite Opposition From Faith Groups, Gay Marriage Now Legal in Canada
OTTAWA (RNS) Canada has become only the fourth country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage.
Bill C-38 received royal assent and became the law of the land late Wednesday (July 20). Just the evening before, Canada’s Liberal-dominated Senate, the upper chamber of Parliament, approved the bill by a vote of 47-21.
The lower house of Parliament had already passed the legislation late last month despite fierce opposition from conservative politicians and some faith groups, including the Catholic Church, who portrayed it as an attack on organized religion.
Opponents fear churches and religious officials will be sued for refusing to carry out gay marriages or for preaching against it from pulpits.
Ottawa has assured faith groups that religious officials would not be forced to marry same-sex couples, and that religious teachings will be protected by laws guaranteeing free speech.
The federal government has also stressed that its bill addresses civil marriage only in public institutions like courthouses and city halls. It says religious institutions _ churches, mosques, synagogues and temples _ and individuals can continue defining marriage as they see fit.
Nevertheless, some faith groups lashed out after the bill cleared its final hurdle.
“The fundamental and universal reality of marriage remains the exclusive union of a man and a woman for life,” said a statement from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The new law “denatures the moral values and principles,” the bishops said. “Catholics are to continue to oppose it,” and must ensure that freedom to oppose it is upheld.
The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada “cannot by reason of faith, conscience, practice and teaching accept this new definition of marriage and we will continue to promote and uphold marriage as the exclusive union of one man and one woman,” stated president Bruce Clemenger.
Belgium and the Netherlands have allowed gays and lesbians to get married for years. The Spanish Cortes (parliament) approved same-sex marriage on June 30.
_ Ron Csillag
Pastors Issue Open Letter Urging Attention to Black Family `Crisis’
WASHINGTON (RNS) A group of 25 pastors has issued an open letter to black church leaders, calling on them to no longer be silent about the state of African-American families.
“There is a crisis of unprecedented magnitude in the black community, one that goes to the very heart of its survival,” reads the Wednesday (July 20) letter spearheaded by the Rev. Eugene Rivers, president of the Seymour Institute for Advanced Christian Studies in Boston.
“The black family is failing.”
Updating 1965 research on black families by the late U.S. Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the letter cites numerous reasons for declining black families.
“At the heart of the breakdown of the family has been the failure of black marriages,” it states.
Other causes include a lack of sexual fidelity among African-Americans and a disproportionately high rate of incarceration for black males.
Although the leaders supporting the letter credit the black church for its role in the civil rights movement, they said the church needs to take a stand in helping transform the current challenges in the black community.
“The church has been largely silent on the decline of the black family, in part because a number of church leaders have themselves not led an exemplary life in this regard,” the letter said. “Even in the recent past, leading black clergymen have been caught in nationally publicized sexual scandals.”
The four-page letter, announced at a National Press Club news conference, calls on church leaders to reform their own conduct while teaching others to “live up to the biblical standards of sexual purity” by offering premarital counseling for engaged couples and other resources to help preserve marriages.
“Every black Christian man and woman must take seriously the charge to live in a sexually responsible manner, honoring the sacred nature of sexual intimacy,” the letter states. “By their fidelity to each other, parents must provide an environment of trust and emotional security in which to raise their children and teach them by example and precept to respect and honor their bodies.”
The Boston-based institute has published a 55-page volume, expanding on the premise of the open letter, called “God’s Gift: A Christian Vision of Marriage and the Black Family.”
_ Adelle M. Banks
Senate Democrats Launch `Word to the Faithful’ Web Site
WASHINGTON (RNS) Concerned that Democrats are seen as a party that is hostile or ambivalent toward religion, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid on Tuesday (July 19) unveiled a new Web site with “A Word to the Faithful.”
The Web site _ at http://democrats.senate.gov/faith.html _ features photos of Reid meeting with mainline Protestant and Catholic leaders, as well as statements on the National Day of Prayer and Holocaust Memorial Day, among others.
“It’s part of how we’re reaching out differently, just to make sure people of faith know how much they have in common with Democrats in Congress and with Democratic values,” said Reid spokeswoman Tessa Hafen.
The bare-bones site promotes “faith symposiums” hosted by Reid in Las Vegas and Sen. Blanche Lincoln in Little Rock, Ark. It also has links to speeches by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., to Seventh-day Adventists and others.
“My discussions have only reinforced the belief that the Democratic Party and people of all faiths share many values and goals, and I intend to continue my outreach in the months ahead,” said Reid, a Mormon, in a statement.
Last fall, the Democratic National Committee launched a Web site that tried to link religious values with presidential nominee John Kerry; that site was later folded into the main DNC Web page. Kerry’s campaign also had a Web site geared toward religious voters.
_ Kevin Eckstrom
U.S. Islamic Group Launches Campaign to Combat Home-Grown Terrorism
(RNS) An Islamic organization has launched a national campaign that proposes an expansion of Muslim youth in scouting as one way to combat terrorist ideology, violence and extremism within the American Muslim community.
The Washington-based Muslim American Society (MAS) announced its “Faith Over Fear and Justice for All” campaign at a Monday (July 25) news conference, proposing seven “action items” that the American Muslim community should implement.
Included in the list is an increase in the number of Boy and Girl Scout troops and youth centers available to Muslim youth “to inculcate in our youth the proper understanding of Islam, help them fulfill all their potential, and keep them out of range of extremism and moral vices.”
Also proposed was a program in which the MAS would work with local imams, or Muslim religious leaders, to “leave no chance for terrorists and their views to creep into our community.”
In addition, the group proposed an increased outreach effort to prevent terrorist ideology from being the most common view of Islam. It also suggested a focus on alleviating through diplomatic means social injustices that are often cited by terrorists as justifications for their acts. The group also urges American Muslims to participate in national conversations about war, peace, human rights and social justice.
The MAS further pledged to facilitate a national summit on combating terrorism, which the group said would be a precursor to an international conference on global terrorism.
The MAS launched the initiative in the wake of the two terrorist bombing attacks in London this month.
_ Holly Lebowitz Rossi
New Network of Religious Progressives Launched at Conference
BERKELEY, Calif. (RNS) More than 1,200 spiritual progressives from around the country gathered July 20-23 at a conference to begin building an organization for the spiritual and religious left.
Dubbed the Network of Spiritual Progressives (NSP), the new organization seeks to challenge not only religious conservatives, but America’s materialistic culture and the anti-religious bias among secular liberals, conference architect Rabbi Michael Lerner said.
“The monologue of the religious right is finally over,” said the Rev. Jim Wallis of Sojourners, a progressive organization of Christians based in Washington. “(There’s been) one loud voice on faith politics, and this conference shows that’s changing dramatically.”
The Spiritual Activism Conference served to educate, energize and connect spiritual progressives, and to start crafting NSP’s platform on political and social issues.
Participants met in work groups and discussed subjects from a spiritually progressive viewpoint. Work groups included “Values-Oriented Economy,” “Education for Spiritual Health” and “Environmental Policy: Sacred Stewardship of the Earth.”
The groups presented their findings at the conference’s final convocation. These findings constitute the beginnings of the organization’s platform.
In addition to the eight planned work groups, participants created four more groups themselves, partly in response to perceived shortcomings with the conference.
For example, concerns over the conference’s relative lack of female speakers spurred the formation of the “Feminism and Spirituality” work group, according to a participant in the group.
The conference also featured a host of lectures and seminars.
Speakers included Wallis; Lerner; Rep. Lynne Woolsey, D-Calif.; linguist George Lakoff; Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong; and about 35 other progressive religious leaders, activists and intellectuals.
Participants chose from a slate of 35 separate seminars. Topics included the theology of Christian fundamentalists, media outreach, activism training and socially responsible investing.
Throughout the conference, attendees met in groups of 10 with others from their geographic area, with the expectation that they would continue meeting when they return home.
Many participants said the conference was a hit.
“This is the most exciting time I’ve had since Woodstock,” activist David Schultz said.
A follow-up conference is planned for Feb. 10-13 in Washington.
_ Robert Iafolla
Radio Talk Show Host Draws Ire for Calling Islam `Terror Organization’
(RNS) A national Islamic civil liberties organization and a conservative radio talk show host are squaring off over the host’s on-air reference to Islam as “a terrorist organization.”
Michael Graham made his remarks on his Monday (July 25) show, which airs on WMAL-AM in Washington, D.C.
“The problem is not extremism, the problem is Islam,” Graham said. “We are at war with a terrorist organization named Islam.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Washington-based group, called on the station to reprimand Graham for the comments.
“Such hate-filled and inflammatory remarks only serve to encourage those who would turn bigoted views into violent or discriminatory actions against ordinary American Muslims,” said Ibrahim Hooper, CAIR’s communications director, in a statement urging “people of conscience” to contact the station and demand an apology or disciplinary action.
The station’s operations director, Randall Bloomquist, said he has received more than 100 e-mails from Muslims criticizing Graham. A report posted on the station’s Web site says “Graham’s comments are justified in the context of a radio talk show, and he (Bloomquist) is standing behind Graham.”
Graham has declined to comment on the controversy outside of his on-air comments, but he posted a column on the WMAL Web site that reiterates his position.
“The reason Islam has itself become a terrorist organization is that it cannot address its own role in this violence. It cannot cast out the murderers from its members,” Graham wrote in the column.
CAIR’s Hooper said that in the absence of an apology or reprimand, his group is urging members to contact the station’s advertisers to express their concern about Graham’s program.
Hooper also said that in a conversation with Bloomquist, he was told that WMAL would not allow ethnic slurs, such as anti-Semitic epithets or the “N-word,” on programs.
“It seems the only form of bigotry that’s accepted by WMAL is anti-Muslim bigotry,” Hooper said.
_ Holly Lebowitz Rossi
Quote of the Week: Karen Clark of Glenwood, Fla.
(RNS) “We’re not trying to prevent anyone from praying. But when Jesus went into the woods to pray to his father, he didn’t bring a 4,000-pound bell.”
_ Karen Clark, president of the Glenwood Civic Association in Glenwood, Fla., complaining about loud bells that call monks to prayer at the nearby Mother of Good Shepherd Monastery. Neighbors say the bells, rung five times a day, are too loud. She was quoted by the Orlando Sentinel.
MO/PH END RNS
