c. 2006 Religion News Service
Gallup: Minority of Residents of Eight Muslim Nations Say 9-11 Justified
WASHINGTON (RNS) A Gallup poll of eight Muslim countries has found that only a small minority of their residents said the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, were justified.
Between 5 percent and 18 percent of residents polled in those countries said the attacks were justified, Dalia Mogahed, executive director of Gallup’s Muslim studies said Tuesday (May 2) at a forum that revealed some results of the Gallup Poll of the Muslim World.
The results were based on polling in Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan.
“Our poll showed that widespread religiosity did not translate into widespread support for terrorism _ in fact quite the opposite,” Mogahed said in an interview at Gallup’s Washington headquarters.
“It may actually have been acting as some kind of a moral anchor to prevent an increase in … unfavorable views of America from turning into an increase in extremist views.”
The poll found that residents of all eight countries stated that religion was “an important part” of their daily lives at rates higher than U.S. residents. For example, 98 percent of Egyptians and Saudi Arabians and 74 percent of Iranians said this was the case, compared to 68 percent of Americans.
Gallup defined “radical” Muslims as those who thought the Sept. 11 attacks were justified, and pollsters concluded that religion did not play a key role in Muslim extremism.
Researchers found that 56 percent of radicals said they attended religious services in the last seven days, compared to 59 percent of moderates. They also found that 92 percent of radicals said religion was “an important part” of their daily lives, compared to 91 percent of moderates.
Both moderates and radicals said what they resented most about the West was its “disrespect for Islam.” From more secular countries such as Turkey to more religious nations such as Saudi Arabia, respondents said the best way to improve relations is to respect Islam and “stop seeing Muslims as inferior,” Mogahed said.
She said such views help explain the sense of outrage that surrounded the recent controversy over the publishing of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
“It was really a match to an already … combustible ocean of emotion around humiliation,” she said.
About 1,000 residents were interviewed in each country, giving the survey a sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
_ Adelle M. Banks
Cardinal Lashes Out at China for Ordaining Bishops
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Benedict XVI’s top cleric in China called for a suspension of talks between the Holy See and Beijing Tuesday (May 2) after China’s state-run church moved to ordain bishops without the pope’s tacit approval.
The comments from Cardinal Joseph Zen of Hong Kong marked a dramatic shift in tone from the Roman Catholic hierarchy, which had appeared increasingly upbeat in its push to repair more than 50 years of broken diplomatic ties with China.
Zen’s criticism first appeared in an interview with the South China Morning Post, in which the cardinal declared that talks “cannot continue because people will think we are prepared to surrender.”
“We cannot budge. When you brutally place such a fait accompli, how can you call this dialogue? This totally runs against the spirit of dialogue,” Zen said.
The cardinal subsequently released a prepared statement that denounced the ordination of Ma Yinglin on Sunday as bishop of Kunming, in China’s Yunnan province, and protested plans to ordain a second bishop without Vatican approval on Wednesday.
“This action has destroyed also the atmosphere of mutual trust so necessary for a successful dialogue in view of a betterment of relation between Holy See and Beijing,” he said.
Benedict promoted Zen, an outspoken critic of the Chinese government, to the rank of cardinal in late March _ a decision that many observers believed would ruffle relations with Beijing.
Zen’s statement underscored how tense the issue of ordinations has become in Vatican-China negotiations, describing the Chinese government’s decision to overlook the pontiff as signs of “pressure, threats,” and “deceit.”
Five million Chinese Catholics currently belong to a state-controlled “Catholic” church while at least 8 million faithful are believed to belong to an underground church loyal to Pope Benedict XVI. Members of the underground church are routinely harassed, beaten and jailed by Chinese authorities.
In recent months, Zen has struck a conciliatory tone with Chinese officials, praising apparent concessions by the Chinese government to allow Benedict to tacitly participate in the appointment of bishops _ an issue frequently cited as a stumbling block to China-Vatican negotiations.
Since the death of John Paul II, Benedict has made it clear that he considers reconciliation with China’s Communist government a priority.
Several times in the past year, top Vatican officials have expressed their willingness to cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in exchange for guarantees that the government will respect the rights of Chinese Catholics.
The Vatican relocated its embassy to Taiwan after China’s officially atheist government swept to power. China, in turn, expelled the Holy See’s apostolic nuncio, or ambassador, in 1951.
_ Stacy Meichtry
Does Jesus Love Porn Stars? One Bible Says He Does
(RNS) An online ministry to the pornography industry has entered a verbal agreement to distribute 10,000 copies of the popular New Testament paraphrase “The Message” that will feature a cover declaring “Jesus Loves Porn Stars.”
The ministry, XXXchurch, approved a tentative deal with NavPress publishers to distribute the copies at three pornography conventions, said Craig Gross, one of the two pastors who started the ministry in 2002.
The Bibles will be given to attendees at Erotica LA in June, Gay Erotica NY in October, and the Adult Video News Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas next January.
The deal comes after the American Bible Society backed out of an arrangement with XXXchurch after negotiations on the cover proved unfruitful. The ABS said the cover was inappropriate, although it supported the ministry’s goals.
When the ABS decision was reported in the Los Angeles Times in early April, major publishers NavPress, Zondervan and Thomas Nelson offered to work with the ministry, said Gross. Cost and logistics proved to be major factors in choosing NavPress, he added.
Kent Wilson, NavPress executive publisher, said the company was thrilled to work with XXXchurch, “but our excitement quickly gave way to surprise when Craig mentioned that he wanted the cover of the Bible to say, `Jesus Loves Porn Stars.”’
After the initial shock, “Our minds flashed back to the words of Jesus himself, and we quickly realized that Jesus probably would have loved that phrase,” Wilson said. Peterson also agreed to the specialized publication.
The pocket-sized edition will include a brief introduction, part of which will read, “Does Jesus really love porn stars? Absolutely. Now that may go against what you thought about Jesus but it is true. You see, Jesus loves porn stars as much as he loves pastors, soccer moms, liars, thieves, and prostitutes. In his eyes, we are all the same. We’re all just people in need of a savior who can come into our world and fix our messed-up lives.”
Gross, 30, and minister Mike Foster, 35, founded the ministry to help people struggling with pornography. Since that time, they have begun an outreach to the porn industry. The pastors have attended previous conventions at which they have handed out thousands of Bibles and “Jesus Loves Porn Stars” stickers. “We’ve always run out,” Gross said.
The ministry is no stranger to controversy. An ad on MTV was pulled because it featured a dwarf and included the line, “Porn stunts your growth.” The group Little People of America was not amused and protested.
They have been criticized for their relationships with people in the industry, but Gross responds that Jesus tended to spend his time with people others considered unsavory.
_ Stan Friedman
Study Finds Canadian Clergy Burned Out, Isolated
TORONTO (RNS) A study by the University of Toronto has confirmed what many clergy have long known: Pastors are victims of stress, isolation and burn-out.
The study of Ontario clergy in six Protestant denominations found the majority feel isolated, stressed out and spiritually spent.
Compiled by the university’s Knox College, the study, entitled “Clergy Well-Being: Seeking Wholeness With Integrity,” was begun in 2003. Surveys were sent to 30 percent of Ontario’s Anglican, Baptist, Evangelical Lutheran, Pentecostal, Presbyterian and United Church clergy. More than one-quarter responded.
It found a Christian ministry “in crisis,” with 77 percent of pastors saying they felt more like a CEO than a spiritual leader.
Eighty percent said they felt guilty if they took time off, despite working 50- and 60-hour weeks. Eighteen percent said they didn’t have a close friend in their church or community.
“Many clergy could not identify a close friend in the church or the community,” said the Rev. Andrew Irvine, who heads the Center for Clergy Care and Congregational Health at the University of Toronto.
Irvine told the Presbyterian Record that competition among clergy in the same denomination strains even relationships between peers.
Many ministers, in fact, could only name their spouse as a close friend. Irvine said that raises a host of issues around marriage and ministry.
“Clergy have been seen as either superhuman who needed no friends, or subhuman who could exist without them _ but certainly not human.”
With declining church attendance, ministers are forced to focus on the survival of their congregations and denominations more than on providing spiritual leadership, Irvine told the Hamilton Spectator newspaper.
“With the old model, the church had respect because it was the church,” he said. “I think in today’s culture, any respect that the church has needs to be earned again.”
But it’s not all gloom. Irvine said many clergy want to ease up on their workload and tend to their own spiritual and personal lives.
“These are good people who want, in all sincerity, to serve God and the world in any way they can,” he said. “What I believe is that there lies within clergy and each one of us the means to move to recovery and health.”
_ Ron Csillag
Quote of the Day: Sculptor Terrell O’Brien of Pavillion, Wyo.
(RNS) “I have to try to tell a story and pay tribute as well. This was not easy, in particular because I’m dealing with a world-known figure. It caused me to tremble. But it’s been a tremendous blessing.”
_ Terrell O’Brien, a sculptor and Baptist pastor in Pavillion, Wyo., who has created a bronze statue of evangelist Billy Graham that will be unveiled by the Southern Baptist Convention in June. He was quoted by the Associated Press.
KRE/JL END RNS