Monthly Archives: April 2005
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 13, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Southern Baptists See Small Increase in Baptisms After Previous Decline (RNS) The Southern Baptist Convention has seen a small increase in baptisms after a four-year decline. The Annual Church Profile, compiled by the denomination’s LifeWay Christian Resources, shows an increase in baptism totals from 377,357 in 2003 to 387,947 a […]
NEWS STORY: Papal Vote Looms Large in Latin America
By RNS Blog Editor — April 13, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service SANTO ANDRE, Brazil _ A young priest held a Mass for Pope John Paul II in this industrial suburb of Sao Paulo one recent weeknight. Some 60 faithful sat in the church, part of a diocese once overseen by Cardinal Claudio Hummes, a Brazilian now considered among the leading papal […]
NEWS STORY: Catholicism’s Influence Wanes in Europe
By Jeff Diamant — April 13, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ They descended on Vatican City by the millions to pay tribute to the “people’s pope.” They waited up to 24 hours to see his body at St. Peter’s Basilica. They slept outside if they had to, and on Friday (April 8) hundreds of thousands of them stood […]
NEWS ANALYSIS: Six Reasons Why the Cardinals Aren’t Talking to the Press
By RNS Blog Editor — April 13, 2005
Religion News Service (UNDATED) Over the coming days leading into the Monday (April 18) conclave to elect the new pope, the 115 cardinals who will cast ballots are likely to be much less available to the press. While the College of Cardinals has not applied a formal gag order, there is a gentleman’s agreement that […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 12, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Editors: Check the RNS photo Web site at https://religionnews.com for a photo of Archbishop Iakovos to accompany this story. Iakovos, Greek Orthodox Church Leader, Dead at 93 (RNS) Archbishop Iakovos, who served as the spiritual leader of Greek Orthodox Christians in the Americas for 37 years, died Sunday (April 10) […]
NEWS STORY: Cardinal Law Celebrates Mass as Victims Group Protests
By RNS Blog Editor — April 12, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ Cardinal Bernard Law, the former archbishop of Boston who resigned for mishandling the clergy sex abuse scandal, celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Monday (April 11) despite a small protest from victims advocates that Law didn’t deserve the honor. Two leaders of the Survivors Network of […]
COMMENTARY: John Paul’s Interfaith Legacy Will be Difficult to Follow
By RNS Blog Editor — April 12, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) “I believe that today God invites us to change our old practices,'' said Pope John Paul II, speaking to some 80,000 Muslim youth in a stadium in Morocco in 1985. “We must respect each other, and we must also stimulate each other in good works on the path of […]
NEWS ANALYSIS: If He Weren’t an American, Cardinal George of Chicago Could be Pope
By Richard Allen — April 12, 2005
Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ When it comes to the election of a pope, there are very few things that can be predicted with much confidence. Indeed, the trash heaps of history are littered with the reputations of pundits and so-called “experts” who have tried to divine the next pope. In analyzing the selection […]
NEWS STORY: NBC Jumps on Religion Bandwagon With TV Miniseries
By RNS Blog Editor — April 12, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) “Omnium finis imminet.” The end is here. So warns NBC’s miniseries “Revelations,” based on the similarly named book of the Bible. It’s set to premiere Wednesday (April 13) at 9 p.m. (EST). Critics are calling it Hollywood’s latest attempt to hop on the religion bandwagon. But an influential professor […]
RNS Research Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 9, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Poll: Large Majority Oppose Feeding Tube Removal in Non-terminal Patients (RNS) A poll taken in the aftermath of Terry Schiavo’s death shows that 80 percent of Americans oppose removing the feeding tube of a disabled person who is not terminally ill or in a coma when that person has not […]
NEWS STORY: Talk of `John Paul the Great’ Also Fuels Talk of Sainthood
By RNS Blog Editor — April 9, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Now that Pope John Paul II has been buried, the movement to dub him “Magna,” or “the Great” is expected to intensify. It’s an honorific that has been bestowed on only two other popes. Some say calling the late pontiff “John Paul the Great” may hasten discussion of John […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 9, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service `End of Poverty’ Author Tells U.N. Audience He’s Not Writing Fiction NEW YORK (RNS) Striking a theme that is earning him increasing recognition in the world of global economics and ethics, a prominent adviser to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Friday (April 8) that extreme world poverty can be ended […]
NEWS STORY: Pilgrims, Presidents Bid Farewell to John Paul II
By RNS Blog Editor — April 9, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ Cardinals, kings, patriarchs and presidents gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Friday (April 8) for a solemn funeral Mass that honored Pope John Paul II with all the love and liturgical grandeur at the command of the Roman Catholic Church. Pilgrims in the crowd of 600,000 that […]
COMMENTARY: Brits Lose Their Heads Over Royals and Religion
By RNS Blog Editor — April 9, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service LONDON _ “It would be derogatory to the monarchy.” I could hardly believe my ears. We were standing an ax handle’s length away from the very spot where members of the British royal family had their heads chopped off in the era of King Henry VIII. Yet the nice lady […]
NEWS STORY: Some Question if All Pope, All the Time, Was Too Much
By RNS Blog Editor — April 9, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) The blanket of nonstop media attention draped upon the late Pope John Paul II may have warmed hearts and raised ratings, but not everyone was pleased. Secular critics say the coverage was overkill, and some Catholics say it missed the mark. The pope's death on Saturday (April 2) caught […]
