Monthly Archives: June 2007
Conservative Catholic Commentator Tells the Pope to Get in Line
By Daniel Burke — June 14, 2007
George Weigel, the papal biographer, conservative Catholic commentator and prolific man of the pen, thinks it “would be helpful” for the Vatican to “underscore” two points of particular political interest. 1) That “deliberate legislative facilitation of abortion is a grave evil that puts one outside the communion of the Church and thus renders the reception […]
RNS Weekly Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — June 13, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service Senator Says Climate Change Debate Distracts Evangelicals WASHINGTON (RNS) A Republican senator has criticized efforts to enlist evangelicals to fight global warming as a “brilliant idea to divide and conquer” and distract them from “core values issues.” Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., who has been highly critical of climate change “alarmists,” […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — June 13, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service Poll Says Seven in 10 Republicans Doubt Evolution (RNS) Republicans are far more likely to doubt the theory of evolution than Democrats, according to a new Gallup Poll. Sixty-eight percent of Republicans say they doubt that humans evolved from lower life forms over millions of years, while only 40 percent […]
Sinead O’Connor Is Back, and Singing About Faith
By Kimberly Winston — June 13, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Sinead O’Connor is not your typical Christian music diva. The Irish singer-songwriter has torn up a picture of Pope John Paul II on “Saturday Night Live,” refused to have “The Star-Spangled Banner” played before a concert, been excommunicated following her “ordination” as a Catholic priest, and announced she was […]
Leader Says Baptists Share Blame for Lagging Evangelism
By Adelle M. Banks — June 13, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service SAN ANTONIO _ The Southern Baptist Convention opened its annual meeting Tuesday (June 12) with a call for personal repentance to help reverse declining baptisms. Members of the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, which failed to meet a recent goal of increasing the rate of baptisms in its churches, may have […]
Faith Groups Rally as Poverty Issue Gains Momentum
By Daniel Burke — June 13, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Leaders and members from a broad array of faith traditions gathered at Washington National Cathedral this week for a colorful convocation dedicated to reducing hunger and poverty throughout the world. Nearly 1,000 worshippers from 45 states sang and prayed under the cathedral’s soaring arches as Catholic, Jewish, Protestant […]
COMMENTARY: Comfort Vs. Connection
By Tom Ehrich — June 13, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service (UNDATED) As the temperature climbs into the 90s, I face the annual choice between comfort and connection. I can close the house, turn on the air-conditioning, and work in comfort. Or I can open windows, enjoy the sounds of birds, dogs, lawn mowers and UPS trucks, and feel connected to […]
African Anglican Archbishop Decries Patrimony
By Daniel Burke — June 12, 2007
Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa told the South African AIDS Conference that religious communities must “move from being part of the problem to taking a lead” in ensuring that holy texts are not used to oppress women. “In 21st century South Africa, too many men are still giving religious reasons […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — June 12, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service Study: Atheists Think `Radical Christianity’ a Threat (RNS) More than half of atheists and agnostics think “radical Christianity” is just as threatening in the United States as “radical Islam,” according to a new study. The Barna Group, a Ventura, Calif.-based research firm, found that 56 percent of atheists and agnostics […]
Five Years Later, Catholic Sex Abuse Scandal Lingers On
By Jeff Diamant — June 12, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service NEWARK, N.J. _ In 2004, the Rev. Gerald Sudol believed he would be kicked out of the Catholic priesthood after a man accused him of sexual abuse two decades ago and the Archdiocese of Newark signed a five-figure settlement with the man’s family. Fast-forward two years. A canonical trial acquitted […]
Germany Confronts Education Gaps Among Muslim Immigrants
By RNS Blog Editor — June 12, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service BERLIN _ Selda Acan, a 33-year-old mother of four with an eighth-grade education, watched as the three dozen girls hovered over Qurans, reading and reciting verses in Arabic at a mosque in a dense immigrant neighborhood. “Inshallah,” she said, using the Arabic word for “God willing,” “it is my wish […]
Bush Discusses Global Concerns with Pope
By Frances X. Rocca — June 11, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ President Bush met Pope Benedict XVI for the first time on Saturday (June 9) in a half-hour closed-door meeting that that touched on the plight of Christians in war-torn Iraq and efforts to combat AIDS in Africa. Bush’s visit to Rome came the day after his attendance […]
Man Takes Up His Cross and Follows Jesus Cross-Country
By Barbara Miller — June 9, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service PALMYRA, Pa. _ “Cross Carrier Chuck” was last seen making his way across central Pennsylvania on his seven-year trek across the country, carrying a 10-foot cross and surviving on the kindness of strangers while spreading the good word. After a stop at Laudermilch’s Meats outside Annville, where shoppers bought lunch […]
Paulie Walnuts’ Real-life Brother Keeps an Eye on His Mouth
By RNS Blog Editor — June 9, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service KALAMAZOO, Mich. _ Not many people make Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri of HBO’s “The Sopranos” watch his mouth. But there’s a priest here who gives it a try. Paulie Walnuts, the fiercely loyal, silver-haired tough guy from the hit TV show, is played by Tony Sirico. His little brother is the […]
COMMENTARY: Closing St. Nostalgia’s
By RNS Blog Editor — June 9, 2007
c. 2007 Religion News Service CLEVELAND _ When home is closed, where is there to go? I don’t mean the home with the kitchen table and the front porch swing. I mean the one with the exquisitely carved wooden altarpiece. I mean the one with the just-perfect statues that came all the way from the […]
