Monthly Archives: June 2009
Why Muslims like green
By Daniel Burke — June 19, 2009
If you’ve kept an eye on the few images of Iranian protesters available to Western media, you’ve probably noticed a lot of protesters are clad in green. Actually, a lot of them are wearing black now, to mourn their murdered cohorts. Why green? Well both the AP and Slate have recently published explainer pieces on […]
Obama talks immigration at Hispanic prayer breakfast
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
WASHINGTON — President Obama committed to comprehensive immigration reform Friday (June 19) at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast in a speech that was laden with religious language but short on policy specifics. “We know there is much more work to be done to extend the promise of a better life to all our children and […]
Revised Catholic statement on conversion worries Jews
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
(UNDATED) U.S. Catholic bishops tried Thursday (June 18) to clarify the Catholic Church’s relationship with Judaism, saying Jews will not be targets of evangelism, but the church reserves the right to share its faith and welcome Jewish converts. The bishops resurrected a 2002 statement that they called “insufficiently precise and potentially misleading” about whether Christians […]
A slice of Baptists
By Daniel Burke — June 19, 2009
As Baptists gear up for big denominational meetings later this month, the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life has published an interesting graph showing their piece of the American religious pie. Hmmm…religious pie. (Sorry, I’m thinking like Homer Simpston today) Data from the Pew Forum U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, conducted May 8 to Aug. […]
French Muslims, even non-religious ones, forming new groups
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
PARIS (RNS) New Muslim groups are mushrooming in France, reflecting a growing disenchantment with the country’s main Islamic organization and an openness to non-practicing Muslims. The latest group, launched June 12, is a federation of some 40 Muslim associations dubbed Mosaic. It plans to offer a voice for secular Muslims — in the spirit of […]
Catholic Poles object to Madonna concert on MaryâÂ?Â?s day
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
WARSAW, Poland (RNS/ENI) Roman Catholics here are trying to stop a Madonna concert planned for the day the church celebrates the assumption into heaven of Mary, the mother of Jesus. “To make money by holding a concert on such a day by a singer with such a name is ethically dubious,” said Grzegorz Kalwarczyk, chancellor […]
In B.C. comic strip, artist Hart had a heart for God
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
(UNDATED) When cartoonist Johnny Hart died more than two years ago, many feared that his strips of spiritually probing prehistoric cavemen and talking animals would become extinct. But this May, the Hart family bound his religion-themed “B.C.” comics into a new collection, bringing Johnny’s Stone Age pals back to life. And they’re still causing controversy. […]
Focus on Common Ground
By Mark Silk — June 19, 2009
Pastordan, whom book-writing has driven over to Religion Dispatches for the nonce, picks up on a post of mine to again sound the clarion against common ground-ism. Meanwhile, over at Focus on the Family, new top dog Jim Daly is barking a new tune: “When those who are right, left and center all say, ‘Let’s […]
Ensign Mystery Resolving
By Mark Silk — June 19, 2009
It’s all over the Las Vegas Sun this morning. Sen. Ensign’s decision to fess up had to do with “blackmail” in the sense that he had gotten word that his inamorata’s husband, an old Promisekeepers pal, had sent a letter to Fox News’ Megyn Kelly asking that she report on Ensign’s nefarious pursuit of his […]
France considers dissolving Church of Scientology
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
PARIS (RNS) In a groundbreaking case, a Paris court will decide for the first time whether to dissolve the Church of Scientology in France, which is facing charges of organized fraud. The demand was made by French prosecutors on Monday (June 15) as they wrapped up their case against the church’s Paris headquarters and bookshop. […]
Religious freedom panel denied visas to visit India
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
WASHINGTON (RNS) Indian government officials have denied visas to commissioners of a U.S. religious freedom watchdog panel for the second time since 2001. Members of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) were forced to cancel their plans to assess religious freedom in India. Panelists were scheduled to leave on June 12, and have […]
Conservatives criticize Obama move on gay federal benefits
By Tracy Gordon — June 19, 2009
WASHINGTON (RNS) President Obama signed an executive order Wednesday (June 17) expanding benefits available to same-sex partners of federal employees, a move that was not unexpected but nonetheless criticized by social conservative groups. “Many of our government’s hard-working, dedicated, and patriotic public servants have long been denied basic rights that their colleagues enjoy for one […]
Hell-raiser in a collar wins latest fight against his bishop
By Tracy Gordon — June 18, 2009
CLEVELAND — He is this city’s rebel priest, a hell-raiser in a collar who broke laws to protest the immoralities of war, racism and poverty. He took on the government, the military, the weapons industry and the Catholic Church. He destroyed property, was jailed, suspended from the priesthood and targeted by the FBI. That was […]
Civil Religion in Yangon
By Mark Silk — June 18, 2009
Because American public life sometimes seems awash in a sea of religion, from time to time it’s worth casting one’s gaze on parts of the world where the spiritual politics is, like, really real. Take, for example, Burma (or, as the ruling generals have managed to convince the world to call it, Myanmar). According to […]
Bishops: No consensus on Notre Dame
By Daniel Burke — June 18, 2009
National Catholic Reporter is all over the bishops’ conference in San Antionio. They have a report on the VP of the USCCB saying there’s no push to punish Notre Dame for inviting President Obama to speak at commencement, though they will talk about it quite a bit, privately, of course. NCR also has reports on […]
