Monthly Archives: April 2011
The Kmiec Affair
By Mark Silk — April 15, 2011
Douglas Kmiec did not earn his ambassadorship the old-fashioned way–with bucks. The coin of his realm is verbal, and the talking and writing the former dean of the Catholic University Law School (and head of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel in the Reagan Administration) did on behalf of Barack Obama in 2008 was […]
Court dismisses challenge to National Day of Prayer
By Tracy Gordon — April 14, 2011
WASHINGTON (RNS) The law calling for an annual National Day of Prayer imposes solely on the duties of the U.S. president, leaving private citizens no legal standing to challenge it, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday (April 14). The unanimous decision overturns a 2010 lower court ruling that found the law unconstitutional. The ruling comes […]
Evangelicals named to ministry watchdog panel
By Tracy Gordon — April 14, 2011
WASHINGTON (RNS) The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability has announced members of a commission to advise a Capitol Hill review of financial reform of religious groups. Secularists, however, say the panel’s all-evangelical leadership will be unable to police other evangelicals. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, asked the council to lead an independent review of “self-reform” of […]
Pope appeals to China over naming of bishops
By Tracy Gordon — April 14, 2011
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican on Thursday (April 14) lamented China’s interference with the Roman Catholic Church, and reaffirmed Pope Benedict XVI’s willingness to negotiate with Beijing on the appointment of bishops. A message to Chinese Catholics, published by the pope’s special commission on China, noted the “sad episode” of a bishop in the northeastern […]
Study: Longer life spans mean less need for church
By Tracy Gordon — April 14, 2011
LONDON (RNS) Researchers at two of Britain’s top universities claim that church attendance in many Western nations is falling because people are living longer and therefore have less fear of death. The result, the studies say, is a “graying church.” In Britain, one in four older adults (65 or older) attends church, while just 11 […]
Friday’s Religion News Roundup
By Kevin Eckstrom — April 14, 2011
The British tabs are reporting that Madonna has ditched Kabbalah and is now flirting with … wait for it! … Opus Dei. Salon is reporting “anticipatory outrage” over Lady Gaga’s “Judas” video where she plays Mary Magdalene. And you can add the Kate Middleton jellybean to all those Jesus and Virgin Mary grilled cheeses. A […]
Should Jim Jones be on a Jonestown memorial?
By Tracy Gordon — April 14, 2011
(RNS) When the Rev. Jim Jones led more than 900 followers to commit mass suicide at his compound in the jungles of Guyana in 1978, was he, too, a victim of the massacre — or simply its cause? That seemingly philosophical question has recently become concrete. Some relatives of Jonestown victims are battling a proposed […]
Exhibit wades into the water of river baptisms
By Tracy Gordon — April 14, 2011
NEW YORK (RNS) Religious rituals once shrouded in mystery are becoming less private — more open to photography, video, even tweets from the pulpit. An exhibit at New York’s International Center of Photography reveals a similar “opening up” a century ago as photographs of river baptisms began appearing on mass-distributed photo postcards. “Take Me to […]
Thursday’s Religion News Roundup
By Kevin Eckstrom — April 14, 2011
A Catholic cardinal in Puerto Rico is asking singer Ricky Martin to be less gay. Actor Martin Sheen says he opposes abortion because his wife was conceived through rape and could easily have been aborted. A Florida man claims he was groped by a nun when he was a first grader. More than 800 abuse […]
Filipino churches divided over hero’s burial for Marcos
By Tracy Gordon — April 13, 2011
MANILA, Philippines (RNS/ENInews) Filipino church leaders are divided over a proposal to give the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos a hero’s burial. In late March, a resolution was endorsed by 193 lawmakers urging President Benigno Aquino III to allow the burial of Marcos’ remains in a heroes’ cemetery in Manila. Marcos’ body is currently in a […]
Activists want national holiday for Good Friday
By Tracy Gordon — April 13, 2011
WASHINGTON (RNS) A small band of Christians is planning a rally in Washington, D.C., in a bid to make Good Friday a national holiday. Organizer Sharon Jones, a New York-based missionary, recalled growing up observing the holiday in her native Britain. She has scheduled a rally on the National Mall on April 22, or Good […]
Feds join suit over reading policy in S.C. jail
By Tracy Gordon — April 13, 2011
WASHINGTON (RNS) Bibles cannot be the only reading materials allowed in jail, the U.S. Department of Justice said in joining a lawsuit against a South Carolina detention center on Tuesday (April 12). The original suit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Prison Legal News last October, charged that the Berkeley County […]
Wednesday’s Religion News Roundup
By Daniel Burke — April 13, 2011
Handel’s “Messiah” was first performed on this day in 1742. So, Hallelujah and all that. I like this version, by the way. China locked down a Tibetan monastery and clashed with local residents as they tried to block troops from arresting monks. The State Department says the Vatican has been served with court papers stemming […]
Catholic schools help swell ranks of Easter converts
By Tracy Gordon — April 13, 2011
WASHINGTON (RNS) With less than two weeks to go, fifth-grader Simone Marshall ticked off what she was looking forward to most as she awaited the Easter Vigil where she would officially become a Roman Catholic. “I cannot wait to get baptized so I can be born again and I can be closer to Jesus,” she […]
