Oh America, you are so weird.

At the Grammys last night, LL Cool J opened with a pretty nice prayer for the late Whitney Houston, the addled pop star who got her start in a New Jersey Baptist church choir.

(Israel's Black Hebrew community said it also mourns the death of Houston, whom their leader called “his spiritual daughter.”)

Nicki Minaj, a Grammy-nominated rapper, arrived at the awards show with a pope-alike in tow, and then performed a number in which she confessed to a priest in Anglican dogcollar, was tied to a Catherine wheel, danced with some scantily clad altar boys, knelt in prayer and, at last, was exorcized. In the background, one could almost see the steam blowing out of Bill Donohue's ears.

Anyhoo, late Friday the U.S. Catholic bishops decided that they really didn't like President Obama's contraception compromise as much as they initially indicated. A leaked internal letter says that the bishops will continue to push for a total rescission of the birth-control mandate.

Meanwhile, Mitt Romney won the CPAC straw vote and the Maine caucuses.

A Wisconsin sex abuse lawsuit that had named Pope Benedict XVI and other high-ranking Vatican officials was withdrawn on Friday.

Also withdrawn: The Church of Scientology's suit against a former member whom they accused of breaking a non-disclosure agreement. 

A Saudi journalist was deported Sunday to his home country, where he was expected to face arrest and possibly death for writing about the Prophet Muhammad. Hamza Kashgari had addressed the Muslim prophet directly on Twitter, ”On your birthday, I will say that I have loved the rebel in you, that you’ve always been a source of inspiration to me, and that I do not like the halos of divinity around you. I shall not pray for you.”

About 8,000 Belgian Catholics have petitioned the church to ordain women and married men and allow laymen to lead church services as ways to counter a shortage of priests.

Michelle Obama brought her healthy eating campaign this weekend to Pastor Joel Hunter's Florida megachurch.

Tim Townsend asks how a Bible study instructor can contrast the doctrines of another tradition and his own without seeming intolerant.

The Archdiocese of Montreal has taken out ads asking Catholics to pray for the Montreal Canadians to make the NHL playoffs. “It’s nice to count on their support,” said team spokesman Donald Beauchamp.

Yr hmbl aggregator,

Daniel Burke