RNS Updated Budget — Tuesday, January 7, 2020

NEWS STORY RNS-Vatican-Iran: Amid US/Iran escalation, Pope Francis and Catholic leaders call for self-restraint, dialogue VATICAN CITY (RNS) – Concern about the growing tensions between the United States and Iran has been bubbling within the Vatican, as Pope Francis and high-ranking prelates urge global leaders for self-restraint and dialogue. By Claire Giangravè. 779 words. (category: […]

NEWS STORY
RNS-Vatican-Iran: Amid US/Iran escalation, Pope Francis and Catholic leaders call for self-restraint, dialogue
VATICAN CITY (RNS) – Concern about the growing tensions between the United States and Iran has been bubbling within the Vatican, as Pope Francis and high-ranking prelates urge global leaders for self-restraint and dialogue. By Claire Giangravè. 779 words. (category: i)

NEWS STORY
RNS-Buttigieg-Meeting: Pete Buttigieg met privately with black theologians, thought leaders
(RNS) — Former South Bend, Indiana mayor and presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg met privately with a group of African American theologians and thought leaders in December, another sign of the candidate’s ongoing efforts to bolster his lagging poll numbers with black voters. By Jack Jenkins. 529 words. (category: a)

NEWS STORY
RNS-Dale-Partridge: Dale Partridge, Christian ‘influencer’ and church planter, haunted by plagiarism claims
(RNS) — Dale Partridge has made a living for most of the past decade by saying pithily positive things on the internet. Often wise words, but not always his own words. According to critics who have tracked his tweets and Instagram posts, Partridge has commonly passed off quotes from celebrities, musicians, fellow entrepreneurs, authors and public figures as his own. Partridge admits the mistakes, but says they are in his past. Not everyone is convinced. By Bob Smietana. 1,975 words. (category: a)


NEWS STORY
RNS-Iran-Sites: Iranian cultural sites include biblical landmarks important to Jews and Christians, too
(RNS) — Iran’s history goes back at least 2,000 years before the rise of Islam. The country, which is about twice the size of Texas, has many religious sites important to Jews and Christians, not just Muslims. They include the Tomb of Esther and Mordecai, the Tomb of Cyrus and a dazzling Armenian cathedral. By Yonat Shimron. 750 words. (category: a)

NEWS STORY
RNS-Sikh-Gurdwara: Future of Sikh worship site in Southern California remains unclear
ALHAMBRA, Calif. (RNS) — Members of a local Sikh gurdwara consider its temple a sacred space, but they have recently faced a series of setbacks that come with renting, not owning, a house of worship. Since the summer it’s been advocating against a housing development that would raze their gurdwara in Alhambra. And after the city’s planning commission voted in favor of revoking permits it initially approved to replace the religious temple, the property owner sent the faith community a notice to move out of the premises. By Alejandra Molina. 859 words. (category: a)

COMMENTARY
RNS-Burge-Oped: Atheists prefer cats, Christians love dogs, study shows
(RNS) — Among Americans who said they owned a pet, nearly three-quarters (74.9%) said they had a dog in 2018. Fewer than half (40.3 %) identified as cat owners. Evangelicals and Catholics are also more likely to have dogs than are mainline Christians. By Ryan Burge. 750 words. (category: k)

COMMENTARY
RNS-Salkin-Oped: We are all Jews here
(RNS) — On Monday, the American Jewish Committee encouraged all Jews to participate in #JewishandProud Day, to publicly display an indicator of your Jewish identity. Today, I am wearing a kippah publicly — all day, everywhere. And, I am wearing my Leonard Cohen T shirt — the one with his picture on it, which says: “There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.” It’s about as Jewish a T-shirt as I own. Because that truth seems more powerful than ever before. By Jeffrey Salkin. 1,037 words.