RNS Opening Budget — Friday, June 11, 2021

As soon as Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed a bill lifting the state’s 30-year ban on teaching yoga in the public schools last month, the critics began weighing in. Some said yoga classes might lead students to convert to Hinduism. […]

NEWS STORY
RNS-Yoga-Brown: Will yoga classes in public school lead kids to convert?
(RNS) — As soon as Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed a bill lifting the state’s 30-year ban on teaching yoga in the public schools last month, the critics began weighing in. Some said yoga classes might lead students to convert to Hinduism. Others suggested it was a way to sneak religion into the classroom. Indiana University Professor of Religious Studies Candy Gunther Brown answers burning questions parents may have about the Eastern physical discipline and whether it passes a constitutional test. By Yonat Shimron. 1,250 words. (category: a)

NEWS STORY
RNS-French-Boxers: Tied to California, the parallel religious lives of two French boxing champions.
(RNS) —The religious lives of two French world boxing champions 60 years apart have some intriguing parallels. Nordine Oubaali who lost his title in California June 5, some 60 years after Alphonse Halimi lost his also in California. While Oubaali is a French born Muslim of Moroccan heritage whose instagram posts are full of references to his faith, Halimi was an Algerian Jew who survived a pogrom and wore a Star of David on his trunks. By Joseph Hammond. 850 words. (category a)