We start off with a headline from that other religion: Sports.
Joe Paterno was a liar, says WaPo’s Sally Jenkins. Â A new report shows the Penn State football coach closely followed a 1998 police inquiry into child molestation accusations against his assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky.
Back on terra firma, confidence in U.S. churches hits an all-time low, a Gallup poll finds.
A Christian scholar and a Muslim scholar joined forces to implore hotel industry execs to ban pornography from in-room movie selections.
Jews and Muslims in Europe are joining forces too. In this case, they’re calling on Germany to protect the right to circumcise boys. Last month, a Cologne court ruled that the practice amounts to bodily harm.
Businessweek destroyed an opportunity for a serious discussion about Mormon enterprises and transparency with an irreverent cover story illustration of John the Baptist and Joseph Smith, says Joanna Brooks.
An Indonesian court sentenced a Shiite cleric to two years in jail for blasphemy. The court found the cleric deviated from mainstream Islam when he said Muslims could pray three times a day rather than five.
A few years ago, some Somali immigrant youth joined terrorist groups abroad. Now Boston’s Muslim community is worried they’re joining gangs and selling drugs in the U.S.
Women’s attendance at atheist conferences is down after a series of sexual harassment accusations.
We conclude with that stepchild of religion: Superstition. Today is Friday the 13th. And it’s not the first time this year, but the third. Even worse? Those three other Friday the 13ths — Jan. 13, April 13 and July 13 — are exactly 13 weeks apart.
Keep calm and carry on.
Yonat Shimron