NEWS STORY
RNS-Tattoo-Healine: God, tattoos and empathy: The art of healing from trauma
(Interfaith America) — Over the last decade, David Allen has become famous for his tattoos for cancer patients and survivors, especially those who have undergone a mastectomy. They come to Allen for his delicate floral tattoos that mark their surgery scars, helping them embrace their changed bodies. Allen’s empathy stems in part from his upbringing in a Christian environment as well as his own recovery from traumatic experiences as a teenager. By Silma Suba. 1,334 words. (category: a)
NEWS BRIEF
ECOSIKH-COP26: EcoSikh joins interfaith effort ahead of COP26
(RNS) — One of the four American signatories to the the interfaith COP26 resolution which will be presented in Glasgow next month was the president of EcoSikh, an environmentalist Sikh NGO. The NGO also participated in recent interfaith events related to COP26 in Washington and Rome. 400 words. (category: a)
COMMENTARY
RNS-Sundaram-Oped: Digitizing sacred spaces: How COVID-19 fueled innovation of Hindu ritual websites
(RNS) — Religious rituals are sensory encounters. The smell of candles, incense, the taste of wine at Communion or prasad, the blessed food at Hindu worship practices. A question for our pandemic times: Where do online rituals fit into this sensory realm? The answer was to transform rituals to meet the needs of the moment: The pandemic has led to a boom in innovative digital ritual applications for Hindus. By Dheepa Sundaram. 935 words. (category: k)
COMMENTARY
RNS-Reese-Oped: California bishops should ask, ‘What would Junipero Serra do?’
(RNS) — Would he object if his statues were replaced by monuments to the California Indigenous he loved and to whom he dedicated his life? I think not. Serra biographer Robert Senkewicz believes Serra would say, “The story of the California missions should not be about me, it should be about the Indigenous people.” By Thomas Reese. 756 words. (category: k)