Shelvia Dancy
Shelvia Dancy is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Shelvia Dancy
Thirty years later, ghosts of Jonestown live on
By Shelvia Dancy — November 15, 2008
c. 2008 Religion News Service (UNDATED) In life, the approximately 900 people who followed the Rev. Jim Jones to build a utopian commune in the South American jungle in 1977 were relatively anonymous. But in death, the Jonestown pilgrims became front-page news when they died a year later after following Jones’ order to drink punch […]
Ten years later, Phelps an unwitting ally to gay groups
By Shelvia Dancy — October 1, 2008
c. 2008 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Ten years ago, the death of gay college student Matthew Shepard shocked the nation when he was found beaten to death and tied to a split-rail fence outside Laramie, Wyo. Just as shocking were the protesters who showed up outside his funeral at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Casper […]
NEWS FEATURE: Another Look at Pontius Pilate
By Shelvia Dancy — September 28, 2001
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) In the story of Jesus, Pontius Pilate is little more than a footnote, his 15 minutes of fame stemming from a cameo appearance in the Easter drama when he sentences the son of God to die on the cross _ a decision that forms the crux of Christian belief […]
NEWS STORY: South African Teens Tackle Worsening AIDS Epidemic
By Shelvia Dancy — December 2, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Like most 15-year-olds, Mashapa Machaba never talked to his parents about sex. School, yes. His future, yes. But condoms? AIDS? “I could never have those types of discussions with my parents,” said Machaba. But he is having those discussions now, and not just with his parents. As one of […]
NEWS FEATURE: Community Helps Foster Ramadan Observances on College Campuses
By Shelvia Dancy — November 23, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Thousands of miles away from her family in Pakistan, Sabeen Mushtaq couldn’t help but think of them as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan approached. The George Washington University freshman was living away from home for the first time, and missed her family’s holy season traditions _ especially […]
NEWS FEATURE: Couple Seeks to Teach Parents to Control Sports Rage
By Shelvia Dancy — July 27, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) The news shocked the nation: an irate father beat another father to death in front of the man’s children during an argument at a youth hockey game near Boston. But for coach and former professional athlete Jim Sundberg, the story of parental rage sparked by youth sports was not […]
NEWS STORY: Seminaries Are Not Known to Their Neighbors, Study Finds
By Shelvia Dancy — April 28, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Religious educational institutions across the United States are nearly invisible in their communities, a new study by the Auburn Center for the Study of Theological Education has concluded. “Many of the seminaries we studied are known only to a fairly small circle of insiders of their own religious tradition […]
NEWS FEATURE: New Training for Aid Workers Includes Coping With Attacks, Captivity
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) _ In 14 years helping humanitarian aid workers in some of the world’s most battle-scarred countries, John Schenk had never faced this ordeal. The nonstop interrogation by his masked captors. The hood blocking sunlight and fresh air from his face and lungs. The handcuffs that gripped his wrists. “I […]
NEWS FEATURE: New Training for Aid Workers Includes Coping With Attacks, Captivity
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) _ In 14 years helping humanitarian aid workers in some of the world’s most battle-scarred countries, John Schenk had never faced this ordeal. The nonstop interrogation by his masked captors. The hood blocking sunlight and fresh air from his face and lungs. The handcuffs that gripped his wrists. “I […]
NEWS FEATURE: TV Documentary Traces History of Nonviolent Movements
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ They were unlikely victors: Polish factory workers stifled by communism, South Africans in the grip of apartheid, Indians shackled by British rule. Their weapons of choice _ boycotts, sit-ins and strikes _ were unlikelier still, but in the hands of the freedom-starved those tools forged nonviolent resistance movements capable […]
NEWS STORY: Religious Freedom Commission Critical of Sudan, China
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Declaring that freedom of religion “ought to be a centerpiece of American foreign policy,” a federal commission released its first report Monday (May 1) urging the U.S. government denounce religious oppression abroad by, among other things, tightening sanctions against Sudan and restricting access to U.S. capital markets for […]
NEWS STORY: Muslim Groups, Members of Congress Urge Ending Iraqi Sanctions
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Decrying the “evil that is happening as a result of sanctions against Iraq,” House Democratic Whip David E. Bonior, D-Mich., asked President Clinton to alleviate suffering in Iraq and call for an end to United Nations-imposed economic sanctions on the country. “This policy is a weapon that leaves […]
NEWS STORY: Marchers Pray, Then Demand `Sensible’ Gun Laws
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Marcy Bixby thought she could handle most of the questions her son Matthew asked about what to expect from middle school _ the 10-year-old frequently showered her with questions about how to make friends and what to expect from teachers when he entered the sixth grade this fall. […]
NEWS STORY: Religious Leaders Urge Candidates to Embrace `Living Wage’ to Fight Poverty
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Urging an end to”faith-based rhetoric,”about 100 religious leaders affiliated with the Industrial Areas Foundation _ East have called on political candidates to support affordable housing for all and the establishment of a $25,000 minimum national living wage standard as a means to fight poverty.”We’re calling on the major […]
NEWS STORY: Thousands Rally Against Legal Abortion
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Marking the 27th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling that legalized most abortions, thousands of anti-abortion protesters poured into the nation’s capital Monday (Jan. 24) to mark the landmark decision with a call for its reversal.”Roe v. Wade was an unforgivable decision made a long time ago,”said John […]
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