Kim Lawton
Kim Lawton is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Kim Lawton
A Year After Katrina, Churches Continue Recovery and Rebuilding Work
By Kim Lawton — August 25, 2006
c. 2006 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly NEW ORLEANS _ In the blistering summer heat of the Crescent City, Southern Baptist volunteers are putting the finishing touches on a new development of Habitat for Humanity homes _ rare signs of construction in the city’s still-devastated Ninth Ward. Just a few miles away, United Methodist volunteers are […]
Albright, breaking rank, says more religion is needed in diplomacy
By Kim Lawton — June 7, 2006
(RNS) — 'Our diplomats are very well trained and they are very capable,' the former secretary of state wrote in her latest book. 'But they have not really focused on religion per se as a subject of study.'
In Katrina’s Aftermath, New Orleans Finds New Meanings in Holy Week
By Kim Lawton — April 14, 2006
c. 2006 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly NEW ORLEANS _ The Rev. Lance Eden hasn’t been a pastor for a full year, but the United Methodist minister with a congregation of fewer than 100 has already presided over a dozen funerals. In this city, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, death and destruction have become all […]
On Just War, Religious Groups Still Divided
By Kim Lawton — March 25, 2006
c. 2006 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly (UNDATED) At Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn., students in professor Brian Stiltner’s class on faith and justice marked the third anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq still arguing about whether the war was morally justified. “I think we are there for a good purpose,” argued one student. […]
Government’s Katrina Failure May Be Faith-Based Opportunity
By Kim Lawton — February 16, 2006
c. 2006 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly NEW ORLEANS _ As criticism of the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina mounts, praise of faith-based groups continues, providing new momentum in the campaign to expand federal funding of religious social services. Religious groups were some of the first on the scene, delivering desperately needed help in the rescue […]
The Forgotten Martin Luther King: Local Pastor: With optional trim to 800 words
By Kim Lawton — January 14, 2006
c. 2006 Religion and Ethics NewsWeekly MONTGOMERY, Ala. _ Martin Luther King Jr. led a nonviolent freedom movement and became a world figure. But he was first and foremost a pastor. “The pastor role was central to everything, virtually everything, that Dr. King achieved,” Lewis Baldwin, professor of religious studies at Vanderbilt University told the […]
Movement Seeks to Ignite Jewish Spirituality
By Kim Lawton — October 8, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics Newsweekly SILVER SPRING, Md. _ Shortly before the Jewish High Holidays began, a small group of Jews gathered in a suburban home to recite the traditional “Al Cheyt” prayer of repentance. But there was nothing traditional about this Al Cheyt. Instead of recited prayers led by a rabbi, these Jews […]
Orthodox Church Still Waits to Rebuild after Sept. 11 Attack
By Kim Lawton — September 10, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics Newsweekly NEW YORK _ When terrorists slammed their hijacked airplanes into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, they also destroyed historic St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, as debris from the south tower pancaked the tiny church nestled at its foot. “It was _ well, let’s face it _ […]
Black Churches Taking Lead on Pressing Sudan Issue
By Kim Lawton — August 23, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly CHICAGO _ A decade ago, when evangelicals made advocacy on Sudan a centerpiece of their campaign against religious persecution, many African-American churches were reluctant to join in. Today, however, black churches are increasingly at the forefront of the grass-roots momentum to end what the United States calls “genocide” in […]
A New Way of `Doing Church’ Emerges, With Some Controversy
By Kim Lawton — July 16, 2005
c. 2005 Religion and Ethics NewsWeekly (UNDATED) In a dark sanctuary filled with votive candles, fast-paced images flash across video screens. Participants file forward to write their names on a wooden cross on the floor, while at the altar, a DJ with a computer mixes new age music to set the mood. Welcome to worship […]
For Ambassador Tony Hall, Faith Is Key to Battling Hunger
By Kim Lawton — June 29, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics Newsweekly ROME _ For more than 20 years, first as a member of Congress and now as a U.S. ambassador to United Nations humanitarian agencies in Rome, Tony Hall has made it his life mission to end hunger and poverty _ at home and abroad. It’s a mission fueled by […]
Grammy Winner Sings About Redemption, Preaches About Second Chances
By Kim Lawton — May 7, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics Newsweekly FREEPORT, N.Y _ Donnie McClurkin is a gospel music superstar whose voice is recognized around the world. But on Sunday mornings, as Pastor McClurkin, he has more local concerns _ like the parking problems in his church’s neighborhood. “You wanna be mindful of Zack’s Delicatessen across the street also,” […]
NEWS FEATURE: Easter Hope: Monks in Northern Ireland Pray, Work for Reconciliation
By Kim Lawton — March 26, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly ROSTREVOR, Northern Ireland _ In the tranquil foothills of the Mourne Mountains south of Belfast, spring’s signs of new life can be seen at every turn _ signs that can belie the deep-seated bitterness of “the Troubles,” as locals call the sectarian strife that has wracked the six counties […]
NEWS FEATURE: Lawmaker John Lewis, on the Spiritual Legacy of the Civil Rights Movement
By Kim Lawton — January 15, 2005
c. 2005 Religion & Ethics Newsweekly (Editors: To mark the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. and the anniversary of the March 1965 Selma-Montgomery march, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly’s managing editor Kim Lawton sat down with Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., a Baptist preacher who first met King as a teenager and worked closely with the […]
NEWS STORY: Kerry Advisers Say Campaign Fell Short On Religion, Urge Greater Party Effort
By Kim Lawton — November 16, 2004
c. 2004 Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly WASHINGTON _ Operatives hired to give Sen. John Kerry guidance on religious issues say the campaign fell short in linking the presidential candidate’s political vision to deeply held religious values and in mobilizing faith-based voters. “You don’t get what you don’t work for,” Mara Vanderslice, the Kerry campaign’s director […]
