South Korea Orders All Aid Groups Out of Afghanistan

Today’s Top Five

1. No progress in Korean hostage situation The South Korean government, which last month banned travel to Afghanistan, has now ordered Korean organizations already in the country to pull out by the end of the month, the Associated Press reported. Reuters, meanwhile, reported that South Korean Christians are pulling back their short-term missions programs around the world this summer. However, there are few actual developments in the efforts to free the 21 Koreans from Saemmul Presbyterian Church being held by the Taliban.

The New York Times and others have quoted a letter from the hostages’ families to presidents Bush and Karzai: “We do not want world order and principles to be undermined for the sake of the release and safe return of the Koreans. Saving these people, however, will also serve as an opportunity to reaffirm the precious values of humanity as a whole.”

There has been deadly fighting between the Taliban and Afghan police in the district where the hostages are being held, but it appears unrelated.

2. Pentagon report criticizes seven military leaders’ appearance in Christian video Four generals and three other military officers appeared in uniform and “in official and often identifiable Pentagon locations” in a video for Christian Embassy, a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. That’s a violation of military rules, and “corrective action” should be taken, says a 47-page report from the Defense Department’s inspector general.

“The overall circumstances of the interviews emphasized the speakers’ military status and affiliation and implied they were acting within the scope of their official positions as DoD spokespersons,” the report said.

3. Is Romney Mormon enough? Is Giuliani Catholic enough? While much of the buzz about Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney focuses on whether his Mormon faith will dissuade evangelical voters, a video making the rounds is raising questions of whether Romney is actually Mormon enough for conservatives.

In the now-famous interview, WHO’s Jan Mickelson repeatedly asks Romney about his Mormon faith and repeatedly asserts that Romney’s church disciplines anyone who encourages abortion in any way. Mickelson explained, off-air, “What I was trying to get to was: People who will reject your Mormonism on a theological basis can, would put up with that and might vote for you if they thought you were a consistent, morally consistent, Mormon.”

“Well, I am,” Romney responded. “I am. I am!” But Mickelson was wrong in her views on Mormonism, he said. “There are people in my church who are pro-choice. That is not against my church’s view to allow people to have their own position on political positions.”

After the interview, Romney said he would not return to the program. “I don’t like coming on the air and having you go after me and my church,” he said.

“I’m not going after your church; I agree with your church!” Mickelson said.

Meanwhile, at a town-hall meeting, fellow candidate Rudy Giuliani refused to answer whether he is a “traditional, practicing Roman Catholic.”

“My religious affiliation, my religious practices, and the degree to which I am a good or not so good Catholic I prefer to leave to the priests,” he said. “That would be a much better way to discuss it. That’s a personal discussion, and they have a much better sense of how good a Catholic I am or how bad a Catholic I am.”

Of questions about his faith, Giuliani said, “It’s just sort of gossip. I’ve never been big on gossip.”

Still, the week’s most interesting religion news from the campaign trail came on the Democratic side, and not from one of the candidates. Here’s what Elizabeth Edwards had to say about God:

I have, I think, somewhat of an odd version of God. I do not have an intervening God. I don’t think I can pray to him—or her—to cure me of cancer. I appreciate other people’s prayers for that, but I believe that we are given a set of guidelines and that we are obligated to live our lives in a view to those guidelines. And I don’t believe we should live our lives that way for some promise of eternal life, but because that’s what’s right. We should do those things because that’s what’s right.

4. Lebanon election divides country’s Christians The story of Lebanon’s Christian political influence is complicated and difficult to summarize here. But Associated Press has a good outline:

Sunnis are the base for the ruling coalition, which opposes Syrian influence. Shiite Muslims, led by Hezbollah, overwhelmingly back the pro-Syrian opposition. Neither side has been able to decisively lure the Christians, around a third of Lebanon’s 4 million people, to their camp.

That deadlock was reinforced when pro-government candidate Amin Gemayel, a former president and the head of one of Lebanon’s most powerful Maronite Christian families, conceded defeat by a mere 418 votes in Sunday’s election in the Christian stronghold of Metn north of Beirut. …

Under Lebanon’s division of power among its sects, the presidency must be held by a Maronite Christian-chosen parliament. Now, no Maronite leader can boost his bid among lawmakers by claiming to represent the entire community.

The Toronto Globe and Mail‘s analysis puts it this way:

[T]he surprising victory of Camille Khoury, a candidate from General Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement, in a predominantly Christian riding in the mountains east of Beirut immediately makes the controversial Gen. Aoun the favourite to win a presidential election this fall.

It also allows the Shia Hezbollah to claim it has the support of the majority of the country’s Christians in its prolonged showdown with Mr. Siniora and his Sunni-dominated government.

5. Trying to convert in Egypt Mohamed Hegazy, a journalist and political activist, is married, and his wife is four months pregnant. They’re Christians and want their child to be identified as Christian when born. But the Egyptian interior ministry refuses to let Hegazy change his official religious identification from Islam to Christianity. Hegazy, 24, converted to Christianity several years ago (Reuters says four years; Compass Direct says eight). Now Hegazy has filed suit to have the change made. Yesterday, after a series of death threats — including some, reportedly, from the security police, Hegazy’s lawyerresigned. “If you add to the state of alert in Egyptian society, and to protect the feelings of our Muslim brothers, and to protect our national unity … we decided to abandon this case,” said the lawyer, Mamdouh Nakhla. “We ask all Egyptians, Muslims and Christians, to close this file and refrain from talking about this sensitive area. Not speaking about this is much better than blowing up such subjects, which could set society on fire.”

Quote of the day “Whether a woman works outside or strictly in the home, her first priority is her family and home. We just really want to step up and provide some of these skills.” Terri Stovall, dean of women’s programs at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, which is offering a new bachelor of arts in humanities degree with a 23-hour concentration in homemaking. Only women may enroll in the program, which offers courses on food and nutrition, design and apparel, the value of a child, and the “biblical model for the home and family.” She was quoted by the Associated Press.

More articles

South Korean hostages (news) | South Korean hostages (opinion) | South Korean missions | Christianity and Islam | Christianity and Judaism | Jean-Marie Lustiger | Romanian Orthodox Patriarch Teoctist | Billy and Ruth Graham | People | New Life’s new pastor? | Hillsong | Church life | ELCA meeting | Anglicanism | Homosexuality | Sexual ethics | Life ethics | Abortion | Giuliani’s Catholicism | Romney’s Mormonism | 2008 candidates | Politics | Politics (Australia) | Faith-based initiatives | Church and state | Christian Embassy video | Iraq | Lebanon election | Egypt | Religious freedom | China | Uganda | Court: Priest was killed | Genocide | Abuse | Crime | Pastor accused of insurance scam | Money and business | Giving | Missions and ministry | Harvest Crusade | Healthcare study | Health care | Minneapolis bridge collapse | Entertainment and media | Sports | Theater | Evan Almighty | Books | Education | Evolution | New Texas laws | Using school buildings | Higher education | Scientology | Other stories of interest

South Korean hostages (news):

• Families of South Korean hostages in Afghanistan seek solace, and a solution | The families have issued a joint statement addressed to President Bush and President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan (The New York Times)
• Karzai chides Taliban for kidnapping Korean women | Afghan President Hamid Kazai said on Thursday the abduction of Korean women by Taliban guerrillas had no precedent in Afghan history and would bring shame on the nation (Reuters)
• 4 Taliban militants killed by Afghan police | Clash was in the same district where 23 South Koreans were abducted by Afghan insurgents, but there was no immediate indication that Tuesday’s clash was linked to the hostage crisis (Associated Press)
• Killed Korean hostage dedicated life to serving others | Afghan convert to Christianity thanks South Korean church for its sacrifice (Compass Direct)
• News orgs air false rescue report | Questions raised about risk (Associated Press)
• S. Korean envoys to meet with Taliban | South Korean and Afghan officials searched for a meeting place Thursday after agreeing to hold face-to-face talks with the Taliban to seek the release of the remaining 21 South Korean captives, a chief negotiator said (Associated Press)
• Options in Korean hostage crisis | What happens next? (Associated Press)
• Taliban: 21 Korean hostages are alive | The military said the mission was weeks away and wasn’t connected to the hostages, denying media reports claiming a rescue attempt had been launched (Associated Press)
• Afghans say they won’t free prisoners | South Korea and relatives of 21 kidnapped Koreans appealed for U.S. help Tuesday, but Afghanistan said for the first time it will not release insurgent prisoners — the Taliban’s key demand to free the captives (Associated Press)
• Afghan leaders: Free female hostages | Political and religious leaders invoked Afghan and Islamic traditions of chivalry and hospitality Sunday in attempts to shame the Taliban into releasing 18 female South Korean captives (Associated Press)
• Taliban warn of more kidnappings | A purported Taliban spokesman said Monday that the militants will continue kidnapping foreigners in Afghanistan, as Afghan doctors dropped medicines for the ailing South Korean hostages held by the group since July 19 (Associated Press)
• Taliban, Koreans negotiate over meeting | As the Taliban and South Korean officials negotiated over a possible face-to-face meeting, a South Korean diplomat in Afghanistan spoke by telephone to one of the 21 captives being held by the militant group, an official said Monday (Associated Press)
• Taliban say Bush and Karzai responsible for Koreans | Taliban insurgents said Afghan President Hamid Karzai and U.S. President George W. Bush, meeting in Camp David on Monday, must agree to free jailed rebels or be responsible for the deaths of 21 Korean hostages (Reuters)
• SKorea focuses anger over hostages on US | South Korea’s frustration over the plight of Christian volunteers seized by the Taliban is starting to focus on the United States, a frequent target of resentment in Seoul (Associated Press)
• South Korea makes first contact with hostage | South Korean officials have made their first contact with one of the 21 hostages kidnapped by Taliban insurgents more than two weeks ago, an official in Seoul said on Monday, but there have been no signs of progress (Reuters)
• Afghan doctors deliver medicine for Korean hostages | The head of a private Afghan clinic said his team had dropped more than $1,200 worth of antibiotics, pain killers, vitamin tablets and heart pills in an area of desert in the Qarabagh district of Ghazni province as instructed by the rebels. (Reuters)
• Taliban: Bush meeting had ‘no result’ | The spokesman, Qari Yousef Ahmadi, said Bush and Karzai must accept Taliban demands that militant prisoners be released in exchange for the lives of South Koreans or there will be a “bad result” (Associated Press)
• Taliban weigh hostage fate after Bush and Karzai meet | Taliban leaders are deciding what to do with 21 Korean hostages after Afghan President Hamid Karzai and U.S. President George Bush ruled out making any concessions to free them, one of the kidnappers said on Tuesday (Reuters)
• South Korea denies report hostages seriously ill | “The hostages can’t be perfectly healthy after nearly 20 days in captivity,” the ministry quoted Song Min-soon as telling local reporters. But he added: “There are no signs of health problems that could pose a threat to their safety.” (Reuters)
• New appeal to free hostages | Korean and Muslim Americans in L.A. seek the release of 21 aid workers held captive by rebels in Afghanistan (Los Angeles Times)
• Taliban in no hurry over Korean hostages | US President George W Bush and Afghan President Hamid Karzai avoided the slightest public mention on Monday of the single most immediate issue pressing the alliance in Afghanistan (Asia Times)
• A clash of faiths | Korean Christians held hostage in God’s name (The Economist)

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South Korean hostages (opinion):

• Killing Korean Christians | Taliban executions — and Western Churches’ silence (Mark Tooley, FrontPageMagazine.com)
• Aid workers naïve | The disastrous outcome of the journey to Afghanistan of 23 South Koreans who wanted to make a difference should serve as a warning to other would-be do-gooders (Mindelle Jacobs, The Edmonton Sun)
• Invisible martyrs | The blood of innocent Christian missionaries spills on Afghan sands. The world watches and yawns. The United Nations offers nothing more than a formal expression of “concern.” Where is the global uproar over the human rights abuses unfolding before our eyes? (Michelle Malkin, The Washington Times)
• Hostages held to dumb ideology | Sometimes standing on your principles leads to the worst consequences. The theory of not negotiating with terrorists is based on the sappy assumption that by negotiating you only encourage them. The truth is that terrorists don’t need encouragement from us. They manage to get all fired up all on their own (Tom Plate, The Korea Times)
• After the Bush-Karzai summit | Some Koreans had hoped that the Bush-Karzai summit could lead to a breakthrough in the hostage crisis. But as expected, the summit served as an opportunity to reaffirm international standards of refusing to negotiate with terrorists (Editorial, Chosun Ilbo)

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South Korean missions:

• South Korea orders organizations out of Afghanistan | South Korea ordered organizations from the Asian country to leave Afghanistan by the end of August on Thursday, citing safety reasons and in an apparent effort to help free 21 hostages being held by Taliban militants (Associated Press)
• Missionaries aware of danger in volatile areas | The 21 South Korean hostages held by the Taliban in Afghanistan are missionaries but say they were providing humanitarian aid at hospitals and schools. Mike Pocock, head of the World Missions and Intercultural Studies department at the Dallas Theological Seminary, talks with Renee Montagne (Morning Edition, NPR)
• Further fervor | Why those South Korean missionaries were in Afghanistan (Leslie Hook, The Wall Street Journal)
• Abductions spotlight Koreans’ missionary zeal | The seizure of 23 aid workers in Afghanistan prompts soul-searching about South Korean churches’ approach to proselytizing in dangerous areas (Los Angeles Times)
• Kidnap crisis sends South Korea missions packing | Christian groups in South Korea, the biggest supplier of missionaries to the world after the United States, are scaling back operations in trouble spots in the wake of a hostage crisis in Afghanistan (Reuters)
• Anger is tempering sympathy for South Korean hostages | Sympathy in South Korea for the 21 people remaining in captivity in Afghanistan has been offset by anger over their decision to travel to such a dangerous region (The New York Times)
• South Korea turns against ‘arrogant’ Christian hostages | The kidnap of South Korean church volunteers by the Taliban has caused deep divisions back home, forcing into the open a dark truth: many Koreans resent Christians and the speed with which they have become a dominant force in the upper echelons of society (Belfast Telegraph/The Independent)

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Christianity and Islam:

• Christians to seek converts at mosques’ doorsteps | Led by a California pastor, a group of Christians will gather outside some Seattle-area mosques today in hopes of winning converts among Muslim worshippers coming to midday prayer (The Seattle Times)
• Northern Christian elders chide Kano govt on Muslim dress code for all students | Christian elders in the 19 Northern states have criticized the Kano state government over its decision to compel all students in the state to dress like Muslims irrespective of their religions or cultural inclinations (Vanguard, Nigeria)

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Christianity and Judaism:

• Israel urges condemnation of priest | Israel is urging Polish and Roman Catholic authorities to condemn a prominent priest over reported anti-Jewish comments, which its ambassador described Monday as the worst case of anti-Semitic speech in Poland in decades (Associated Press)
• Also: Italian priest apologises to Jews for gaffe | One of Italy’s best-known priests has apologised for accusing a liberal Jewish lobby of trying to weaken the Roman Catholic Church, saying he meant to refer to a a Masonic lobby instead (Reuters)
• Pope meets controversial Polish priest | Pope Benedict XVI met briefly this week with Tadeusz Rydzyk, a Polish priest who has been accused of making anti-Jewish comments (Associated Press)
• Also: Pope meeting doesn’t alter policy on Jews-Vatican | The Vatican, trying to allay Jewish concern over Pope Benedict’s meeting with a radical Polish priest accused of making anti-Semitic remarks, said on Thursday its stance toward Jews had not changed (Reuters)
• The origins of Jewish-Christian animosity | Why the Talmud’s take on Jesus is a cause for optimism (David Novak, The New Republic)

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Jean-Marie Lustiger:

• French cardinal Lustiger dies | Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, a Jew who converted to Catholicism and rose through church hierarchy to become one of the most influential Roman Catholic figures in France, died Sunday, the Paris archbishop’s office said. He was 80 (Associated Press)
• Jean-Marie Lustiger, French cardinal, dies at 80 | Cardinal Lustiger, who was born to Polish Jews, rose to become leader of the French church and an adviser to Pope John Paul II (The New York Times)
• Cardinal Lustiger | Cardinal Lustiger, who died on Sunday aged 80, was the only Jewish convert to Roman Catholicism to become a French bishop in modern times (The Telegraph, London)
• Cardinal Lustiger in his own words | On his conversion, Jewish-Christian relations, love, and other topics (The Times, London)
• Obituary: Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger; former archbishop of Paris (The Washington Post)

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Romanian Orthodox Patriarch Teoctist:

• Head of Romanian Church dies | The head of the Romanian Orthodox Church, who made history when he invited the late John Paul II to his Orthodox country in 1999 but was criticized for being too close to former Communists, died Monday. He was 92 (Associated Press)
• Patriarch Teoctist, 92, Romanian who held out hand to John Paul II, dies | As head of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Teoctist helped begin healing the thousand-year schism between Christianity’s Eastern and Western churches (The New York Times)
• Romanian Orthodox leader buried | The leader of the Romanian Orthodox Church was buried Friday with a 21-gun salute after a controversial two-decade leadership that included a highly symbolic papal visit after a 950-year rift with Rome (Associated Press)

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Billy and Ruth Graham:

• Ruth and Billy Graham’s final farewell | “I realize now,” Graham replied, “in a way I never could have before, that a very important part of me has been taken away.” And so he has a new tenderness for all those who mourn, that they will be comforted (Time)
• Interview: Billy Graham on life without Ruth (Time)
• Leaders, faith and a friendship | For decades, presidents have turned to Billy Graham for guidance and a supportive ear (20/20, ABC)
• Billy Graham: Hillary’s solace | The evangelist and counselor to presidents was “incredibly supportive to me personally” during the Monica Lewinsky ordeal, the former First Lady says (Time)

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People:

• Who speaks for America’s evangelicals? | The answer is not as clear-cut as in years past. In fact, a younger generation of ministers is changing the face and voice of this very influential constituency. With the 2008 election approaching, that’s no small thing (Mark I. Pinsky, USA Today)
• George K. Otis Sr., millionaire turned radio evangelist, dies at 90 | Otis founded High Adventure Ministries, a Simi Valley-based Christian organization best known for operating what was probably the first radio station in the Middle East to preach the Gospel and play country music (Los Angeles Times)
• For Tutsis of eastern Congo, protector, exploiter or both? | Renegade Congolese Gen. Laurent Nkunda is wanted on war crimes charges but lately has been wearing a button that reads “Rebels for Christ.” (The Washington Post)
• Man devotes 30 acres to God, turning yard into billboard | Carving a message of love for all to see, a man in Barre, Mass., creates a display so big that you can see it from the air. So, what’s the meaning behind the message? (WFXT, Boston)
• Dog the bounty hunter addresses crowd at Fountain of Life Bible Church’s Biker Sunday | They were there for God, but came because of Dog (Kingsport Times-News, Tenn.)
• Comic keeps it light as family faces dark time | Christian comedian (don’t call him that) Kenn Kington has decided to mention his daughter’s leukemia to audiences (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

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New Life’s new pastor?:

• Pastor rose through trials to find calling | Pastor Brady Boyd, the top candidate for the head job at New Life Church, acknowledges he has had dark moments of the soul — when he used drugs and alcohol, sinned, turned his back on God and then embraced him again (The Gazette, Colorado Springs)
• Pastor could get a chance to heal New Life | Church post left vacant after Haggard’s firing (The Gazette, Colorado Springs)
• New Life finalist has new take | Preaching, not politics, is focus for Brady Boyd, who tries out soon (The Denver Post)
• Texan picked to replace Ted Haggard | New Life committee tabs pastor after 8-month hunt (The Denver Post)

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Hillsong:

• God’s own stadium tour comes to London | Hillsong: Missionary event attracts thousands of teenagers with music and hardline message (The Guardian, London)
• Hillsong – the church with no answers | When a former member of the Hillsong congregation started asking hard questions, she was thrown out (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Hillsong success no miracle | It’s a long struggle not to see the world as black and white or to accept that Jesus won’t be coming back any time soon (Tanya Levin, The Australian)

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Church life:

• Jamaica’s Anglican church to use reggae | Marley’s “One Love” and Tosh’s “Psalm 27” will be the first reggae tunes to appear in songbooks alongside traditional worship music (Associated Press)
• Church signs: Provocative or offensive? | Last month, for example: “If we didn’t abort our children, the U.S. wouldn’t have to hire illegals.” (The Boston Globe)
• Stereotype smackdown: Dispelling the myths of megachurches | Scholar Scott Thumma’s favorite myth is that the people sitting in megachurches tend to all be from the same racial, ethnic, political or economic group (The Washington Post)
• Religion’s communal impulse | What is the point of the cathedral — the artistic, the religious, the communal impulse — if not to draw us out of ourselves? Out of ourselves and toward what, I don’t know (Roland Merullo, The Boston Globe)
• Young adults aren’t sticking with church | Protestant churches are losing young adults in “sobering” numbers, a survey finds (USA Today)
• Church members sue pastor | Picture of divided congregation arises from lawsuit over money (Tennessean, Nashville)
• Police act on complaints against independent church | The pastor of an independent church here is being investigated by the police following allegations of intimidation, deception and wrong teachings by several of its former followers (The Star, Malaysia)
• Churches’ call divides flock | Samoan churchgoers have been divided in a bitter legal battle for control of their assets, including a multi-million-dollar property in south Auckland. About 40 of the 85 Samoan Assemblies of God in New Zealand (SAOG) A churches are said to have aligned with the Assemblies of God in New Zealand, which is claiming the Pacific church comes under its authority (The New Zealand Herald)
• Priest: Skaters taunted me for years | The Catholic priest at the centre of the skateboarder slur scandal has fled Victoria (Herald Sun, Melbourne, Australia)
• Also: I egged on Monsignor Baron, admits skater | A teenage skate-boarder who goaded a priest into a foul-mouthed tirade has apologised for the verbal clash that led to the Catholic clergyman’s suspension (Herald Sun, Melbourne, Australia)
• Prayers are answered: Church remains open | In June, Chase Bank was threatening to foreclose on the property after the church fell behind on its payments on $775,000 in loans. But the church and the bank settled the case out of court late last month, allowing the doors to stay open (Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, Tex.)
• Obama’s church has a new pastor for a new generation | Otis Moss was handpicked by Trinity’s senior pastor, Jeremiah Wright, to succeed him in 2008 because of Moss’ growing reputation in reaching inner-city youth (Religion News Service)
• Priests will need training in Latin Mass | Almost all of the local active priests — including Bishop Peter Jugis — were ordained in the English-Mass era and aren’t practiced in the Latin liturgy (The Charlotte Observer, N.C.)
• Vatican welcomes meeting with patriarch | The Vatican on Wednesday welcomed a meeting this week in Moscow between a senior Roman Catholic cardinal and the Russian Orthodox patriarch intended to improve relations between the two churches. (Associated Press)

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ELCA meeting:

• Lutherans gather to elect president, tackle issues | Martin Luther was famous for “table talk” discussions about theology and that’s the strategy Lutherans hoping to lift a celibacy rule on gay and lesbian clergy are taking at a churchwide assembly at Navy Pier this week (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Lutheran pastors’ ‘outing’ spurns celibacy policy | More than 80 homosexual Lutheran pastors challenged their denomination’s celibacy policy this week by “outing” themselves at a denominational meeting in Chicago (The Washington Times)
• Lutherans debate gay-clergy rule | Some worried vote could split church (Chicago Tribune)
• Lutherans to consider gay clergy | Evangelicals will vote on same-sex unions (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.)
• Lutherans to debate celibacy rule | Prompted by the sudden dismissal of a popular Atlanta pastor in a committed same-sex relationship, impatient supporters of gay clergy will push an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America assembly in Chicago next week to stop its navel-gazing and lift the celibacy requirement imposed on gay and lesbian pastors (Chicago Tribune)
• GLBT Lutheran clergy proclaim sexuality to church | Dozens of gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered Lutheran clergy and seminarians on Tuesday openly proclaimed their sexuality to church members meeting at Navy Pier for a national assembly (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Lutheran ministers protest policy requiring homosexual pastors to remain chaste (The Columbus Dispatch)
• Evangelical Lutheran leader re-elected | Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson was overwhelmingly re-elected Tuesday as leader of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He is making evangelism a central theme of this week’s meeting (Associated Press)
• As their church meets, gay ministers take a stand | More than 80 add their names to a list of Lutheran clergy hoping to change their denomination’s view of sexuality (Chicago Tribune)
• Hanson, leader of Evangelical Lutheran Church, re-elected | He has refrained from stating his personal position on whether the church should lift its celibacy requirement for gay and lesbian clergy, a policy expected to be debated later this week (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Gay Lutheran clergy come out of closet | Question of whether to drop celibacy rule divides church meeting here this week (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Gay Lutheran clergy lead fight against church’s celibacy rule | The celibacy rule is expected to be voted on tomorrow or Friday at the 4.9 million-member denomination’s Churchwide Assembly in Chicago. The Evangelical Lutherans also will vote on whether to authorize blessings for same-sex unions (Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.)
• Retired pastor comes out | Former Saline church leader part of effort to reform Lutheran faith (The Ann Arbor News, Mi.)
• 3 N.J. pastors among 82 Lutheran clergy in mass coming-out | The booklet, compiled by Lutheran gay rights advocates, urges the denomination to recognize the ministers as fellow Christians and grant them the same rights as heterosexual pastors (The Record, Hackensack, N.J.)
• Gay Lutheran pastors look for acceptance | Church asked to change stance on clergy (The Columbus Dispatch)
• Gay ministers come out to spark change in policy | Delegates to debate whether ministers in same-sex relationship can serve openly (The Salt Lake Tribune)

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Anglicanism:

• Church court: Armstrong guilty | Panel says he took nearly $400,000 (The Gazette, Colorado Springs)
• Episcopal bishop ejects clergy | Virginia Episcopal Bishop Peter J. Lee has ejected 20 of his former clergy from the priesthood after they quit the denomination in December over the 2003 consecration of New Hampshire Bishop V. Gene Robinson, who is openly homosexual (The Washington Times)
• 20 defrocked priests dismiss bishop’s order | Conservative priests reacted dismissively to an announcement by Virginia Episcopal Bishop Peter J. Lee that he was defrocking them for abandoning the church in a dispute over theological interpretations, church authority and homosexuality (The Washington Times)
• Episcopal diocese settles lawsuit | Breakaway group returns some funds (The Boston Globe)
• Episcopal Diocese, All Saints settle suit | A legal battle between the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts and breakaway parish All Saints Anglican Church has been settled out of court (The Sun Chronicle, Attleboro, Mass.)
• Church fight may head to High Court | All Saints’, other breakaway Episcopal churches battle diocese over control of property (Long Beach Press Telegram, Ca.)
• Church appeals to high court | St. James files petition with California Supreme Court for control of waterfront property given to the Episcopal Diocese. (Daily Pilot, Newport Beach, Ca.)

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Homosexuality:

• Doctors accused of using faith to violate gay bias laws | When does the freedom to practice religion become discrimination? The California Supreme Court is being asked to answer that question when it hears a legal dispute between a lesbian mom and two doctors who refused to artificially inseminate her for religious reasons (USA Today)
• No hate required for hate crime in gay man’s death, judge rules | A judge said that prosecutors need show only that the victim was chosen because of his sexual orientation to pursue charges against three suspects under the state’s Hate Crimes Act of 2000 (The New York Times)
• Bush vows to veto hate-crime expansion for gays | A coalition of religious leaders, many of them black Christian pastors, have lobbied the White House to reject the amendment, saying it could lead to suppression of free speech and religious expression (The Washington Times)
• Pastors attack Cohen on bill | A group of Memphis pastors is encouraging people to call and write the offices of U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., and other supporters of a hate crimes bill they believe restricts their right to preach against homosexuality (The Commercial Appeal, Memphis)
• Justice | The United Parcel Service agreed to offer health benefits to partners under New Jersey’s civil union law. Now the State Legislature should legalize same-sex marriage (Editorial, The New York Times)

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Sexual ethics:

• Prof finds sex a healthy subject for evangelicals | Frankness, attitude of books surprise researcher at MSU (Lansing State Journal, Mi.)
• The preacher and the porn star to debate | Touring speakers discussing pros and cons of pornography (Chicago Tribune)
• Naked before God | Christian nudists hit the church—and the hot tub—for three days of wet and wild worship in the backwoods of Tennessee (Nashville Scene)
• Sex-ed course proposed in D.C. | Proposed guidelines for a sex-education curriculum to be used in D.C. Public Schools recommend that middle-school students learn to define sexual orientation and be taught about homosexuality (The Washington Times)
• Applicant in Archbishop “adultery” case refusing to supply defence with evidence | After such an intense media blitz, the lawyer representing the man suing Archbishop Pius Ncube for allegedly having an affair with his wife, appears to be having problems providing information for his claim. (SW Radio Africa)

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Life ethics:

• Assisted suicide attacked from an unlikely front | Disability rights groups, typically supportive of individual liberty, have helped defeat bills out of fear that HMOs would see a chance to cut care (Los Angeles Times)
• Goal achieved by discredited scientist | Remember the spectacular South Korean stem cell fraud of a few years ago? A new analysis says the disgraced scientist actually did reach a long-sought scientific goal. It’s just not the one he claimed (Associated Press)

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Abortion:

• GOP hopefuls generally agree on Iraq | But disagree on abortion (Associated Press)
• Kan. abortion provider pleads not guilty | A physician who performs late-term abortions pleaded not guilty Friday to violating state law by consulting about the procedure with a doctor to whom he had financial ties (Associated Press)
• Putting the government’s words in the doctor’s mouth | According to federal courts, there is a constitutional flaw in how South Dakota seeks to inform women of its views on abortion: it would hijack the doctor-patient relationship (The New York Times)
• New era of legal abortion in Portugal | A new law allowing it hasn’t stilled debate in the heavily Catholic nation. Many doctors refuse to perform the procedure (Los Angeles Times)
• Poisonous choices, women at risk | The true intent of the partial-birth abortion ban is to make all abortions as burdensome, as difficult and as emotionally and physically trying for women — and for doctors — as possible (Judith Warner, The New York Times)
• How much jail time? | If abortion is made a crime, then surely the woman who has one is a criminal. But, boy, do the doctrinaire suddenly turn squirrelly at the prospect of throwing women in jail (Anna Quindlen, Newsweek)
• Abortion in Maryland | Under Maryland’s still-untested fetal homicide law, the questions of when, how and by whom an unborn child’s life is extinguished would be crucial in determining whether the state could charge the perpetrator with murder (Editorial, The Washington Times)
• Warning on abortion bill | Proposed changes in Victoria to a controversial bill to decriminalise abortion could “re-criminalise” the procedure and achieve nothing, health groups say (Herald Sun, Australia)
• Getting beyond Roe | Why returning abortion to the states is a good idea (Radley Balko, Reason)
• Shifting strategies, changing minds | Opponents of abortion are changing hearts and minds (Gary Bauer, National Review Online)

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Giuliani’s Catholicism:

• Giuliani questioned about Catholicism | Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani said Tuesday that whether he was a practicing Catholic was a personal matter as he declined to answer questions about his religion (Associated Press)
• Giuliani: Religious test wrong for candidates | Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani drew a line today on public discussion of his religion, telling a Bettendorf audience that it’s between him and his priest as to whether he’s a “good or not so good Catholic” (Des Moines Register, Ia.)
• Divine comedy | Conservatives give Rudy Giuliani a free pass (Michelle Cottle, The New Republic)
• The art of getting personal | In Iowa, Giuliani touts resume, averts personal questions, deftly choosing when to reveal those details (Newsday)
• Bedeviled by faith | Rudy dodges questions about whether he’s a ‘good Catholic’ (New York Daily News)

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Romney’s Mormonism:

• Mitt Romney: proudly, quietly Mormon | The former governor of Massachusetts is a Mormon in full. But, facing a wary public, he has played his faith cautiously on the presidential campaign trail (The Christian Science Monitor)
• What matters about Romney’s religion | It’s the anthropology, stupid (Michael Gerson, The Washington Post)
• Spreading a political and religious message? | Evangelicals voice concerns a Romney presidency would add credence to the Mormon faith (World News, ABC)
• Romney defends his religion | In off-air remarks, GOP candidate takes host to task over questions about his Mormon faith (ABC News)
• Romney defends his faith (The New York Times)
• Romney’s off-air defense of faith gets lots of Internet attention | A videotape of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney defending his Mormon faith during an interview with a conservative radio talk-show host in Iowa last week is getting a lot of attention on the Internet (Deseret Morning News, Ut.)
• Mitt unplugged | Mitt Romney engaged in a heated discussion about his Mormon faith with a prominent Des Moines talk show host off the air on Thursday morning (Jonathan Martin, Politico.com)
• Yes, Romney needs to answer questions | What matters is not whether he really thinks Joseph Smith met an angel in 1827. The crucial issue is whether, or how, a devout Mormon would apply his faith on the job in 2009 (Dick Polman, The Philadelphia Inquirer)
• No macaca for Mitt | Instead of a “gotcha” moment, we’re left with a guerilla campaign commercial (Matthew Felling, CBS News)
• Mitt’s faith isn’t an issue | As governor, he didn’t try to convert us (Michael Graham, Boston Herald)
• On another subject: Romney’s honesty problem | Every time Romney tries to explain his evolution from supporter to opponent of abortion rights, his honesty comes into question. That’s because his explanations over the years don’t add up (Joan Vennochi, The Boston Globe)

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2008 candidates:

• Anti-abortion leaders size up GOP candidates | These are anxious days for abortion opponents, who are trying to adjust to a changed political landscape (The New York Times)
• Pro-life only choice for Republicans in Iowa | Dedicated pro-life voters make up more than 60 percent of potential Republican caucusgoers, and an even larger portion of the dedicated activists who get their family, friends and church members to turn out to vote. (The Washington Times)
• Democratic candidates address gay rights | None of the front-runners is calling for legalization of gay marriage (Associated Press)
• Iowa Republicans are not thrilled with presidential field | Romney led among evangelical Protestants with a quarter of the vote, with Huckabee second at 17 percent, followed by Fred Thompson, Giuliani and McCain, all hovering near 10 percent. Brownback and Tancredo received 7 percent each among evangelicals (The Washington Post)
• 2 GOP contenders duel over religion | Republican candidates Sam Brownback and Mike Huckabee have been trading charges of religious bigotry (The New York Times)
• Brownback complains about Catholic slur | Republican presidential hopeful Sam Brownback said rival Mike Huckabee should apologize for a supporter’s “prejudiced whisper campaign” against him for being Catholic (Associated Press)
• Power of prayer takes on power of money | Lonnie Berger, who calls himself Brownback’s “Prayer Coordinator,” has a website called prayforbrownback.com and sent out an e-mail urging everyone to “pray that God would supernaturally activate the Christians in Iowa to pray and go to the straw poll to vote for Sam.” (Politico.com)
• Robinson had endorsed a candidate previously | Bishop backed John Kerry in 2004 (The Boston Globe)
• Conservatives: GOP straying on social issues | Some national Republican Party officials worry that their party is moving away from its conservative stands on social and religious issues in preparation for the 2008 elections (The Washington Times)
• Religion looms large over 2008 race | All the Democratic and Republican presidential hopefuls have been grilled on their religious beliefs. Most seem eager to talk publicly about their faith as they actively court religious voters (Associated Press)
• The original theology of Elizabeth Edwards | John Edwards’s campaign left me cold. But now that I’ve met his wife and her Higher Power, things are warming up (Adele M. Stan, The American Prospect)
• Christian soldiers campaign | Beware when sniping starts between preachy professed Christians all pent up in political pursuit of the presidency of a country that’s supposed to have free religion (John Brummett, The Morning News, Fayetteville, Ark.)

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Politics:

• Coalition of evangelicals voices support for Palestinian state | More than 30 evangelical leaders are stepping forward to say that those claiming a biblically-mandated hard line of support for Israel do not speak for them (The New York Times)
• Tax lawyers ask IRS to clarify election rules for nonprofit groups | Several prominent lawyers who specialize in nonprofit issues are calling on the Internal Revenue Service to be clearer about which types of political discussion are allowed — and which are prohibited — before the 2008 election intensifies (The Chronicle of Philanthropy)
• Bush down to his base of support | To see the type of person who still backs him, President Bush need only look in the mirror. The president fits the composite of today’s Bush supporter: a conservative, white, Republican man, an evangelical Christian who goes to church regularly (Associated Press)
• Warming draws evangelicals into environmentalist fold | The emerging rapprochement is regarded by some as a sign of how dramatically U.S. public sentiment has shifted on global warming in recent years (The Washington Post)
• The Aquarians and the Evangelicals | How left-wing hippies and right-wing fundamentalists created a libertarian America (Brink Lindsey, Reason)

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Politics (Australia):

• Christian vote may be decisive in Australian election | At a Christian rally in Canberra today Liberal Prime Minister John Howard and main opposition Labor leader Kevin Rudd outlined their religious views and policies, with their comments broadcast live over the Internet to 1,400 churches around the country (Bloomberg)
• Hillsong hosts Howard, Rudd in online telecast | Prime Minister John Howard hit the right notes tonight, drawing more applause from Christians at one Sydney church while Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd won more votes—just (AAP, Australia)
• Earlier: PM, Rudd to address Christians over Net | Politics, religion and the internet will mix when Prime Minister John Howard and Labor leader Kevin Rudd take part in a webcast chat about Christianity (AAP, Australia)

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Faith-based initiatives:

Faith-based initiative backfires | Mental-health and addictions-treatment professionals are wary of spiritual interventions, which they associate with one religious brand: the conservative Christianity of Bush partisans (The Christian Science Monitor)

Faith-based office downsized | Less money, fewer employees in mayor’s proposed budget (The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville)

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Church and state:

• Inmate wins prison preaching fight | A convicted killer who had been barred from preaching in prison will be allowed to resume the practice under an agreement announced Monday that ends a three-year legal battle (Associated Press)
• Some fix-up grants illegal | Money to spruce up churches for Super Bowl ruled unconstitutional (The Detroit News)
• Also: Judge: Super Bowl funds OK for churches | Most of the $736,000 the city promised to three churches as part of a program to clean up the city ahead of the 2006 Super Bowl was justified, but some were not, federal judge has ruled (Associated Press)
• Court okays using churches as polling places | Using a Catholic church as a polling place does not violate the Constitution, even if voters are told to cast their ballots in a room containing crucifixes and other religious icons, a federal judge in Florida ruled (The New York Sun)
• Also: Church polling sites OK, judge says | Polling sites located within houses of worship do not violate the constitutional separation of church and state, a federal judge has ruled (Associated Press)
• Also: Court rejects challenge to use of churches as polling places | Florida resident Jerry Rabinowitz alleged that allowing voting at houses of worship amounted to government endorsement of religion (First Amendment Center)
• Queen’s grandson could lose birthright to throne | The Queen’s grandson Peter Phillips is tenth in line to the throne but his marriage could cost him his birthright because his fiance, Autumn Kelly, is a Roman Catholic (The Times, London)
• Jesus vs. the ACLU | It’s civil liberties versus religious liberties in a Louisiana courthouse (ABC News)
• Banned? | Federal prisons are limiting religious books (Newsweek)
• IDOT turning to African American churches to get drivers to buckle up | Impaired driving also a concern (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Colorado City police torn between religion and law | One by one, police officers in Colorado City are being stripped of their law-enforcement certification because they cannot serve two masters: a polygamous church and their oath to uphold the law (The Arizona Republic)
• Also: Ariz. judge: FLDS town marshal’s acts warrant removal (The Salt Lake Tribune, Ut.)
• Christians drive to ban tests on Sundays | Christian leaders and many lawmakers seek the revision of a law to prevent the government from holding state-run tests on Sundays (The Korea Times)

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Christian Embassy video:

• Officers’ roles in Christian video are called ethics breach | The Defense Department’s inspector general has found that four generals and three other military officers improperly participated in a fundraising video for an evangelical Christian group, inappropriately offering support for the religious organization while appearing to operate within the scope of their official government duties, according to a 47-page investigative report (The Washington Post)
• IG faults generals who appeared in video | Christian fundraising effort was filmed at Pentagon (Air Force Times)
• Officers’ role in Christian video probed | The Army and Air Force are considering disciplinary action against seven officers — including four generals — who violated ethics rules by assisting a Christian group in the production of a fundraising video (Associated Press)
• Geren cleared in inquiry of Christian group’s video | An 8-month Pentagon inquiry has cleared Army Secretary Pete Geren of participating in a Christian promotional video three years ago but concludes that seven high-ranking military officers who also appeared in the video violated Pentagon ethics rules (Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, Tex.)
• Langley general could be punished for role in Christian video | A general at Langley Air Force Base could face discipline for violating regulations by wearing his uniform in a fundraising video for an evangelical Christian group, according to a government report (The Virginian-Pilot)
• General got 2006 reprimand | The Langley Air Force Base general facing punishment for appearing in a 2004 Christian fundraising video was reprimanded last year for using his military e-mail account to solicit support for a Christian congressional candidate (Daily Press, Hampton Roads, Va.)
• Pentagon: Hold on, Christian soldiers! | The new Inspector General’s report will hardly reduce the flow of Weinstein’s hate mail. But it constitutes an instance of official support for some of his concerns (Time)

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Iraq:

• War and peace: Did evangelicals’ support for Iraq invasion damage credibility? | In the months leading up to the now-unpopular Iraq war, did the United States’ powerful conservative evangelical community step away from its responsibility to speak hard truths to the government? (Associated Baptist Press)
• Praying for the Chaplains | The United Church of Christ’s left-wing leadership is staunchly anti-Iraq War. Yet the UCC’s chaplains are among the war’s unsung heroes (Mark Tooley, The American Spectator)
• Iraq’s Christian exodus | Targeted by all sides, Christians must choose to leave, or stay and face death (Keith Roderick, National Review Online)
• Kill or convert, brought to you by the Pentagon | The Pentagon endorses an End Times evangelical group that proselytizes among US troops, plans a “crusade” to Iraq, and promotes a post-apocalyptic kill-or-convert video game. (Max Blumenthal, The Nation)

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Lebanon election:

• Lebanese opposition wins parliament seat | The government suffered a blow Monday when a little-known opposition candidate defeated a former president in a tense parliament by-election that showed the divisions among Lebanon’s once-dominant Christians (Associated Press)
• Earlier: Lebanon Christians divided ahead of vote (Associated Press)
• Lebanon by-election highlights Christian disunity | Lebanon’s Christians emerged on Monday from a by-election split down the middle after opposition leader Michel Aoun’s candidate narrowly beat former President Amin Gemayel, a pillar of the Western-backed government (Reuters)
• Who are the Maronites? | Lebanon’s Maronites make up the largest Christian community in the country – a community where religion and politics are inextricably mixed (BBC)
• Lebanese Christian voices | Three people from different Lebanese Christian communities reflect on Sunday’s by-elections, which saw a government seat fall to an opposition candidate (BBC)
• Fresh blow for Lebanese government | The evidence suggests that some two thirds of Christian Maronites did not actually vote for Mr Aoun’s party – instead they voted for the Government’s candidate in the by-election, Amin Gemayel. It appears to have been the pro-Syrian groups and the Armenians who secured the victory for Mr Aoun (The Times, London)
• Lebanese Christians turn backs on PM | Victory allows the Shia Hezbollah to claim it has the support of the majority of the country’s Christians in its prolonged showdown with Mr. Siniora and his Sunni-dominated government (The Globe and Mail, Toronto)
• Hizballah’s Christian Soldiers? | Why Lebanon’s Maronites are turning to a political party aligned with the Iran-backed opposition (Time)
• Lebanon’s opposition wins parliament seat | Most of the attention was focused on the other vote in the Metin, part of the Christian heartland of Mount Lebanon (Morning Edition, NPR)

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Egypt:

• Setting precedent, Egyptian seeks recognition as convert | An Egyptian man has asked the Egyptian courts to recognise his conversion from Islam to Christianity and instruct the government to change the details on his identity documents, his lawyer said on Monday (Reuters)
• Egypt: Muslim sues for right to convert to Christianity | Christian’s attorney facing death threats from Egyptian security police (Compass Direct)
• Egyptian lawyer abandons work on behalf of convert | An Egyptian lawyer said on Tuesday he was withdrawing an unprecedented petition requesting that the Egyptian authorities recognise the conversion of one of his clients from Islam to Christianity. Lawyer Mamdouh Nakhla told a news conference he was pulling out of the case of convert Mohamed Hegazy because he did not want to offend Muslims or enflame public opinion. (Reuters)
• Egypt: Convert in hiding after lawyer backs out | Attorney for former Muslim seeking Christian ID leaves amid threats, national uproar (Compass Direct)

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Religious freedom:

• ‘Hamas forced professor to convert’ | Fatah officials in Ramallah claimed over the weekend that Professor Sana al-Sayegh, who teaches at Palestine University in Gaza City, was kidnapped by Hamas militiamen who forced her to convert to Islam against her will (The Jerusalem Post)
• Saudis might take Bibles from tourists | Despite a series of initiatives aimed at generating foreign tourism, the Saudi Arabian government continues to bar Jews and Christians from bringing items such as Bibles, crucifixes and Stars of David into the country and is threatening to confiscate them on sight (The Jerusalem Post)
• Christians held in Egypt for work on Web site | Egyptian police have detained two Egyptian Christians for their work on the Web site of a Christian Arab group based in Canada, police sources said on Thursday (Associated Press)
• Building belonging to church attacked | In a pre dawn attack on Saturday, some 200 masked men demolished a building under construction belonging to the Catholic Church in Chavand area in South Rajasthan’s Udaipur district (The Hindu, India)

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China:

• Christianity finds a fulcrum in Asia | I suspect that Christianity will have become a Sino-centric religion two generations from now. China may be for the 21st century what Europe was during the 8th-11th centuries, and America has been during the past 200 years: the natural ground for mass evangelization. I (Spengler, Asia Times)
• China tells living Buddhas to obtain permission before they reincarnate | The rules effectively exclude the Dali Lama from any role in recognising a living Buddha (The Times, London)
• God lives in China | China’s one-party state is certainly powerful, ruthlessly so. But claiming the power to regulate the metaphysical workings of the cosmos is absurd (Editorial, The Dallas Morning News)
• China bans crude birth control slogans | China has banned crude and insensitive slogans promoting the country’s ‘one-child’ family planning policy, such as “Raise fewer babies but more piggies,” which have stoked anger in rural areas, state media said Sunday (Associated Press)

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Uganda:

• Orombi urges the Acholi to forgive | The Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, the Rt. Rev. Henry Luke Orombi, has urged the Acholi to forgive the LRA rebels and UPDF soldiers for the crimes committed against them (New Vision, Uganda)
• Orombi’s grandpa had small gods | Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi has said his grandfather had 12 “small gods” (New Vision, Uganda)
• ‘Don’t touch our pastors’ | A plan by the Government to check the activities of some religious groups is widely viewed as an infringement on the freedom of worship of Ugandans (New Vision, Uganda)
• Media exposure of fake pastors was great | But one thing many people tend to forget is that fake men of God — those who masquerade as servants of God — have been around since time immemorial (Peter Nyanzi, The Monitor, Uganda)

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Court: Priest was killed:

• Kenya court says American priest killed | The death of an American priest who openly criticized the Kenyan government was homicide, not suicide as an earlier investigation found, a Kenyan court ruled Wednesday. The court also ordered the government to launch a new probe (Associated Press)
• Church calls for fresh probe after court finds Fr Kaiser was murdered | A Catholic missionary priest, Fr. Anthony John Kaiser whose body was recovered in Naivasha seven years ago, was murdered, a court in Nairobi ruled (CISA)
• Father Kaiser saw it coming | Catholic priest Father Anthony Kaiser had a premonition of his death. The American-born cleric wrote a book in which he expressed fears that he could be killed (The Nation, Kenya)

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Genocide:

• 2 suspects in Rwanda genocide freed | A French court on Wednesday ordered a priest and a political official suspected in the 1994 Rwandan genocide freed from jail while they are being investigated. (Associated Press)
• Rebel disorganisation delays east Sudan peace deal | Squabbling among east Sudanese rebels and disorganisation in their ranks are hampering implementation of a deal that ended a decade long insurgency, a former rebel leader said on Monday (Reuters)
• A genocide not to be denied | As an organization concerned about human rights, The Anti-Defamation League ought to acknowledge the genocide against the Armenian people during World War I, and criticize Turkish attempts to repress the memory of this historical reality (Editorial, The Boston Globe)
• Darfur rebels agree to peace talks | In a major step forward, more than a dozen rebel groups agreed on peace terms with Khartoum, and hope for talks in two to three months (The Christian Science Monitor)
• No time to take the pressure off | The proposed UN force is a sweet and sour deal for desperate Darfuris (Editorial, The Economist)

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Abuse:

• Victims want abusive priests ID’d | A national support group for people sexually abused by priests wants Vermont’s Catholic Church to publicize the names and whereabouts of all personnel accused of molesting parishioners (Rutland Herald, Vt.)
• Also: ‘Suspending is obviously not enough’ | Advocate for priest abuse victims says diocese should make public names of workers who harmed children (Burlington Free Press, Vt.)
• Mexican cardinal deposed in abuse case | Mexico’s most prominent cardinal was deposed Wednesday in a U.S. lawsuit accusing him of complicity in the alleged rape of a child by a Mexican priest (Associated Press)
• Also: U.S. lawyers grill top Mexico cardinal in abuse case | Mexico’s leading Roman Catholic cleric, Cardinal Norberto Rivera, was questioned on Wednesday by U.S. lawyers who accuse him of protecting a priest wanted for child sex abuse (Reuters)
• Italian priest investigated for abuse | An 82-year-old priest is under investigation after addicts accused him of sexually abusing them at a rehabilitation center, a spokesman confirmed Friday. The cleric says the allegations are baseless (Associated Press)
• Also: Italian priest accused of sexual assault by ex-clients | A prominent Italian priest who is close to some of Italy’s most powerful politicians has been accused by men who were once clients of his drug rehabilitation charity of sexually abusing them (The New York Times)
• Victim says church makes her relive sex abuse | Interrogation by insurer designed to discourage claims, woman says (CanWest News Service)
• Sex slavery in church | At least 300 believers have so far come up to accuse born-again pastors of various crimes including extortion, sex slavery, fraud and manipulation. (The Monitor, Uganda)
• Man sentenced for sex with young teens from church dance ministry | “We thought your dance ministry would bring her closer to God” (The Herald, Sierra Vista, Az.)
• Minister charged with indecent exposure | Tommy Tester, 58, of Bristol, Va., was wearing a skirt when he was arrested last week after allegedly urinating in front of children at a car wash, police said (Associated Press)
• Also: Bristol pastor, Christian radio station employee charged with indecent exposure | WZAP says Tommy Tester “has been relieved of his responsibilities at the station until such facts surrounding the case are determined” (Kingsport Times-News, Va.)
• Pastor arrested for defilement | Police have arrested a pastor for allegedly defiling a 16-year-old girl in Rukungiri District (The Monitor, Uganda)
• Lawsuit filed against alleged molester, church he worked at | The family of one of the alleged victims of alleged child molester Mark Comford is suing him and Faith Baptist Church, where he worked for as a youth leader, for $30 million in damages (Herald-Argus, LaPorte, Ind.)
• Priest’s rights not violated, prosecutors say | Prosecutors argue that the Rev. Gary E. Underwood’s due-process rights were not violated by a 22-year time gap before he was charged with child molestation (Arizona Daily Star)
• Police: Former pastor describes touching girl | Attorney questions validity of statement (Utica Observer-Dispatch, N.Y.)
• Trinity Baptist wants 5 sex suits dismissed | Trinity Baptist Church is seeking the dismissal of five lawsuits filed against the Jacksonville congregation by women who say they were sexually abused as children in the 1970s and 1980s by the former Rev. Robert Gray (Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville, fourth item)
• Uncovering child sex abuse: A stand-off with the Catholic Church | A nationwide push is happening to extend the amount of time victims of childhood sexual abuse have to seek justice. While most people are rejoicing, the Catholic Church is fighting the legislation (Bill Frogameni, AlterNet)
• A lost generation of souls? | The Catholic Church’s cover-up of child abuse will prove far more costly than the original crimes (Tom Murphy, The Times, London)
• Tackle the problems that created church sex scandal | If we address the structural issues that made this scandal possible, we may still be able to dig our way out of this pit. (Raymond A. Schroth, The Star-Ledger, N.J.)

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Crime:

• Prodi asks church’s help with tax cheats | Premier Romano Prodi has called on Roman Catholic priests to help him battle Italy’s widespread tax evasion by invoking the seventh commandment — thou shalt not steal (Associated Press)
• U.S. marshals let fugitives come to them, in church | A program by the United States Marshals Service works to give nonviolent fugitives a chance to resolve their court problems in a neutral setting (The New York Times)
• Also: Marshals program eases road to surrender | The Fugitive Safe Surrender program was started by the U.S. Marshals Service in Cleveland two years ago and spread to Indianapolis, Phoenix and Akron, Ohio, before Nashville (Associated Press)
• Course helps churches handle offenders | Balancing Acts is designed for Unitarian Universalists, but its ideas can be adapted to other denominations, and its creators hope preachers from all faiths find it useful (Associated Press)
• Priest appeals murder conviction in 1980 death of nun | More than a year after he was convicted for the 1980 murder of a nun, Gerald Robinson has appealed his conviction (The Toledo Blade)
• Quick thinking saves stabbed priest | A chef who provided first aid to a Sydney priest who had his throat cut in a vicious stabbing attack yesterday morning has been hailed by police as a hero (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Also: Priest conscious after stabbing | Father Ho Tran, 55, from the Divine Word Mission in Marsfield, was allegedly stabbed when he disturbed an intruder near the mission’s communal dining area about 4.30am (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Gunman shoots Lord’s Chosen members | Two members of the Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries (aka) The Lord’s Chosen were early yesterday shot and wounded for allegedly preaching the gospel in Lagos (Daily Champion, Nigeria)
• Two presenters injured in armed attack on evangelical radio station | Reporters Without Borders today condemned an attack by gunmen on Believers Broadcasting Network (BBN), a protestant-run radio station in Freetown, in the early hours of 4 August in which two radio presenters were shot and seriously injured (Reporters Without Borders)
• Pastor ordered to release children | A pastor from the Christian Fellowship Church at Oshakati was ordered to release by last Friday a number of children that he had taken under his care without their parents’ consent (New Era, Namibia)
• Charges revived against preacher who hit officer with Bible | A street preacher accused of assaulting an Athens, Tenn., police officer won’t face assault charges but was indicted on charges of obstructing a highway and resisting arrest for a February incident (Knoxville News-Sentinel)
• Man charged in church bomb scare | A Hometown man faces criminal charges after he told an usher at Parkview Christian Church in Orland Park Sunday he had a bomb in his briefcase (Daily Southtown, Chicago)
• Hearing is set on case against priest | A judge set Aug. 27 as the date to hear arguments on whether to toss out embezzlement charges against the priest accused of misusing donation money for two Catholic churches. (Richmond Times-Dispatch, Va.)
• Frederick priest busted for jogging in the nude | A Catholic priest who said he was jogging naked to avoid sweating profusely faces an indecent exposure charge (The Daily Times-Call, Longmont, Co.)
• Also: Parishes ponder naked, jogging priest | The leadership councils at three northern Colorado Catholic parishes met tonight with a vicar from the Archdiocese of Denver to discuss what to do about a priest charged with going for a naked jog. (The Denver Post)
• Reverend accused of harassing church member | A reverend from Chester County, South Carolina has been charged with harassing a church member (WCNC, Charlotte, N.C.)
• Woman cleared of assault in dispute with grandson over religion | A Sale Creek woman who allegedly slapped her grandson after he made sexually disparaging remarks about her, Jesus Christ and her religion has been cleared of domestic assault (The Chattanoogan, Tenn.)
• Couple suing church, officers | Allege battery by Southeast security (The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Ky.)

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Pastor accused of insurance scam:

• Prosecutors: Man of God was man of greed | Phillips accused of forgery in alleged insurance scam (Rocky Mountain News, Denver)
• Insurance revelations a surprise to victims (Rocky Mountain News, Denver)
• Pastor charged with theft | Phillips allegedly gained from bogus insurance (The Denver Post)
• Pastor charged with defrauding followers | A prominent pastor accused of falsifying life insurance documents to profit from deaths in his congregation was charged with theft and forgery, the attorney general said Tuesday (Associated Press)

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Money and business:

• Shut down Christian health plan, state says | Whether or not it’s called insurance, rules must be followed (Las Vegas Sun)
• Audit finds parishes mishandled money | A handful of parishes in the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego deliberately concealed or inappropriately handled about $500,000 in funds in sometimes “purposeful attempts” to circumvent federal bankruptcy proceedings, according to an auditor’s report (Associated Press)
• Religion today: The Holy Land Experience’s savior | Already, ticket sales are up 25 percent, owing to mentions on the new parent’s broadcasts, and an expansion is planned (Associated Press)
• Ministers tend the flock at work sites | Companies see benefits in hiring chaplains to help employees with personal issues (Los Angeles Times)
• In praise of usury | Ignore credit snobs. It is no sin to profit from lending to the poor (The Economist)
• PTL’s past dying, but land reviving | Site sees renewed purpose as key players pass away (The Charlotte Observer, N.C.)

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Giving:

• Blatant benevolence and conspicuous consumption | Charity is just as “selfish” as self-indulgence (The Economist)
• Response: The war on charity | Faith, hope, and determinism — and by the way, the saying now is, selfishness begins at home (Jeremy Lott, The American Spectator)
• Researchers say giving leads to a healthier, happier life | Benefits of altruistic love are broken down in a new book, ‘Why good things happen to good people’ (The Christian Science Monitor)
• Church giving turns digital | To keep up with the times, houses of worship offer electronic payment options (The Christian Science Monitor)
• The ATM in the church lobby | Credit and debit card swipe machines in churches may startle some of the pious, but such kiosks, already present in some houses of worship, might become even more commonplace now that a new IRS regulation is in effect (Time)

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Missions and ministry:

• Christians move towards code on seeking converts | Christian churches are moving closer to a common code of conduct on how they go about winning converts among themselves and from other religions, the World Council of Churches said on Monday (Reuters)
• Also: Religious conversion: In Toulouse, a common code of conduct gets closer | With Evangelical and Pentecostal representatives joining in at an 8-12 August consultation in Toulouse, the joint Vatican-WCC study process on religious conversion gets one step closer to its goal of a common code of conduct in seeking converts to Christianity (Press release, World Council of Churches)
• Focus helping AIDS benefit| Group a sponsor of Springs ride (The Denver Post)
• Separation of church & play gets smudged | An Evangelical Christian group is causing a stir in Park Slope playgrounds by proselytizing young children using methods that irk some parents (New York Daily News)
• Group to deliver Bibles with newspapers | International Bible Society-Send the Light wants to deliver custom-designed New Testaments to newspaper subscribers around the country as part of an effort to find innovative ways to spread a Christian message. But even in the Bible Belt, not everyone thinks that’s a good idea (Associated Press)
• Church house is free, but you move it | A church is giving away a house, but nothing’s really free. The new owner will have to move it elsewhere. First Wesleyan Church is offering the house because it blocks the view of the church from the road, pastor Ernest Martin said (Associated Press)
• Going in and out of jail for 25 years | He could have cruised. Instead, without a round of golf or a swing in a hammock, without a vacation and without passing Go, Don Dickinson went to jail. As a volunteer chaplain (Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times)
• Faith Night at RFK | Fans hang in for postgame harmonies (The Washington Post)

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Harvest Crusade:

• Reaching out at Harvest Crusade | Three-day 18th annual Harvest Crusade revival raises $930,000 (The Orange County Register)
• Annual ‘huge step of faith’ set to begin | Harvest Crusade organizers expect more than 100,000 over three days at Anaheim stadium (Los Angeles Times)
• Harvest Crusade celebrates with opening night rally | In a fitting venue, Angel Stadium of Anaheim played host to thousands of Christians on Friday night, eager to hear an energetic pastor reaffirm their faith (The Orange County Register)

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Healthcare study:

• Religious doctors no more likely to care for underserved patients | Although most religious traditions call on the faithful to serve the poor, a large cross-sectional survey of U.S. physicians found that physicians who are more religious are slightly less likely to practice medicine among the underserved than physicians with no religious affiliation (Press release, NewsWise)
• Doctors’ faith disputed as factor in helping poor | Religious doctors are more likely to consider their profession a “calling” but no more likely to treat underserved patients than their secular counterparts, according to a new study from the University of Chicago (Chicago Tribune)
• Non-religious doctors just as likely to care for poor: study (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Study: Do religious physicians disproportionately care for the underserved? (Annals of Family Medicine)

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Health care:

• Some doctors refuse services for religious reasons | Doctors are becoming more assertive in refusing to treat patients for religious reasons, expanding the list of services they won’t provide beyond abortion to include artificial insemination, use of fetal tissues and even prescribing Viagra (USA Today)
• Faith healers | A growing number of parish nurses are acting as links between spiritual and medical communities and helping churches become places of holistic healing. (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
• Christian view on postpartum depression | A Coon Rapids mother hopes her story of coping with the illness with help from God will inspire other women (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

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Minneapolis bridge collapse:

• 1,400 gather at bridge collapse memorial | Across the Twin Cities, in Spanish, Greek and English, the prayers rose up Sunday. Prayers of peace for grieving families. Prayers of strength for those still searching the Mississippi River. And prayers of gratitude from those who were spared (Associated Press)
• Minnesota mourners in prayer, together | People of all faiths gather to remember the victims of the fallen bridge and the eight still missing (Los Angeles Times)
• Bridge dead honored with church bells | Church bells tolled in downtown Minneapolis as residents observed a moment of silence for the victims of last week’s bridge collapse (Associated Press)

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Entertainment and media:

• Sermons, book tapes keep cassettes going | Sales of music tapes plummeted from 442 million in 1990 to about 700,000 last year, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (Associated Press)
• Bergman, Antonioni and the religiously inclined | While God had a leading role in several of Ingmar Bergman’s films, Michelangelo Antonioni was unremittingly secular (Peter Steinfels, The New York Times)
• Filmmakers put their faith in the Gospel | Producer Jeff Clanagan and 20th Century Fox are teaming up to make several movies for the Christian market (Los Angeles Times)
• Godcaster | Minister delivers sermons through TV, Internet, radio (Sun-Journal, Lewiston, Me.)
• Downloading heaven | The audio-Bible craze poses a question: should Jesus and Madonna (the singing one) go on the same iPod? (Newsweek)
• Sinead O’Connor has new `Theology’ CD | Fifteen years after she tore up a photo of Pope John Paul II during an appearance on NBC-TV’s “Saturday Night Live,” Sinead O’Connor has released “Theology,” an album about God (Associated Press)
• FCC denies United Church of Christ Miami license challenges | Agency rules in favor of Miami’s WTVJ, WFOR (Broadcasting & Cable)
• Church offers text messages from pope | Organizers of Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Austria next month are offering the faithful a foretaste: daily cell phone text messages with quotes from the pontiff (Associated Press)
• Man finds 19th-century periodicals | Dozens of issues of Grace Greenwood’s “Little Pilgrim” discovered. Grace Greenwood was the pen name of Sara Jane Clarke, a native of Pompey, N.Y., and descendant of the preacher and theologian Jonathan Edwards (Associated Press)
• Churches vow to fight for free press | Churches want President Kibaki not to assent to the controversial Media Bill (East African Standard, Kenya)

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Sports:

• Elam gets kicks studying religious texts | Denver Broncos kicker recently enrolled in a distance-learning program at Liberty University’s seminary in Lynchburg, Va., where he’s pursuing a master’s degree (Associated Press)
• NASCAR veteran Shepherd driven by his faith | Morgan Shepherd is a 65-year-old NASCAR original, the son of a convicted moonshiner who followed his father deep into a life of trouble before pulling himself up by the bootstraps and finding purpose with a faith that’s burned into his heart and decalled on to his Dodge (CanWest News Service)
• Protestant quits Gaelic football accusing fellow players of bigotry | For much of his life sport has been Darren Graham’s only religion, but in recent years his biggest challenge on the pitch has been religious bigotry (The Times, London)
• Update: Protestant returns to GAA after sectarian taunting (Belfast Telegraph)
• NCAA group discusses pregnant athletes | The NCAA should focus on educating schools and pregnant athletes receiving scholarships about their rights, not create new rules, the outgoing head of the NCAA’s Committee on Women’s Athletics said (Associated Press)

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Theater:

• Judas as criminal defendant | The traitor of Jesus gets a feisty defense attorney in ‘The Last Days of Judas Iscariot,’ which combines TV drama with theology (Los Angeles Times)
• God: the musicals | A satirical cabaret about Evangelical Christianity, one of a number of religion-based musicals opening in Scotland this month, has become the most controversial show on this year’s Edinburgh Fringe (The Times, London)
• Edinburgh Fringe satirists aim their fire at Christian right | We have nothing to fear from al-Qa’ida. Christian fundamentalists are the real extremist threat. That’s the message from the writers of a new play being shown at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival (The Independent, London)

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Evan Almighty:

• Call to ban blasphemous movie Evan Almighty | The Malaysian government has been asked to ban the movie “Evan Almighty,” as it is said to hurt Muslims’ sensitivities by poking fun at God and Prophet Noah (Bernama)
• Faithful flock to Noah film to glimpse Evan on Earth | Clergy seek to capitalise on the most expensive comedy ever made (The Guardian, London)

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Books:

• Dungy’s book rises to no. 1 spot on list | Already best on the field, Tony Dungy is now tops in the bookstore. Six months after becoming the first black coach to win a Super Bowl, he’s about to grab the No. 1 spot on The New York Times‘ bestseller list (Associated Press)
• The shock of the old | Reflections on the Amish way of life, rooted firmly in the 19th century (The Boston Globe)
• In pursuit of the old and pure | A review of The Protestant Revolution: From Martin Luther to Martin Luther King Jr by William Naphy (The Economist)
• Strang Communications to launch new magazine | “Christian Book Reader” will be a complimentary bimonthly publication distributed through Borders bookstores and public libraries (Orlando Business Journal)
• Atheist tracts | God, they’re predictable (Harvey Mansfield, The Weekly Standard)
• Harry Potter: The final chapter | Rowling: “There clearly is a religious undertone” (Dateline, NBC)

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Education:

• Does the Bible have a place in public schools? | New legal mandates and the rise of two national curricula are driving a surge in the number of classes — and the debate over how they’re taught (Los Angeles Times)
• Do church-run ‘adopt-a-school’ programs cross the line? | Five churches have informally “adopted” Visalia Unified School District elementary schools, donating time, money, energy — and Christian values (Visalia Times Delta, Ca.)
• Beach School Board wants people to pray for them | Three times since September, board Secretary Dianne Alexander has been unable to find a clergy member willing to deliver a non sectarian blessing. (The Virginian-Pilot)
• Principal ousted over NYC school ritual | A public school principal accused of paying a woman to lead Santeria rituals and sprinkle chicken blood on the high school in an attempt to cleanse it of negative energy will be fired, the Department of Education said Tuesday (Associated Press)
• Catholic school board unanimously reverses decision on veteran teacher | Columbus High School is looking for a new social studies teacher after local Catholic officials Monday unanimously reversed their earlier support for Tom Girsch at the behest of the Archdiocese of Dubuque (The Courier, Waterloo, Ia.)
• Education officials accused of religious bias | A faith-based education provider says her company was the target of a “witch hunt” (St. Petersburg Times, Fla.)
• Movie theater ads tout Catholic schools | Struggling Philadelphia Archdiocese has used banner ads on buses and print and radio ads to get across its message about its schools, but this is the first foray into movie houses (Associated Press)
• Missing Mass? It’ll cost you | Parish to end school discounts to uninvolved (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)
• Catholic Church drops school fidelity vows | The Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney has withdrawn plans to have its 167 school principals, deputy principals and religious education co-ordinators commit publicly to a “vow of fidelity” by adhering to church teaching on homosexuality, birth control and women’s ordination (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Also: Catholic schools deny student squeeze | The Catholic church denies it is squeezing students of other faiths out of its NSW schools but is open about its desire for a return to strict religious values (AAP, Australia)
• Should non-believers be banned? | Our columnists debate the merits of George Pell’s proposal (Anita Quigley and Michelle Cazzulino, The Daily Telegraph, Australia)
• Preschool plan to spread the Catholic word | Sydney’s Catholic Church may run its own preschools as a way of bolstering its student population through primary and secondary schools and spreading the Catholic faith from “cradle to the grave” (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Russian church: School must teach morals | A Russian Orthodox Church spokesman said Wednesday that the country’s schools should teach religious principles and moral values, and he accused some leading scientists of trying to impose the “ideology of science” on the education system. (Associated Press)
• New secular civics class riling Catholic Church in Spain | The course will also deal with issues like gender, sexuality and the family, and the church is up in arms (International Herald Tribune)

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Evolution:

• Fossils challenge old evolution theory | The discovery by Meave Leakey, a member of a famous family of paleontologists, shows that two species of early human ancestors lived at the same time in Kenya. That pokes holes in the chief theory of man’s early evolution — that one of those species evolved from the other. And it further discredits that iconic illustration of human evolution that begins with a knuckle-dragging ape and ends with a briefcase-carrying man (Associated Press)
• Twin fossil find adds twist to human evolution | Homo erectus had an unexpected neighbour, and a surprising lifestyle too (Nature)
• Understanding evolution is crucial to debate | A well-thought-out curriculum in science does not guarantee that evolution will be taught in all its glory — or even coherently (Sally Lehrman, The Boston Globe)

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New Texas laws:

• Students must remember ‘God’ in Texas pledge | Texas students will have four more words to remember when they head back to class this month and begin reciting the state’s pledge of allegiance (Houston Chronicle)
• Dad crusades against God in school | Fight against moment of silence goes to court today (Dallas Morning News)
• Moment of silence begins court battle | Dad crusading against God in school alleges it backs prayer (The Dallas Morning News)
• New state law on religious expression in schools draws mixed reactions | The new state law protecting students’ religious expression in school isn’t groundbreaking, but it’s causing quakes of concern as school districts try to please parties on all sides of the issue (Waco Tribune-Herald, Tex.)
• New state law bolsters use of Bibles in classrooms | If enough students on a campus demand a course revolving around the Bible, a school district now must offer it (Waco Tribune-Herald, Tex.)

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Using school buildings:

• Religious group sues Gadsden school board | The Child Evangelism Fellowship of Alabama has sued the Gadsden Board of Education, alleging the board is discriminating against the Christian organization by not allowing it to use school property as secular groups do (Associated Press)
• Church use of school probed | City principal defends waiving required fee for wife’s congregation (The Baltimore Sun)
• Scouts on hunt for new homes | Officials with School District U-46 decided that to be fair, they either had to start charging Scouts or waive fees for all non-profits – – something they thought would be too expensive (Chicago Tribune)

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Higher education:

• Religion today: Homemaking at Southwestern Baptist | The Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary offers coursework in Greek and Hebrew, in archaeology, in the philosophy of religion and — starting this fall — in how to cook and sew (Associated Press)
• Biola sues Bank of America, BNP over bond swaps | School says banks conspired to overcharge the school for $84.2 million of interest-rate derivatives (Bloomberg)
• Regent University banks on more undergrads to aid finances | Endowment, which was $277 million in 2007, has been tapped by the university to cover budget deficits in recent years (The Virginian-Pilot)
• School to install foot baths for Muslims | Students at a Michigan university have been washing their feet in bathroom sinks before prayers. Critics see preferential treatment (Los Angeles Times)
• Also: Universities install footbaths to benefit Muslims, and not everyone is pleased | As the nation’s Muslim population grows, issues of religious accommodation are becoming more common, and more complicated (The New York Times)
• Synod votes to keep seminary open | Concerned about the denomination’s long-term spiritual growth, delegates at the biennial convention of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod have voted to keep Michigan Lutheran Seminary in Saginaw open and to refrain from trimming $600,000 from the synod’s world missions programs (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)
• Purge at Ave Maria Law? | Push to fire tenured faculty member — one of the school’s founders — leaves many professors worried about state of academic freedom (Inside Higher Ed)
• Catholic college crosses new ground | Ave Maria’s defining feature is its promise to remain true to Ex Corde Ecclesiae (USA Today)
• Bland’s words at Christian college echo Kofi Annan’s | Prince George’s County Council member Marilynn Bland recently touted the “academic journey” that has led her to receive a doctoral degree, including in her news release quotes from the dissertation she said she wrote (The Washington Post)
• Clean house in religion department | Federal jury found bias in BCC’s hiring, promotion (The Miami Herald)

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Scientology:

• Scientologists find unlikely allies in other faiths | The Glorious Church of God in Christ in Tampa is among a number of houses of worship across the U.S. – how many is not clear – that have begun to embrace some of the Church of Scientology’s programs (Associated Press)
• Xenu-phobia | Is Scientology weird? Sure. A cult, no. (Mark Oppenheimer, The Washington Post)
• Response: What’s the matter with Scientology? | Part 2 (Ross Douthat, The Atlantic)

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Other stories of interest:

• Preaching transformation, U.S. sect goes global | How did a boisterous religious movement born in a U.S. street revival go on to claim a global following, according to the World Christian Database, of 500 million people? (Reuters)
• Hitting children not justified—churches | There can be no biblical justification for corporal punishment of children in the 21st century, a spokesperson for the SA Council of Churches said yesterday (Dispatch, South Africa)
• The downside of diversity | A Harvard political scientist finds that diversity hurts civic life. What happens when a liberal scholar unearths an inconvenient truth? (The Boston Globe)
• Giant cross to mark Stalin terror | A giant cross commemorating the victims of Stalin’s terror 70 years after the worst of the purges has reached Moscow after a journey from northern Russia (BBC)
• Also: Church remembers Stalin’s victims, while Kremlin looks away | A giant cross now commands the field where the first shots of Stalin’s Great Terror sounded 70 years ago (The New York Times)
• What’s in a name? Parsing the ‘God Particle,’ the ultimate metaphor | The biggest name-dropper in science, Albert Einstein, mentioned God often enough that one could imagine he and the “Old One” had a standing date for coffee or tennis (The New York Times)
• Religion news in brief | United Methodist Publishing House cuts staff, Woman won’t be ordered to NA meetings, and other stories (Associated Press)
• I hear you knocking … | The Jehovah’s Witnesses are rare among religious groups in publishing precise (though self-reported) membership statistics (The Economist)
• Waging peace in the name of religion | International coalition focuses on shared struggle against common enemies of humankind — and harnesses that energy for common action (Charles C. Haynes, First Amendment Center)

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