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GBY/GBA
"When did they pass the constitutional amendment requiring every president and would-be president to end every speech with the words, 'God bless you and God bless America'?" asks Slate editor Michael Kinsley. The rest of his humorous column is basically a riff on that point. He imagines politicians saying, "Pass the salt, honey. God bless you, and God bless America." He tries to find out where the whole thing started. He notes that no one says "God bless you, and God bless France" (well, of course not). And you can guess how he ends the column.

Bush's faith-based initiative:

• New Bush office seeks closer ties to church groups (The New York Times)
• Bush boosts faith's role in charity | Sets initiatives on social needs (The Boston Globe)
• Bush to push ties to faith-based aid (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Philadelphia's religious groups may serve as model for nation (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Bush's faith-based group initiative will meet resistance (The Washington Post)
• Churches divided on role in U.S. social service programs | Religious leaders disagree on whether to use their organizations' assets to run government-sponsored projects, a plan endorsed by Bush. (Los Angeles Times)
• Goldsmith may get advisory slot | Professor to head office on faith-based issues instead of ex-Indianapolis mayor, Bush aides say. (Associated Press/The Indianapolis Star)

Other stories of interest:

• Prelate of the people | Cardinal Jaime Sin seeks justice in the Philippines (San Francisco Chronicle)
• Religious differences swim into political divide (George Bullard, The Detroit News)
• The conscience of a Pentecostal | Conscience has come into play in a different way for Ashcroft the lawmaker. (Martin Marty, Los Angeles Times)
• Kuwaiti priest appeals against jail sentence (Gulf News)

See our past Weblog updates:

January 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22

January 19 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15

January 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8

January 5 | 4 | 3 | 2

December 29 | 28 | 27

December 22 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 18

December 15 | 14 | 13 | 12

December 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4

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January (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45