Also: Same-sex marriages to be allowed in B.C.| Society's notion of marriage has changed and governments need to recognize that, the B.C. Court of Appeal declared yesterday as it strongly endorsed the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry (The Globe & Mail, Toronto)
Bush: Iraq war a time of testing, prayer | Somber, patriotic National Day of Prayer service contrasted with last year's event, which had the air of a Christian revival (Associated Press)
Day of Prayer celebrations draw debate | When Congress, at the behest of Harry Truman, approved a National Day of Prayer, the intent was to be inclusive of all religious beliefs. But some critics contend the event has become co-opted in recent years by evangelical Christians (Contra Costa [Calif.] Times)
A little child shall lead them | Lauren Cutshall, a fifth-grader, organized a group of students, teachers and parents before school yesterday in observance of President Bush's National Day of Prayer (Lexington Herald-Leader)
'God, bless America' | On Day of Prayer, many sought guidance for nation (The Charlotte Observer)
Also: Two men and a cradle? | Scientific discovery might allow two men to produce children with both partners' genetic code (The Washington Post)
Genetic test blunders risk needless abortions | Warning is being issued by medical geneticists who have assessed the outcomes of some of the tens of thousands of DNA tests carried out every month in the US as part of the world's largest screening program for cystic fibrosis (New Scientist)
Texas House passes abortion bill requiring 24-hour wait | The vote on House Bill 15 was 96-41. It is expected to be finally passed later this week and go to the Senate, where Sen. Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands, will try to win approval (Houston Chronicle)
Equality law must bind church, say gay Christians | Lobby British government against attempts by the Church of England to obtain exemption from planned anti-discrimination employment regulations (The Guardian, London)
Campaign targets city's gay-rights vote | Ohio conservatives wage an all-out crusade in Kentucky to stop a proposed law to protect homosexuals from discrimination (Los Angeles Times)
Education:
D.C. mayor endorses vouchers for schools | Program pushed by Education Secretary Rod Paige, who has met resistance on the issue from D.C. officials (The Washington Times)
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Also: D.C. mayor backs vouchers | Williams reverses his position on a key GOP initiative after talks (The Washington Post)
Faith & works | Christians aid Muslims outside the glare of Western journalists bent on uncovering a new crusade. In Jordan, Red Crescent officials clearly don't want Christians credited for helping those displaced by the war in Iraq. That's just fine by the relief workers. The idea is for someone else to get the credit, anyway (World)
Enduring mercy at The Med | Thirty years ago, 11 Presbyterian women set out to follow Jesus on a Great Commission (David Waters, The Commercial Appeal, Memphis)
Ex-sex shop faces woes as Christian store | A man who converted his sex toy shop to a Christian bookstore said sales are so slow he was able to stock his shelves only after receiving $80,000 worth of donated religious goods (Associated Press)
'Corporate vulture' | Philip Anschutz tries to thread his way into heaven (Orange County Weekly)
Crime:
Arsenic poisoning ruled a homicide | Someone put the deadly heavy metal into the coffee that was served to parishioners following Sunday's service (Portland Press Herald, Maine)
Pedophile was 'sincere Christian' | A Baptist church missionary who sexually interfered with young boys in the Philippines was a sincere Christian dedicated to helping the less fortunate, a court was told today (The Australian)
Priest to die for child sacrifice | A court has sentenced a priest to death for sacrificing a 9-year-old child to appease a deity in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand (Herald Sun, Australia)
Ex-SEAL trainee says he alone killed woman in 1995 | Billy Joe Brown says in a sworn statement that his new-found religious faith wouldn't let him stay silent while his co-defendant, Dustin Turner, does time for a crime he didn't commit (The Virginian-Pilot)
Another church sex scandal | From the time she was 10, until she turned 13, Heidi Meyer, a Jehovah's Witness, says she was molested by a member of her congregation. Finally, she turned to the leaders of her faith (CBS News)
Diocese at fault, it admits | The case of accused priest who resurfaced was 'mishandled' (The Sacramento Bee)
Church life:
Church converts | As more churches in Britain fall silent, their empty edifices are finding new life as nightclubs, bagpipe training centers, theaters, pubs, and museums (The Christian Science Monitor)
Texas conservatives find room on issues | For the first time in 130 years, Republicans are in control of the Texas House and conservatives are finding fertile ground for social issues like restrictions on abortion and bans on same-sex unions (Associated Press)
Coming out of the conservative closet | Coming out as Christian or conservative is terrifying, as is, I'm certain, coming out as gay (Elizabeth Nickson, National Post, Canada)
Hare Krishna airport solicitors win judge's support | Court issues preliminary injunction to halt enforcement of Los Angeles ordinance allowing airport staff to limit movements of Krishnas seeking donations (Associated Press)
Media:
Stories they don't want told | Since the end of March, Christian evangelism has been making ever-widening ripples in the American press (Varsha Bhosle, Rediff.com, India)
The brain at prayer | Why do humans pray? What happens in our brains when we meditate? Are we genetically programmed to look for the spiritual experience? (Radio Nederland)
One pilgrim's progress up a spiritual mountain | Visiting Mount Athos, the exclusive domain of monks and other holy men, the spiritual center of the Orthodox Church, and a place shrouded in tradition and legend (The Boston Globe)
'Interfaith summit' to discuss role of religion in postwar Iraq | Summit members hope to release a joint statement, similar to one released shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks, calling on Americans to respect differences of religion, race and worship (Chicago Sun-Times)
Debate rages over normalizing trade with religious freedom violator | Amid continuing reports of religious persecution in Laos, a lobbying battle is under way over whether the United States should grant normal trade relations status to the impoverished communist nation (CNSNews.com)
Pope's childhood friend recalls his youth | An 81-year-old actress who grew up with Pope John Paul II has published a book of memoirs, recalling performing alongside the future pontiff in clandestine theaters in Nazi-occupied Poland (Associated Press)
United Church of Christ book says Jesus was gay | Author Theodore W. Jennings is ordained minister in The United Methodist Church and professor of biblical and constructive theology at United Church of Christ-related Chicago Theological Seminary (Press release)
A hundred years of Muggery | The life and times of Malcolm Muggeridge (Christopher Hitchens, The Weekly Standard)
Bible:
In praise of imprecision | Stop reading the Bible as history (Robert Nowell, The Guardian, London)
Restoring Mary Magdalene | Scholars are trying to set the record straight about the saint, who traditionally is seen as a floozy (The Baltimore Sun)
Thou shalt not place Bibles in our rooms, Borgata says | The $1.1 billion resort opening this summer will break rank from every other casino and not allow the Gideons to place a Bible in any of its 2,002 hotel rooms (The Press of Atlantic City, NJ)
Art interprets duality of Jesus, Mary | Debates over human and divine natures have played out in Western art for centuries, as a Getty exhibition illustrates (Los Angeles Times)
Bishop and mayor to fight in court for Madonna painting | It is said to be the only religious representation of a pregnant Virgin Mary in existence and is the pride and chief tourist attraction of Monterchi, where it was created in 1460 (The Daily Telegraph, London)
Not a prayer | Anitra Blayton helps raise awareness for a troubled church but forgets about art (Ft. Worth Weekly)
Arts show: Dylan Mortimer's "Museum of Faith Analysis" | Complete with its own logo (a pair of praying hands as seen through a targeting scope), laminated signage, X-ray photographs, colorful diagrams and computer terminals, the "Museum" proclaims its mission is "to make faith as easy as 1-2-3!" (Kansas City Star)
Other stories of interest:
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Virgin Mary 'weeps' once more | Was the center of world attention last year when it appeared to be "weeping" rose-scented tears (Herald Sun, Australia)
Religion news in brief | Easter in Moscow, Jesus Hawaii Project defended, religions debate Kenya's constitution, and other stories (Associated Press)
Christians, Jews, and blasphemers | Culture has led otherwise moral-minded people into believing that "Jesus Christ!" is an acceptable swear word (Alex A. Garcia, Chicago Tribune)
Trial by fear | Chaotic world events have spurred an increased interest in prophecy, but critics say such teachings, when proved wrong, harm credibility (Ft. Worth [Tex.] Star-Telegram)
St Chad in new patron saint battle | St Chad, the first Bishop of Lichfield, has been put forward as a replacement for St George as the new patron saint of England (Express & Star, Lichfield, England)
Templeton's turn | An award that tries to reconcile science and religion (John J. Miller, The Wall Street Journal)
Privacy vs. whose morals? | Are we repulsed in extreme areas because we confront objective truth, or is it a matter of social conditioning? (Cal Thomas)
While we pray for peace, we need moral clarity about this war.
We’ve got little information on Jesus’ appearance and personality. But that’s the way God designed it.españolFrançais
Christian artists work at the intersection of music and climate change.
