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1. City shuts down church's rock and roll
"An organ recital is a church event. This is not a church event." That's the ominous argument of Albany (N.Y.) Police Chief James Tuffey, who sent his officers to break up a concert at Trinity Methodist Church and summon pastor Maurice E. Drown to court for running "an illegal nightclub."

Tuffey says that the church's taking donations at the door for the youth rock shows (where smoking and alcohol are banned) is akin to charging admission, which makes it a nightclub.

(Actually, according to the Albany City Code, it would not be a nightclub, since the code's definitions require such establishments to sell or allow the consumption of alcohol. Now, the city might make a case that the church is violating its code by running a "nonalcoholic dance club," but if Drown's summons actually uses the word nightclub, it seems clear that he can win his case outright.)

The church has been using its stage for entertainment ministries since 1931 and has long hosted sock-hops, dances, fashion shows, and other events. The Albany County Convention and Visitors Bureau even lists it as a "creative meeting space" for hosting outside events. So why the problem now? Ask neighbor Colleen Ryan: "You've got a herd of kids standing out there with spikes and studs and what look like prison tattoos," she told the paper. "We are trying to promote the city as a good place to live in and raise children in."

Let's complicate things a bit by noting that the church's youth music nights, called "New Age Cabaret," include bands like Drown Retarded Children and Clitorture (which has a lovely song called "Why Won't Jesus Die" that starts like this: "Why won't Jesus [expletive] die? Hopelessly turning the pages, the good book of lies. Your moral guide to a self-righteous life. Knees pounded into the dirt, free will has died. In the palm of God's hands, you're wasting your life. Slaughter the lamb. Worship the goat. Pry the Lord's hands away from your throat. Before I pray, I'll slit my own wrists. Religion of hate, to each his own scorn. All these years of worship have left you with nothing."

Agree with Chief Tuffey now?

2. Valedictorian sues over cut speech
So Brittany McComb wanted to deliver a commencement speech with two reference to "the Lord," nine mentions of "God" and one mention of Christ. Officials at Las Vegas's Foothill High School cut six of those words and two biblical references, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal. McComb apparently agreed to the edited speech—then delivered her original. The school officials cut power to the microphone in the middle of her speech. And now she's suing.

"I went through four years of school at Foothill and they taught me logic and they taught me freedom of speech," says McComb.

One of her teachers responds, "You made a promise. If you break that promise, you would be lying, and that is a sin. Would that not be dishonorable to yourself and to your religious beliefs?"

3. Vatican condemns Israel, terrorists
The Vatican's response to the Middle East violence, as delivered by Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano, is relatively short:

The news we are receiving from the Middle East is certainly worrying.

The Holy Father Benedict XVI and all his collaborators are following with great attention the latest dramatic episodes, which risk degenerating into a conflict with international repercussions.

As in the past, the Holy See also condemns both the terrorist attacks on the one side and the military reprisals on the other. Indeed, a State's right to self-defense does not exempt it from respecting the norms of international law, especially as regards the protection of civilian populations.

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July (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50