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"About 3 million evangelical Protestants staged a huge rally Thursday in the heart of Brazil's biggest city, demonstrating their growing influence in the world's largest Roman Catholic country," reports the Associated Press.

"Evangelical churches like Reborn in Christ and the Universal Kingdom of God have seen their Brazilian flocks grow rapidly in recent decades, with millions in the country of more than 180 million attracted by their dynamic services and promises that divine intervention will improve their lives despite grinding poverty affecting tens of millions."

5. I caught you a delicious bass

Christian fans of Napoleon Dynamite will be interested in The Washington Post profile of its director Jared Hess.

During a telephone conversation, the writer-director happily mentions his wife and two children and the fact that he goes to church every Sunday. The former Idaho resident also says he lives in Salt Lake City as opposed to Hollywood because "we're really close to Idaho and near the grandparents, and it's good to be around family." He explains all this in the same tone he adopts when answering almost every question a reporter poses: pleasant, polite and—really, there is no better word for it—normal. …

Hess, a practicing Mormon, avoids the foul language that peppers so many mainstream movies, particularly comedies aimed at younger audiences. Like Napoleon, Nacho [Libre, Hess's latest film] is rated PG, and, though it contains cartoonish violence, not a single dirty word is uttered.

Quote of the Day

"The Lord has a plan. We always think the plans are A, B, C and D, and everything is going to be perfect for us and it may not be that way, but it's still his plan."

Tony Dungy, head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, who lost his son to suicide.

Politics | War & terrorism | Homosexuality | ECUSA | Church life | Catholicism | New mass liturgy | Crime | Film & television | People | Spirituality | More articles of interest

Politics :

1. A shift among the evangelicals | The mellowing of evangelical Christianity may well be the big American religious story of this decade. (E. J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post)
   
   
2. Pioneer urges 'responsible fatherhood' | The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the availability of its first funding stream dedicated to "responsible fatherhood" programs. (The Washington Times)
   
   
3. Clinton praises evangelical Christians | Former President Bill Clinton praised evangelical Christians on Thursday for their recent efforts on global warming and debt relief for poor nations and said he sees growing understanding between people of different faiths. (Associated Press)
   
   
4. Prayers in the military | Oh, Lord, help Congress to stop its meddling. (Editorial, The Washington Post)
   
   

War & terrorism :

1. Families demand probe into 1994 N.Irish killings | The families of six Roman Catholic men shot dead in a Northern Ireland bar 12 years ago have called for a public inquiry, saying they believed British security forces colluded with their Protestant killers. (Reuters)
   
   
2. El Salvador death squads targeting criminals: Church | A spike in the number of murders of gang members and criminals in El Salvador is raising concern that resurgent death squads are carrying out "social cleansing," the Catholic Church said on Thursday. (Reuters)
   
   

Homosexuality :

1. Ark.: Gay foster parents ban protects kids | Lawyers for gay couples told the Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday that a policy banning homosexuals from becoming foster parents is unconstitutional, but the state argued that it protects children's moral and spiritual welfare.
   
   

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June (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50