Pastors Off the Hook in Sex Cases

1. Accusers lose in sexual misconduct cases against prominent pastors
Several sexual misconduct cases we've been watching ended this week—all in favor of the accused pastors. In a surprising turn, Mona Brewer and her husband dropped their sexual misconduct suit against Atlanta megachurch pastor Earl Paulk. "We were having difficulty even at this point getting witnesses to speak out against the acts of Bishop Paulk and the church," their lawyer told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "Sometimes you just have to do this." The trial was to begin April 2.

In another prominent case, Lonnie Latham, who was pastor of South Tulsa Baptist Church and a former member of the Southern Baptist Convention's executive committee before his arrest on a misdemeanor charge of lewdness, was found not guilty. Latham had been accused of inviting an undercover male police officer to engage in oral sex. His lawyer appealed to Lawrence v. Texas, a Supreme Court decision throwing out Texas's anti-sodomy law, saying, "If it's not illegal to engage in that conduct, then it shouldn't be illegal to talk about it." The judge did not rule on the constitutionality of Oklahoma's anti-lewdness law.

And finally, Gerald Griffith is not a name that many evangelicals know, but the pastor and founder of Baltimore's Redemption Christian Fellowship Church apparently has an international following. He has also been charged with sexually abusing three different teenagers during counseling sessions. The first of his trials was declared a mistrial Tuesday when one of the witnesses referred to another of the cases. A deacon at the church was acquitted in November in a separate abuse case.

2. Time's David van Biema: What does Akinola really think about Nigeria's anti-gay bill?

Apparently as part of Time's retooling, David van Biema has been doing a bit more opinion writing lately. This week, he calls Church of Nigeria head Peter Akinola to take a stance on his country's anti-homosexuality bill. Homosexuality is already illegal in Nigeria, but this bill would put a five-year prison term on anyone who:

• "goes through the ceremony of marriage with a person of the same sex,"
  
  
• "performs, witnesses, aids, or abets the ceremony of same-sex marriage" (including clergy)
  
  
• or "is involved in the registration of gay clubs, societies, and organizations, sustenance, procession or meetings, publicity and public show of same-sex amorous relationship directly or indirectly in public and in private."
  
  

"Akinola either needs to publicly renounce, in strong terms, his early support of the bill's punitive clauses and to amplify the rather tepid concern he later expressed about them, or else he needs to explain why he's not doing so to the dozen or so churches in Virginia whose congregants were largely ignorant of the legislation when they voted to join Akinola's archdiocese in December," van Biema writes.

Many commenters on the conservative Anglican blogs accuse van Biema of a kind of neo-colonialism. One writes, "Too bad that these folks who call for this don't really care about Nigeria or they would understand the context of this law, instead of imposing American cultural thinking onto this country. And we wonder why internationals despise Americans so much. We think the entire world revolves around us—and so it does."

3. William and Mary puts the cross back in Wren Chapel
It's under a glass case away from the altar, so it won't hurt anybody. A disclaimer plaque explaining the college's historical Anglican roots (it's now a public university) will help reassure anyone who thinks it might actually mean something to the institution in this day and age.

4. Jars of Clay too chicken to release protest songs
"People want to buy what they want to be told," Jars of Clay lead vocalist Dan Haseltine told the Argus Leader this week. "They want people to lie to them." And so, the Argus Leader reports, Haseltine obliges. "Haseltine says Jars of Clay can't release the war protest songs it has written — its fans probably aren't ready for them," the paper's Robert Morast writes. "It's also why Haseltine rarely shares his political opinions. 'If you rock the boat too much, your records won't appear in certain Christian record stores anymore,' Haseltine says … . 'There are just taboo subjects that make it hard to be a Christian artist.'" Morast ends his column by saying that he "has new respect for Jars of Clay." Why? Because Haseltine won't say or sing what he really believes because he's worried about the effect on sales? What is respectable about that?

5. Religious visa fraud hurting Christian ministers
Last year, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security found that 35 percent of religious worker "green card" visas were based on fraudulent information. A significant percentage of those were from "special risk" countries— Egypt, Algeria, Pakistan, Syria, and Iraq — where 3 of every 4 visa applications were fraudulent. This week, Cox News's Eunice Moscoso says the fallout is bad news for priests, nuns, missionaries, and other religious workers hoping to enter the U.S. Crystal Williams of the American Immigration Lawyers Association says the visas "seem to have come to a grinding halt." Among those hardest hit: the Catholic Church, which wants foreign priests to fill empty pulpits.

Exchange of the day
From today's Focus on the Family broadcast:

James Dobson: [In a private meeting a few weeks ago,] I asked you a pretty bold question. And I appreciate the fact that you didn't seem offended by it. But I asked you if the rumors were true that you were in an affair with a woman obviously who wasn't your wife at the same time that Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky were having their escapade.

Newt Gingrich: Well, the fact is that the honest answer is yes. But it was not related to what happened. And this is one of the things the Left tries to do and one of the places where, frankly, I think the way this report of the special counsel was written weakened the case. …

I drew a line in my mind that said, "Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say that you cannot accept felonies and you cannot accept perjury in your highest officials."

Dobson: Well, you answered that question with regard to Bill Clinton instead of referring to yourself. May I ask you to address it personally? You know, I believe you to be a professing Christian and you and I have prayed together, but when I heard you talk about this dark side of your life when we were in Washington, you spoke of it with a great deal of pain and anguish, but you didn't mention repentance. Do you understand that word, repentance?

More articles

Crime | Abuse | Violence | Military | Sudan | Iran | China | Nigeria | Homosexuality | HPV | Gingrich on Focus on the Family | Rudy Giuliani | Mike Huckabee | Romney and Mormonism | John Edwards | Obama's pastor | Politics | Environment | Life ethics | Church and state (U.S.) | Church and state (non-U.S.) | Czech cathedral battle | William and Mary cross | Higher Education | Education | Stephen Prothero's Religious Literacy | Evolution | History | "Lost Tomb of Jesus" | Books | Film | Music | Art and media | Money and business | Prayer Palace | New Life Church and Ted Haggard | Church life | Anglicanism | Catholicism | Atheism | Missions and ministry | People | Other stories of interest

Crime:

• Couple drops suit against Earl Paulk | Attorney said he dropped the suit because of difficulty getting witnesses to testify against Paulk and because of long delays in preparing the case — including having to wait a year to question Paulk, who was recovering from cancer surgery (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
  
  
• Former pastor cleared of sex count | Lonnie Latham, the former pastor of South Tulsa Baptist Church, was found not guilty Wednesday of a misdemeanor charge of offering to engage in a lewd act (Tulsa World, Ok.)
  
  
• Also: Ex-pastor acquitted of sex charge (Associated Press)
  
  
• Congregation grapples with sex offender in worship | Clergy and the congregation at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd have had their Christianity tested since a sex offender has asked to worship there (Reno Gazette-Journal)
  
  
• Therapy's benefits for sex offenders is disputed | There is no convincing evidence that treatment plans are effective in reforming offenders (The New York Times)
  
  
• Body of toddler found in Brazil church | The body of a strangled toddler was found inside the baptismal basin of Seventh-day Adventist church in southern Brazil, officials said Monday (Associated Press)
  
  
• Russian Orthodox priest stabbed outside church | The attack in the south-western Russian city follows two violent deaths of Russian priests in recent months, which local media ascribed to a decline in moral standards (Reuters)
  
  
• Judge rules on evidence in case | Ruling concerns evidence recovered from home where Winklers lived (The Jackson Sun, Tenn.)
  
  
• Speak of the devil! | Wacko who torched church beats priest after leaving jail (New York Daily News)
  
  
• Man allegedly trying to break into church calls cops | A 24-year-old man called police to tell them he was trying to break into a church, but he wasn't having much luck (Associated Press)
  
  
• Manhattan church treasurer indicted | The volunteer treasurer of the First Reformed Episcopal Church at 317 East 50th Street was indicted on charges of stealing $409,000 from the church from 1999 to 2004, prosecutors said yesterday (The New York Times)
  
  
• Also: Church lady's 400G 'rip-off' (New York Post)
  
  
• Robbers' guns are no joke at 3 churches | Holdups are possibly related; two men involved (The Huntsville Times, Ala.)
  
  
• Former church leader pleads guilty to scam | A former Elyria church leader who stole millions of dollars from people he worshipped with is likely to spend at least five years in prison (The Plain Dealer, Cleveland)
  
  
• Facing charges, Bath mayor resigns | Betty Fields is accused of stealing $9,019 from collections at the church where she worked (The Express-Times, Easton, Pa.)
  
  

• Also: Bath mayor resigns after charges | Fields accused of taking money from church collection plate (The Morning Call, Allentown, Pa.)
  
  
• Audit outraged accused priest | Prosecutors release letters to the bishop (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
  
  
• Also: Priest dodged audits, files say | Church officials tapped one of two priests now accused of mishandling $8.7 million in offertory money to lead St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church even as they were uncovering evidence of misappropriated money at his former parish, documents show (Palm Beach Post, Fla.)
  
  
• Man charged with stealing $58,000 from church | Charges also filed in fire department, nursing home thefts (The Times, Munster, Ind.)
  
  
• Also: Church coffers drained at casino (Post-Tribune, Gary, Ind.)
  
  
• Ill. police won't release report on chaplain's DUI arrest | Officials deny AP's request for arrest report, other files, saying disclosing records would violate prison system employee's privacy (Associated Press)
  
  
• A firm's calling: Snooping around for the church | For the folks at Oxford Document Management Co., it's not snooping. It's a divine mission (Religion News Service)
  
  
• The murdering Messiah | Black Jesus is in hiding, deep in the most impenetrable mountain jungle of Papua New Guinea (Daily Mail, U.K.)
  
  
• Forgive one another, Kolini asks | The leader of the Anglican Church of Rwanda, Archbishop Emmanuel Kolini has urged Rwandans to forgive one another to attract God's love (The New Times, Rwanda)
  
  

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Abuse:

• Mistrial declared in sex abuse case | Howard judge rules in first day of testimony; pastor also faces trial in Baltimore County (The Baltimore Sun)
  
  
• Priest cleared of rape charge | A Catholic priest who was accused of rape in 2002 during the clergy sexual abuse scandal has been cleared of all the charges, the Archdiocese of Boston said yesterday (The Boston Globe)
  
  
• Priest gets 25 years in sex assault | Teczar, formerly of FW Diocese, convicted in case involving boy, 11 (The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Also: Priest is given 25 years for sex abuse (Ft. Worth Star-Telegram)
  
  
• California law violates gays' rights, ex-priest says | Michael Stephen Baker, who was defrocked in 2000 and faces trial on molestation charges, contends it's easier to prosecute homosexuals (Los Angeles Times)
  
  
• Former pastor must serve 11/29 for statutory rape | The former pastor of Middle Valley Methodist Church told the jury he "accepts full responsiblity" for a two-year homosexual relationship with a young church member (The Chattanoogan, Tenn.)
  
  

• Fondling ex-pastor gets conditional sentence | Ogling and fondling the breasts of two young members of a city church earned a former minister an eight-month conditional sentence yesterday (Edmonton Sun)
  
  
• Church relying on faith after pastor's arrest | Kevin Ogle sits in a Walton County, Ga., jail for allegedly sending pornographic messages and pictures of himself over the Internet to a police officer posing as a teenage girl (The State, Columbia, S.C.)
  
  

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Violence:

• Violent scripture may increase aggression-study | Violent passages in religious texts can increase aggressive behavior in people, especially if they are true believers and the violence is sanctioned by God, according to a new U.S. and Dutch study (Reuters)
  
  
• Shutting out terrorism's victims | American law currently bars the entry to the United States of some of terrorism's most abused victims: refugees who have been forced to provide so-called material assistance. (Editorial, The New York Times)
  
  
• Faith as a peacemaker | Religion and violence are often seen as kindred souls — one always leads to the other. In fact, bloodshed is a sign of religion's failures, not its successes. Faith can be an essential ingredient in ending the violence, inviting the peace (Henry G. Brinton, USA Today)
  
  

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Military:

• A soldier's freedom of religion | Whether members of our military die in action or not, they, and all our veterans, deserve the right to have whatever they want put on their grave marker — as an expression of their right to religious freedom (Gary Clark, The Seattle Times)
  
  
• Why they pray | The trials of war strengthen many soldiers' faith (Andrew Carroll, The Wall Street Journal)
  
  
• Real threat to Christianity drags on in Iraq | The American mismanagement of Iraq has been particularly unkind to Christians (Brian Katulis and John Podesta, Des Moines Register, Ia.)
  
  

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Sudan:

• Bills call for Texas to divest from pro-Sudan firms | Liberals, conservatives unite on Darfur issue (The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Sudan 'paralysing' aid to Darfur | Andrew Natsios said there had recently been a big increase in red tape and the harassment of aid workers (BBC)
  
  

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Iran:

• 'A shameful betrayal of American values and the Christian-Jewish relationship' | A late-February meeting between representatives of American Christian denominations and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad amounted to "a shameful betrayal of American values and the Christian-Jewish relationship," the Anti-Defamation League said over the weekend (The Jerusalem Post)
  
  

• Apologizing for Iran | According to the Religious Left, anything the Mullah regime does is justified, given the CIA's role in Iran in 1953 (Mark Tooley, The American Spectator)
  
  

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China:

• Religious surge in once-atheist China surprises leaders | Chinese experts say the growing popularity of religious belief has been driven by social crises involving corruption and the expanding gap between rich and poor (The New York Times)
  
  
• Beijing hotels should have Bibles for Games: adviser | Bibles should be put in hotel rooms during the 2008 Beijing Olympics to clear up foreigners' misconceptions about religion in China, Chinese media quoted a political adviser as saying (Reuters)
  
  

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Nigeria:

• In Nigeria, Christians and Muslims in uneasy calm | While it's true that a rough peace seems to be holding today, and that dialogues between Muslims and Christians are growing, many locals say that dialogue may never have begun if Nigerian Christians hadn't learned to stand up for themselves (John Allen Jr, National Catholic Reporter)
  
  
• Denying rights in Nigeria | Billed as an anti-gay-marriage act, a poisonous piece of legislation making its way through the Nigerian National Assembly is a far-reaching assault on basic human rights (Editorial, The New York Times)
  
  
• Crunch time on gays for Anglican archbishop | The Anglican Primate of Nigeria, one of the most powerful churchmen in Africa, needs to clarify his stance on a Nigerian anti-homosexuality bill he initially supported, which assigns a five-year prison term not only for practicing gays, but also for those who support them (David Van Biema, Time)
  
  

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Homosexuality:

• Mohler says gay gene should be manipulated, if possible | The president of a prominent Southern Baptist seminary says he would support medical treatment, if it were available, to change the sexual orientation of a fetus inside its mother's womb from homosexual to heterosexual (Religion News Service)
  
  
• Appeals court sides with Oakland on removal of 'natural family' sign | The city of Oakland acted legally when it removed a flyer posted by two city employees promoting the "natural family'' after other workers had founded a Gay and Lesbian Employees Association, a federal appeals court ruled today (San Francisco Chronicle)
  
  
• Also: Court against flier promoting 'family values' | 9th Circuit sides with Oakland after workers sued over removal of bulletin called discriminatory toward gays (The Oakland Tribune, Ca.)
  
  

• Same-sex unions spur debate | Both sides invoke God in arguments (Concord Monitor, N.H.)
  
  
• Study finds age divide on gay marriage | People born in the 1970s and '80s are more than twice as likely to support them as those born before 1940 (Associated Press)
  
  
• Gay rights changes 'will criminalise teachers' | Controversial proposals to extend new gay rights laws to the curriculum taught in Ulster schools will effectively criminalise Christian teachers opposed to it, it has been claimed (Belfast Telegraph)
  
  
• Labour faces fresh battle over gay rights | Labour was braced last night for fresh battles over homosexual rights after pressing ahead with controversial anti-discrimination laws for the whole of the UK (The Telegraph, London)
  
  

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HPV:

• A vital discussion, clouded | Concerns about promiscuity can misinform the debate about a new vaccine for the human papillomavirus (The New York Times)
  
  
• A Merck-y business | The case against mandatory HPV vaccinations (Michael Fumento, The Weekly Standard)
  
  

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Gingrich on Focus on the Family:

• Gingrich tells Dobson he had affair during Clinton probe | Gingrich argued in the interview, however, that he should not be viewed as a hypocrite for pursuing Clinton's infidelity (Associated Press)
  
  
• Abolish 9th Circuit, Gingrich tells Dobson | Gingrich advocated reconstituting the court with different judges. Because federal judges are appointed for life, such a move would require impeachment of the Ninth Circuit judges (The Gazette, Colorado Springs)
  
  
• Earlier: Gingrich to describe repentance on radio | Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a potential Republican presidential candidate, will appear on James Dobson's Focus on the Family radio show and describe getting on his knees and seeking God's forgiveness for his moral failures, according to excerpts released Wednesday by the evangelical group (The Denver Post)
  
  
• Audio: "Rediscovering Our Nation's Spiritual Heritage" (Focus on the Family, day 1, day 2)
  
  
• Related: Gingrich, the non-candidate, focuses on the GOP's church-based family | Gingrich will give the May 19 commencement address at Liberty University in Lynchburg, founded by the Rev. Jerry Falwell (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
  
  

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Rudy Giuliani:

• Baptist: Evangelicals doubt Giuliani | Richard Land says evangelicals believe the former New York City mayor showed a lack of character during his divorce from second wife, television personality Donna Hanover (Associated Press)
  
  

• Giuliani family values | Richard Land's salvos launched at Republican front-runner Rudy Giuliani were the warning shots in the evangelical primary (Time)
  
  
• Evangelist has a Rudy awakening: 'He can win' | As 2008 hopefuls start to woo different slices of the electorate, one of the more unexpected shifts appears to be a slow migration of white evangelical conservatives toward the thrice-married Giuliani (New York Daily News)
  
  
• No deal, Rudy | Rudy Giuliani hopes pro-lifers will accept a bargain and support his bid to be president. We won't (Editorial, National Catholic Register)
  
  
• Rudy & the Right | An equal among sinners (Zev Chafets, New York Post)
  
  
• He's not for me | Why pro-life conservatives will not support Rudy Giuliani (Daniel Allott, The American Spectator)
  
  

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Mike Huckabee:

• Candidate Huckabee says religion does matter | Ex-Baptist pastor says faith is important because it 'will let people know what my judgments are based on' (The Salt Lake Tribune)
  
  
• A would-be Knight for the religious right | Mike Huckabee is pro-gun, pro-life, and anti-gay marriage. So why isn't he catching fire with the social conservatives who dominate the GOP primary electorate? (Newsweek)
  
  

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Romney and Mormonism:

• To Romney strategist, questions on faith fair game | It's appropriate for the public to ask questions about Mitt Romney's Mormon faith as he pursues his presidential campaign, a top Romney campaign strategist said yesterday (The Boston Globe)
  
  
• Opinions are diverse on 'those Mormons' | Survey snapshots range from cults to big, close-knit families (Deseret Morning News, Ut.)
  
  
• Also: Americans' views of the Mormon religion | Most frequent top-of-mind impression of Mormons is polygamy (Gallup News Service)
  
  
• A Mormon president? I don't think so | These set pieces serve mainly to make the not particularly religion-savvy political commentariat feel good about themselves. The writer appears unbiased, and the article inevitably validates the cherished American myth about our tolerance for diversity. Can a Mormon be elected president in 2008? No. (Alex Beam, The Boston Globe)
  
  

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John Edwards:

• John Edwards: 'My faith came roaring back' | In the first of a series of interviews with presidential candidates, Edwards discusses how faith affects his decisions (Beliefnet)
  
  
• Edwards camp capitalizes on Coulter slur | Conservatives were none too pleased with Coulter, either (Associated Press)
  
  

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Obama's pastor:

• Disinvitation by Obama is criticized | Some black leaders are now questioning Senator Barack Obama's decision to distance his campaign from the senior pastor of the popular Trinity United Church of Christ (The New York Times)
  
  

• Thanks so much for the interview, reverend. These handcuffs actually feel kind of nice | How did the New York Times get that blunt interview this week with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, the preacher now in a very public dispute with Barack Obama? (Newsweek)
  
  
• Obama slights his own pastor, another error in wooing blacks | Trinity United Church of Christ has been under attack by conservatives as being "separatist" and too "Afrocentric," pushing the skittish Obama camp to "disinvite" Wright's participation in his announcement (Mary Mitchell, Chicago Sun-Times)
  
  

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Politics:

• Priests, nuns, missionaries experiencing unusual visa delays | The two categories of visas that make up about 90 percent of the religious work permits in the United States "seem to have come to a grinding halt," said Crystal Williams, deputy director of programs at the American Immigration Lawyers Association (The Providence Journal, R.I.)
  
  
• Religious groups push health coverage for children | An unusually broad coalition of Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders descended on Capitol Hill this week to push Congress to increase funds for health care coverage for American's 9 million uninsured children (Religion News Service)
  
  
• Blagojevich's new 'secret weapon': black churches | Black churches will play an integral role, or even serve as the core, of what the governor called an ''interfaith movement behind the moral imperative of providing health care to everybody, to all of God's children.'' (Rich Miller, Chicago Sun-Times)
  
  
• Guatemalan priests to purify site after Bush visit | Mayan priests will purify a sacred archaeological site to eliminate "bad spirits" after President Bush visits next week, an official with close ties to the group said Thursday (Associated Press)
  
  
• Religious groups oppose tourism incentives | Backers say bill not for gambling (Biloxi Sun Herald, Miss.)
  
  
• Can Christian Coalition aid '08 campaign? | An important ally when George W. Bush first won the presidency, the Christian Coalition of America says it's poised again to help a conservative win the White House. Whether it can back up that pledge is an open question (Associated Press)
  
  
• Ex-presidential candidate cautions leaders against linking policy and religion | Gary Hart argued that religious conservatives are "communicating with code words" and practicing "duplicity." (The Times, Trenton, N.J.)
  
  

• Evangelicals have much to offer to politics | It's easy to spot the evangelicals in the media these days. They're the ones wearing the black hats (Bob Keith Bonebrake, The Kansas City Star, Mo.)
  
  
• S.Korean Catholics ask God to stop FTA | South Korean Catholics on Friday asked God to stop a proposed free trade agreement between their country and the United States (Associated Press)
  
  

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Environment:

• Evangelical's focus on climate draws fire of Christian right | Conservative leaders accused the director of the National Association of Evangelicals of diverting the evangelical movement from what they deem more important issues, like abortion and homosexuality. (The New York Times)
  
  
• Also: Evangelical angers peers with call for action on global warming (The Washington Post)
  
  
• Living day to day by a gospel of green | At home with Jim Ball, an evangelical Christian minister whose day-to-day activities incorporate what some Christian environmentalists call "creation care" (The New York Times)
  
  
• Beware the enviro-Luddites | Global warming is a non-Christian religion (David Limbaugh, The Washington Times)
  
  

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Life ethics:

• Suit seeks compensation for botched abortion | Child-rearing costs also being sought (The Boston Globe)
  
  
• Man faces attempted murder charge in alleged abortion doctor plot | A 27-year-old man faces an attempted murder charge for allegedly driving to a Planned Parenthood clinic with the intention of shooting the doctor who performed an abortion on his girlfriend, prosecutors said (Fresno Bee, Ca.)
  
  
• Portuguese parliament votes to lift ban on abortion | Portugal's parliament approved, as expected, a law to lift the ban on abortion by a majority vote late on Thursday (Reuters)
  
  
• 'Morning after' access sought at Kroger | Activists are calling on Kroger Co. pharmacies to make the so-called "morning after" pill available at all of their stores after a Georgia woman said she was denied the contraceptive (Associated Press)
  
  
• Italian right-to-die case cleared | Italian prosecutors on Tuesday cleared a physician who disconnected the respirator of a paralyzed man who had asked to die, a patients advocate group said (Associated Press)
  
  
• Also: Italian prosecutors clear "euthanasia" doctor | In a major victory for right-to-die advocates in Roman Catholic Italy, prosecutors on Tuesday cleared a doctor of wrongdoing after he switched off the life support of a terminally ill patient who had asked to die (Reuters)
  
  

• Governor weighs compromise plan on death penalty | Short of repeal, O'Malley seeks limits (The Washington Post)
  
  
• Selling the stem-cell promise | The potential of stem cells' curative powers has spawned the creation of private tissue banks. But marketing is outpacing the medicine (Los Angeles Times)
  
  
• My triplets were inseparable, whatever the risks | In a multiple birth, a troubling calculation of the odds (Susanne M. Sanchez, The New York Times)
  
  

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Church and state (U.S.):

• Move to deregister church blocked by court | The High Court has halted a decision by the registrar of societies to cancel the registration of Presbyterian Outreach Mission Church (The Nation, Kenya)
  
  
• Suit claims Gilbert unfair on church's signs | The Scottsdale-based Alliance Defense Fund filed a lawsuit against Gilbert in federal court on Thursday, alleging the town is discriminating against a church wanting to post signs for prospective parishioners (East Valley Tribune, Mesa, Az.)
  
  
• Church fights land acquisition | The battle continues between a church and the Nash-Rocky Mount Board of Education for a small tract of land off Bethlehem Road (Rocky Mount Telegram, N.C.)
  
  
• Cowboy Church stays in the saddle | The United States Department of Justice is no longer looking into whether Bedford County's zoning ordinance violates the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (Bedford Bulletin, Va.)
  
  
• Yes, they have standing to sue | Supreme Court weighs taxpayer challenges under the establishment clause (John W. Whitehead, Legal Times)
  
  
• No, they don't have standing to sue | Supreme Court weighs taxpayer challenges under the establishment clause (Douglas W. Kmiec, Legal Times)
  
  
• In Coatesville, Jesus governs | Lord knows, Coatesville could use a miracle or two. But could ministers moonlighting as City Council members wind up costing the struggling city big bucks for crossing the line between church and state? (Monica Yant Kinney, The Philadelphia Inquirer)
  
  
• Fighting religious discrimination: Bush administration's quiet campaign | Skeptics aside, this Justice Department has shown a commitment to protecting religious freedom no matter which faith is involved (Charles C. Haynes, First Amendment Center)
  
  

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Church and state (non-U.S.):

• Egypt forbids 2,000 pilgrims from visiting Israel | Cairo authorities prevent Christians from attending Easter ceremonies in Jerusalem due to arrest of local man suspected of spying for Mossad. (YNet News)
  
  
• Swedish church 'discriminates against women' | The Church of Sweden is to be investigated by equality chiefs, who suspect it of discriminating against women (The Local, Sweden)
  
  

• Church leaders fuming over holy smoke ban signs | Religious leaders have slammed a ridiculous ruling from government health bosses which demands all churches must put up no smoking signs (Norwich Evening News, U.K.)
  
  
• Earlier: Churches told to put up No Smoking signs (Daily Mail, U.K., Mar. 3)
  
  
• Police detain street preachers | According to a reliable source, the police personnel mounted the operations in three districts of Kigali city, Nyarugenge and Gasabo in which numerous preachers were arrested and detained (The New Times, Rwanda)
  
  

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Czech cathedral battle:

• Cathedral's interior decoration belongs to church, says archbishop | The interior furnishing of Prague's St Vitus Cathedral, which the Supreme Court recently returned to the state, belongs to the Catholic Church and the church will not give it up, Prague Archbishop Cardinal Miloslav Vlk told public Czech Television (Prague Daily Monitor, Czech Republic)
  
  
• Cardinal against handing Prague Cathedral over to state | Czech Cardinal Miloslav Vlk does not want to hand over the St Vitus Cathedral back to the state even though the latest court decision cancelled the previous rulings according to which the church owned the cathedral (Prague Daily Monitor, Czech Republic)
  
  
• Less than half of Czechs for church property return—poll | Compared with 2002, the number of people who want property to be returned to churches has slightly grown, according to the poll that also showed that more than a half of the polled do not consider churches useful institutions (Prague Daily Monitor, Czech Republic)
  
  

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William and Mary cross:

• Cross on display permanently | The Wren Chapel will store the brass cross in a glass case with a plaque describing the university's Anglican roots (Daily Press, Hampton Roads, Va.)
  
  
• Cross returns to chapel -- but not on the altar | The College of William and Mary's president and board agreed yesterday to restore the altar cross to permanent display in historic Wren Chapel to quell a controversy that began with its removal in the fall (The Washington Post)
  
  
• College returns cross to chapel | Administrators at the College of William & Mary, responding to months of harsh criticism from alumni, ordered the immediate return of a cross to the Williamsburg school's historic Wren Chapel yesterday (The Washington Times)
  
  
• W&M alumni reopening their wallets | The compromise on permanent display of the Wren cross seems to have eased the "fuss" (Daily Press, Hampton Roads, Va.)
  
  

• Internet-petition group backs W&M cross compromise | Creators of SaveTheWrenCross.org said the Web site will continue but will change its emphasis to providing information about the discussion, and about answers to questions the group is raising about the compromise plan (Richmond Times-Dispatch, Va.)
  
  
• Return of cross quiets debate at William & Mary | College President Gene R. Nichol and his supporters lauded as a compromise the recommendation of a special committee to study the role of religion at public universities, while those who never wanted the 18-inch brass cross removed see its return as a win. For others, many questions remain (The Washington Times)
  
  
• Creative compromise on fate of Wren Cross | This week's decision to return the cross to William and Mary's Wren Chapel is the kind of elegant, thoughtful compromise that should satisfy everyone, but probably won't. (Editorial, Virginian-Pilot)
  
  
• A first step at W&M | This is being sold as a compromise. The connotation seems clear: The cross can be in the chapel so long as its primary function is historic, not religious. (Editorial, The Washington Times)
  
  
• True diversity | Cross controversy is less about religion than history & heritage (Linda Arey Skladany, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Va.)
  
  
• Ideology to the fore at W&M | Some folks seem intent on replacing old-school racial prejudice with religious intolerance (Michael Paul Williams, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Va.)
  
  

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Higher Education:

• Pastor may be kicked off board | His public criticism of policies upsets some at Baptist seminary (The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Also: Board seeks meeting with pastor (Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, Tex.)
  
  
• Also: Southwestern seeks McKissic's removal; trustee likens attempt to 'lynching' (Associated Baptist Press)
  
  
• Christian group files suit against SSU | Leaders of Savannah-based Commissioned II Love claim the group was banned from campus allegedly for "harassment" and "hazing" other students at the public college (Savannah Morning News, Ga.)
  
  
• Win for Catholic group in church/state fight | In a technical sense, a ruling by a federal judge Thursday handed defeats to both the University of Wisconsin at Madison and to a Roman Catholic group seeking to receive support through student fees at the university. But the fault that the judge found with the Catholic group is one that it can fairly easily fix (Inside Higher Ed)
  
  
• Also: Judge denies Wis. Catholic group's attempt for student fees | A federal judge Thursday rejected a Catholic group's attempt to get student fees from the University of Wisconsin, saying it is not controlled by students (Associated Press)
  
  

• Back home after crash, an agonizing wait | Nine hours passed before officials of the Bluffton University released the names of the four students who were killed in Atlanta along with the bus driver and his wife (Associated Press)
  
  
• Also: Mennonites rally around bus survivors | Though small in numbers, Mennonites are taught to put their faith into action. So when a bus crashed carrying baseball players from Mennonite-affiliated Bluffton University, church members offered their prayers and their homes (Associated Press)
  
  
• Professor fears tenure change will stifle inquiry | "We feel this will cause a serious decline in the quality of education at Cornerstone," said English professor David Landrum (The Grand Rapids Press, Mi.)
  
  
• Also: Cornerstone's new policy abolishes tenure | The new policy will offer future hires a term contract. Current faculty on the tenure track — half of the university's 61 professors—will be given the choice between tenure and a contract (The Chimes, Calvin College)
  
  
• Gay, lesbian group harassed in Sioux Center | Bus was defaced, as it was at an early stop last year (Sioux City Journal, Ia.)
  
  
• Asbury College picks new president | Asbury College reached within its own ranks yesterday to make the historic choice of its first female president since the Christian liberal arts school in Wilmore was founded in 1890 (Lexington Herald-Leader, Ky.)
  
  
• Unusual mix of prayer and politics | Yale Divinity School students burn the Ten Commandments and Bill of Rights — in prayer, not protest (Inside Higher Ed)
  
  
• Homeschoolers find university doors open | Last fall, UC Riverside joined a growing number of colleges around the country that are revamping application policies to accommodate homeschooled students (Associated Press)
  
  
• Campus exposure | A new crop of college sex magazines shows students baring it all. In the age of MySpace and confessional blogs, is this the ultimate in self-revelation? (The New York Times Magazine)
  
  
• SMU seeking church approval for Bush library site | SMU will seek permission from a 23-member council of the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church at a meeting in Dallas next week (Associated Press)
  
  

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Education:

• Religious schools may use tax-free bonds | State Supreme Court ruling is opposed by civil libertarians (Los Angeles Times)
  
  

• Also: Court ruling could lead to state influencing what private schools teach | Those who operate religious schools should rely on traditional methods of fundraising, however slow and costly (Editorial, The Record, Stockton, Ca.)
  
  
• Religious school dealt legal setback | Lawyers for Redwood Christian say they will appeal jury verdict (The Oakland Tribune, Ca.)
  
  
• Also: Christian school loses case based on religion | A federal jury ruled Friday that Alameda County did not discriminate on religious grounds when it rejected a Christian school's effort to build a campus on rural land near Castro Valley (San Francisco Chronicle)
  
  
• Court vacates 9th Circuit ruling against anti-gay T-shirt | In closely watched student-speech case, justices leave school policy in place but open to further litigation (First Amendment Center)
  
  
• Graduation ceremony spurs lawsuit | Ex-high school student who's a Muslim charges bias over event at Newark church (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.)
  
  
• Also: A graduation held in church leads to a suit | A Muslim student sued the Newark public schools on Wednesday, claiming that he was unable to attend his high school graduation last June because it was held in a church (The New York Times)
  
  
• Also: Graduation at N.J. church sparks lawsuit (Associated Press)
  
  
• Ex-teacher, suing L.I. school district, says she was accused of witchcraft | A former reading teacher at Hampton Bays Elementary School testified that a religious fervor culminated in her being run out of the school (The New York Times)
  
  
• Also: Accused witch says rumors cost her teaching job (Newsday)
  
  
• Religious nursery schools may face new Health Department regulations | Religious nursery schools in New York City that have long been exempt from certain child care regulations may face new requirements under a Health Department proposal (The New York Sun)
  
  
• Religion, textbook dispute rekindled | State board to decide on activists' complaints about picture of Sikh founder (The Sacramento Bee, Ca.)
  
  
• Religious references restored to yearbook | Liberty Union High School District officials have changed their stance on religious references in yearbook advertisements after parents raised concerns about freedom of speech constraints (Contra Costa Times, Ca.)
  
  
• Ga. close to okaying Bible classes | Georgia is poised to introduce two literature classes on the Bible in public schools next year, a move some critics say would make the state the first to take an explicit stance endorsing — and funding — biblical teachings (Associated Press)
  
  

• Educators could aid understanding of religion, experts say | Conference at First Amendment Center explores ways to prevent conflicts in public schools as student religious expression increases (First Amendment Center)
  
  
• Where two or more students are gathered in God's name . . . there is controversy | Immigrants seeking religious liberty are among those suspended at a Vancouver-area school (The Oregonian)
  
  
• Also: Schools have latitude to restrict prayer | In schools, students are generally free to practice their religion -- by praying before meals, handing out leaflets or reading their Bibles -- so long as they're not being disruptive, coercing or proselytizing other students (The Oregonian)
  
  
• A call for separation of school and state | Parker v. Hurley was not just a victory for gay-marriage advocates or a defeat for Judeo-Christian traditionalists. It was a reminder that on many of the most controversial subjects of the day, public schools do not speak for the whole community (Jeff Jacoby, The Boston Globe)
  
  
• No place for religious rituals in the classroom | Daubing desks with oil goes a step — or several — beyond a few like-minded educators sharing a good vibe for the collective benefit of their students. What they did, no matter how casual and well-intentioned, was a religious ritual; it should not have happened in a public school (Jeff Webb, St. Petersburg Times, Fla.)
  
  

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Stephen Prothero's Religious Literacy:

• Holy book learning | Americans are shockingly illiterate when it comes to religions -- including their own. That's a problem in today's world, a BU professor argues. But it won't be easily fixed (The Boston Globe)
  
  
• Blind faith | Americans believe in religion -- but know little about it. Susan Jacoby reviews Stephen Prothero's Religious Literacy (The Washington Post)
  
  
• Religious literacy could create common ground | Stephen Prothero is right (Elizabeth Welch, The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Q&A: What Americans don't know about religion could fill a book | Stephen Prothero calls religious illiteracy a "major civic problem." (U.S. News & World Report)
  
  
• The gospel of Prothero | A Boston University professor argues that Americans, though 'spiritual,' are woefully ignorant about religion (Newsweek)
  
  
• Americans get an 'F' in religion | Sometimes dumb sounds cute: Sixty percent of Americans can't name five of the Ten Commandments, and 50% of high school seniors think Sodom and Gomorrah were married. Stephen Prothero isn't laughing (USA Today)
  
  

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Evolution:

• Darwin's God | In the world of evolutionary biology, the question is not whether God exists but why we believe in him. Is belief a helpful adaptation or an evolutionary accident? (The New York Times Magazine, new link)
  
  
• Educational crusader | A Ventura County Board of Education member sparks the debate over evolution and creationism (VC Reporter, Ca.)
  
  
• More pressing board issues | Don't base book vote on religion (Editorial, Ventura County Star, Ca.)
  
  
• Who's a monkey's uncle? | Debate over evolution masks a more serious issue (Richard Larsen, Ventura County Star, Ca.)
  
  
• Earlier: Textbook teaching evolution debated | School board postpones vote (Ventura County Star, Feb. 28)
  
  

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History:

• Gift of the Gospels | Local pastor helps Vatican get ancient manuscripts (The Birmingham News, Ala.)
  
  
• Old religious text goes missing from library | "It's a page from a codex, which is, ah, like our books today that we know today, not a roll, but a codex with pages and it's the first page of a book of what was probably a book of psalms." (The World Today, Radio Australia)
  
  
• Monks seek help as Ukraine Orthodox treasure crumbles | Awed by its mysterious beauty and intrigued by catacombs containing the remains of scores of monks, thousands pray every day at the Caves Monastery, spiritual symbol of Slav culture. But visitors are unaware of impending danger -- the monastery is crumbling (Reuters)
  
  
• How Korea embraced Christianity | Former missionaries look back at a nation that's now the No. 2 source of Christian mission workers (The Christian Science Monitor)
  
  

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"Lost Tomb of Jesus":

• 'Jesus' raises Discovery | 'Tomb' boon for cabler: 4.1 million viewers -- its best number in 18 months (Variety)
  
  
• Leaning on theory, colliding with faith | It is unlikely that many Christians will lose sleep because of "The Lost Tomb of Jesus" on the Discovery Channel (The New York Times)
  
  
• Ex-curator says he flagged film's flaw | UNCC professor disputes archaeologist's account (The Charlotte Observer, N.C.)
  
  
• Rewriting the gospels | Why all the fuss over the "Jesus tomb"? (David van Biema, Time)
  
  
• Who is entombed in the 'Jesus tomb'? | A film's conclusion may challenge the core of a faith (Jay Tolson, U.S. News and World Report)
  
  
• 'Tomb' can't keep Christianity down | 'Tis the season for so-called discoveries to do away with Christianity (Charlotte Allen, Los Angeles Times)
  
  
• 'Lost Tomb' is no open-and-shut case | However astonishing Jacobovici's claim may be, it is, at the end of the day, impossible to disprove (The Boston Globe)
  
  

• The Jesus tomb meets the internet | I have now seen the show, read the book, and followed the role of the blogosphere. Here's where I think we stand (Bruce Feiler, Huffington Post)
  
  
• Jesus R.I.P. | Our rabbi reflects on the claim that Christ's tomb has been found (Marc Gellman, Newsweek)
  
  
• 'Lost Tomb': Why a fuss? | Had Jacobovici given scholars the respect he claims to have for their work, he might have found enthusiastic partners. Instead, he has discovered that most of us see Lost Tomb as a "docu-drama" that cannot be taken seriously as either (Chris Frilingos, The Orlando Sentinel)
  
  
• 'Why seek ye the living among the dead?' | Search as they might, people aren't going to find Christ in a tomb. The only Christ many will see is the Christ in Christians (Warren Bolton, The State, Columbia, S.C.)
  
  
• Christian faith shouldn't fear box of bones | Finding the bones of Jesus should not threaten Christianity. Such a highly unlikely discovery might, in fact, liberate the faith from the shackles of literalism that undermine its mission. (Steve Gushee, Palm Beach Post)
  
  
• Why billions of Christians can't be wrong | We are told that religion is dead. But the figure of Jesus Christ haunts us (A.N. Wilson, The Herald Sun, Australia)
  
  

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Books:

• 'The Jesus Machine' tracks James Dobson's rise | Dan Gilgoff — a senior writer at U.S. News & World Report — gained rare access for a reporter to the Focus on the Family organization. He writes about how Dobson's group became the most powerful group in the Christian Right (Fresh Air, NPR)
  
  
• 'Why are you poor?' | Without condescension or glib judgment, Vollmann circles the globe to find the answer (The Boston Globe)
  
  
• Pope gives blessing to gospel of Jeffrey Archer | Archer's new book about Judas Iscariot has been given an endorsement from the Vatican (The Times, London)
  
  
• Early Christianity's martyrdom debate | Q&A: A new book on 'The Gospel of Judas' reveals sharp divisions among early Christians on issue of death as a validation of faith. David Van Biema discussed the issue with author Elaine Pagels (Time)
  
  
• Defender of the faith | Michael Burleigh seeks to write Christianity back into European political history. Tony Judt reviews Sacred Causes: The Clash of Religion and Politics, From the Great War to the War on Terror (The New York Times, preview, sub. req'd.)
  
  

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Film:

• It's God vs. Satan. But what about the nudity? | The travails of the writers who traveled from New York to Hollywood in 2004 to hawk their adaptation of "Paradise Lost." (The New York Times)
  
  

• Story of penance resonates with Russian viewers | Film about monk wins praise from church plus top awards (The Washington Post)
  
  
• Jonestown revisited | Two new docs examine the night Rev. Jim Jones's followers committed mass suicide (Toronto Star)
  
  

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Music:

• Jars of Clay has little praise for Christian rock norms, Bush | Sure, this band is religious, but that doesn't mean it's Republican (Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, S.D.)
  
  
• Christian tempers flare as all is lost | "We're Christian guys but we came pretty close to losing our tempers," said Antony Ellis, the SA band manager for popular local rock outfit, Tree 63, who lost valuable equipment en route to SA from the United States where they are based (Cape Argus, South Africa)
  
  
• Contemporary gospel takes note from pop | Once, gospel music influenced popular music; now, the tide is flowing the other way (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
  
  
• Churches often the first stage for 'Idol' contestants | Churches, especially African-American churches, have often been the training ground for artists who make it to America's most prominent stages (Religion News Service)
  
  
• Trio of indie labels launch in Christian market | At a time when the viability of many record companies seems less than certain, three new labels are launching in the Christian community (Billboard)
  
  
• Holy hip-hop makes waves in churches | Since Christian rap began two decades ago, the genre has improved in quality and quantity while gaining acceptance among churches and the music industry (Asbury Park Press, N.J.)
  
  
• A serious Christian band has a goofy side | At least one funny song on each Relient K album breaks the gloom (Newsday)
  
  
• Right time, right "Sounds" for tobyMac | With the release of "Portable Sounds," tobyMac continues to pave the way for Christian recording artists with his innovative sound and savvy marketing techniques (Billboard)
  
  
• Why Pope Benedict would have stopped John Paul going to see Bob Dylan | "There was reason to be sceptical - which I was, and in a certain sense still am - to doubt whether it was really right to involve 'prophets' of this type." (The Belfast Telegraph)
  
  
• Also: Why Pope tried to stop Dylan knockin' on heaven's door (The Times, London)
  
  
• Also: Pope tried to stop concert by Bob Dylan (The Telegraph, London)
  
  

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Art and media:

• Eric Gorski named AP religion writer | Gorski, 37, has worked the religion beat for nine years, first at The Gazette of Colorado Springs and then at The Denver Post, where he began work in 2003 (Associated Press)
  
  

• Despite protest, play mocking pope opens at U | About 250 people attended "The Pope and the Witch" as about 70 seminarians marched outside in opposition (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
  
  
• Lenten message via hot medium—YouTube | Video featuring Cardinal Rigali is among the site's most-watched clips (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
  
  
• Also: It ain't Chopin, but it's free | Did you hear the one about the archbishop, the vice president, and the piano-playing cat? (Editorial, The Philadelphia Inquirer)
  
  

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Money and business:

• U.S. Mint goof creates 'Godless dollars' | An unknown number of new George Washington dollar coins were mistakenly struck without their edge inscriptions, including "In God We Trust," and are fetching around $50 apiece online (Associated Press)
  
  
• Linden company bottles holy water | A local entrepreneur hopes his company's bottled water will refresh - perhaps even redeem - those who drink it (The Record, Stockton, Ca.)
  
  
• Also: Selling salvation in a bottle | Market for Godly goods could hit $9.5 billion US (The Star Phoenix, Saskatoon)
  
  
• Procter & Gamble suing company for 'Satan' remarks | Consumer products giant Procter & Gamble says Utahns spread false rumors that the company is associated with Satanism. Procter & Gamble is suing the Utahns for libel and unfair competition (KUTV, Salt Lake City)
  
  
• Plan for PTL tower causes concern | Council questions owner's funding, and roads worry neighbors (The Charlotte Observer, N.C.)
  
  
• Christmas Day shopping ban passed in Scotland | MSPs have overwhelmingly approved a bill to ban large stores from opening on Christmas Day (BBC)
  
  

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Prayer Palace:

• Bradenton church owner investigated | Toronto paper probes 'extravagant lifestyle' (Bradenton Herald, Fla.)
  
  
• Houses of the Holy | A Star investigation into Toronto's Prayer Palace congregation finds that despite the members' dutiful tithing, the church spends little on charitable projects (Toronto Star)
  
  
• Pastor preaches virtue of wealth, property | Prayer Palace junior minister doesn't mention Star exposé of lavish lifestyles (Toronto Star)
  
  

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New Life Church and Ted Haggard:

• New Life cuts its staff by 44 | Ross Parsley says church needs to ensure that it's a good steward of tithes and offerings (The Gazette, Colorado Springs)
  
  
• New Life Church cuts staff as giving declines | Income is down about 10 percent, so church will cut 12 percent of its workforce (The Denver Post)
  
  
• Layoffs follow scandal at Colorado megachurch | In the wake of the scandal involving the Rev. Ted Haggard, the New Life Church in Colorado Springs has been forced to lay off 44 of its 350 workers (The New York Times)
  
  

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Church life:

• Kestler sues Smith in latest dispute over control of radio network | A Twin Falls pastor has accused his mentor of funding a sexual harassment case against him to gain control over one of the nation's largest non-commercial satellite radio networks (Times-News, Twin Falls, Id.)
  
  
• Also: Kestler speaks out | Calvary Chapel pastor responds to news story (Times-News, Twin Falls, Id.)
  
  
• Book of revelations | Tanya Levin spent her formative years at Hillsong. Disillusioned, she began to question its gospel of wealth. An exclusive account of life inside Australia's most influential evangelical church (Bulletin, Australia)
  
  
• Earlier: Unhappy clappy | Lawyers have canned a tell-all book on life inside Australia's most powerful evangelical church (Bulletin, Australia, Feb. 27)
  
  
• Local Presbyterian suit spurs meeting | Property issue seen as step to leaving denomination (The Huntsville Times, Ala.)
  
  
• Also: Moving toward the exits | Conservative congregations prepare to leave the troubled Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (World)
  
  
• Moved by the Spirit to dance with the Lord | After being unwelcome for centuries, dance has become an increasingly popular part of Christian church services (The New York Times)
  
  
• Asian American churches face leadership gap | Pastors aren't being prepared to handle congregational conflicts over cultural and generational issues, experts say (Los Angeles Times)
  
  
• Most influential? | Bayside Church is making a name for itself by its dedication to innovation (The Sacramento Bee, Ca.)
  
  
• Church next to Henry Ford's grave will end Sunday services | St. Martha's Episcopal Church is running out of members (Bill McGraw, Detroit Free Press)
  
  
• Church wants name cleared | The Christ Love Ministries, a charismatic church in Windhoek North, has denied Satanist and other ritualistic claims made by purported former members of the church (New Era, Namibia)
  
  
• Embattled church seeks bankruptcy protection | Move follows pastor's '06 rape conviction (The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Also: Agape seeks Chapter 11 bankruptcy (Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, Tex.)
  
  
• Church playing it cool | Elgin house of worship has nightclub feel, coffeehouse (Cathleen Falsani, Chicago Sun-Times)
  
  
• Pastors take lesson to pulpit: Pixel or perish | Christian leaders increasingly incorporate montages, movie clips and visual packages into sermons to reach younger generations (Contra Costa Times, Ca.)
  
  

• Churches are empty in the heart of Rome, while worshippers in suburbs pray in garages | One reason is that there is a higher concentration of regular churchgoers among the poor Italians and eastern European immigrants living in the suburbs than among the more affluent Romans in the heart of the city (Associated Press)
  
  
• Yearbook shows growth in faiths | Only three mainline Protestant denominations were among the 10 largest churches (Chicago Tribune)
  
  
• Tears and accusations as rector suspends choir | Singers who performed in cathedrals sent packing; diocese blames decision on style of performance (The Guardian, London)
  
  
• Also: Clergyman puts a lid on 'rubbish' church choir (The Times, London)
  
  

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Anglicanism:

• Top attorneys square off in case of embattled priest | The Episcopal Diocese of Colorado has hired the law firm of Hal Haddon—known for defending such high-profile figures as basketball star Kobe Bryant—to pursue an allegation of "misapplied funds" against the Rev. Don Armstrong, of Colorado Springs. Meanwhile, Armstrong's first lawyer has withdrawn from the case because he says there aren't the financial resources to adequately fight the diocese (Rocky Mountain News, Denver)
  
  
• Bishop demands 'better theology' of sex | The Christian church has a deeply flawed understanding of sex that has led to morally groundless objections to masturbation, birth control, abortion and homosexuality, says a leading Canadian Anglican bishop (The Globe and Mail, Toronto)
  
  
• Also: Bishop's take on sexuality ignites debate | 'Sex is not a sport,' one critic argues (The Globe and Mail, Toronto)
  
  
• Also: Some Anglicans welcome debate on theology of sex | Some feel Right Rev. Michael Ingham went too far, however, when he singled out historical Christian objections to masturbation, birth control, abortion and homosexuality as the result of deeply flawed interpretations of the Bible and theology (The Globe and Mail, Toronto)
  
  
• Anglican head says Catholic merger not on the cards | "There is no plan at all (to reunite)," said Rowan Williams, "We will continue discussions as we have for the past 40 years." (Reuters)
  
  
• Anglican leader extolls unity on poverty, AIDS | "The tensions are perfectly real, but one of the remarkable things is the willingness to work together on development goals," Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams told reporters (Reuters)
  
  
• Anglican church urged to speak out on Zimbabwe | The spiritual head of the world's 77 million Anglicans urged the church to speak out against human rights abuses in Zimbabwe and said on Wednesday the impact of sanctions should be considered (Reuters)
  
  

• Episcopal bishop-elect confirms loyalty | "To put it as clearly as I can," says Mark Lawrence, "my intention is to remain in the Episcopal church." (Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C.)
  
  
• Also: Clock is ticking for S.C. diocese | Conservative bishop-elect Mark Lawrence 10 votes shy of needed majority for "consent" (The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C.)
  
  
• Anglican church, beset by new rift, has deep roots in Loudoun | Virginia's first settlers were of the Anglican faith, though it was not the evangelical and charismatic brand of the religion adhered to by many of today's Anglicans (The Washington Post)
  
  
• An Episcopal switch reflects divisions in church | Former Albany assistant bishop joins group that opposes policy on gays (Times Union, Albany, N.Y.)
  
  
• Episcopalians face ultimatum in Anglican civil war | The civil war in the 77 million-member Anglican Communion over human sexuality and biblical authority entered what appears to be a new and decisive stage at a meeting of the Anglican primates -- or chief presiding officers -- on Feb. 14-19 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (David C. Steinmetz, The Orlando Sentinel)
  
  
• Episcopalians and the New World | The Episcopal church gets ready to celebrate its 400th anniversary in America (Mark D. Tooley, The Weekly Standard)
  
  
• The end of the Anglican Communion | The gnosticism that infects the Episcopal Church USA has just about driven the Anglican Communion over the cliff. (George Weigel, Denver Catholic Register)
  
  
• Going it alone | The Church of England must declare its independence from the Anglican communion, otherwise its historic role in British life is at an end (Theo Hobson, The Guardian, London)
  
  

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Catholicism:

• Priest seeks shield of poverty vow | Two men fathered by the retired Jesuit in Spokane seek restitution and child support (The Oregonian)
  
  
• Priest admits fathering kids | Testimony reveals from 1961-1976 he had four children, visited prostitutes (Anchorage Daily News, Ak.)
  
  
• Pope names new archbishop of Warsaw | Kazimierz Nycz, the 57-year-old bishop of Koszalin-Kolobrzeg in northern Poland, replaces former Warsaw Archbishop Stanislaw Wielgus, who abruptly stepped down at what was to be his installation Mass on Jan. 7 after admitting he cooperated with the secret police (Associated Press)
  
  
• Prayer not "an optional" for Christians, Pope says | Prayer is not "an optional" or an accessory for Christians but an essential part of the life of the faithful, Pope Benedict said on Sunday (Reuters)
  
  

• Mount Carmel parishioners stunned by priest's transfer | Parishioners of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church are bewildered and shocked by the removal of the Rev. David J. Borino and the accusation of financial irregularities at the church (Republican-American, Waterbury, Ct.)
  
  
• Former advocate for female priests now explains Vatican's stance | In "The Catholic Priesthood and Women," Sister Sara Butler attempts to explain the underpinnings of the all-male priesthood to doubters and skeptics who think the way she used to (The Journal News, White Plains, N.Y.)
  
  
• Blueprint for Vatican-China talk | Hong Kong Cardinal Joseph Zen said he hoped negotiations with Vietnam could be used as a model to improve relations with China (BBC)
  
  
• Brazil Bishop Ivo Lorscheiter dies at 79 | Lorscheiter was one of the leading advocates of liberation theology (Associated Press)
  
  
• Overhaul church accounting | Transparency is essential to the health of the community (Editorial, National Catholic Reporter)
  
  
• Hope for healing | Bishop Farrell has a lot of rebuilding ahead of him—but he will arrive riding a crest of goodwill and gratitude (Editorial, The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Same church, different pew | Newark Archdiocese finds ways to avoid closing small parishes (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.)
  
  

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Atheism:

• Atheists battle against religion | Atheists are finding their voice and finding an audience, but some call it another form of extremism (ABC News)
  
  
• Books on atheism are raising hackles in unlikely places | Why is the new wave of books on atheism getting such a drubbing? (Peter Steinfels, The New York Times)
  
  
• Does your candidate love Jesus? | An atheist presidential hopeful might not have a prayer (Radley Balko, Reason)
  
  
• Dawkins' attack on Peter Kay is not very Christian | Arch-atheist Richard Dawkins really needs to lighten up if the best target he can find for his anti-religious ire is the mild-mannered Lancastrian (David Bennun, The Guardian, London)
  
  

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Missions and ministry:

• Housing charities face hometown disaster | Habitat for Humanity International has built homes all over the world. But now it has some work to do in its own backyard: A twister cut a devastating path through the organization's hometown last week (Associated Press)
  
  
• Faith's battlefield | S.F. event designed to get teens energized about evangelical Christianity divides believers with its combative language and emphasis on culture war (San Francisco Chronicle)
  
  

• Also: A youth ministry some call antigay tests tolerance | At a two-day event called BattleCry, young Christians plan to speak out against homosexuality, obscene music and violent video games (The New York Times)
  
  
• Good word | Kathleen Kennedy Townsend wants to refocus faith on service (Newsweek)
  
  
• Religion Today: Models for Christ | . The non-denominational organization has since expanded to 19 other major fashion centers, including Los Angeles, London, Paris, Milan and Tokyo — and hundreds participate (Associated Press)
  
  
• Churches pick up HIV/AIDS fight | Facing a growing AIDS epidemic in Florida's black community, local black churches have fortified their efforts to combat the disease by hosting prayer summits, distributing condoms, offering HIV testing at their churches and launching counseling ministries and support groups for those living with AIDS (The Miami Herald)
  
  

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People:

• Rick Warren and Purpose-Driven strife | Pastor's unconventional approach inspires some, alienates others (Nightline, ABC)
  
  
• Also: Doubleday will publish Rick Warren bio | Jeff Sheler will write "faults and all" book. A February 2009 release is projected (Religion Bookline)
  
  
• Best-selling Enneagram author Don Riso on how to read personalities and discover your true self | And on his own spirituality (San Francisco Chronicle)
  
  
• Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas speaks | Justice Thomas talks about the lasting influence of the man who guided him through his years at Holy Cross and why he's not a beneficiary of affirmative action (Business Week)
  
  
• Deterring division | Evangelist Jim Wallis, speaking at an Anaheim conference, says religion is moving beyond political polarizations (The Orange County Register, Ca.)
  
  
• Also: Wallis aims for the center (The Providence Journal, R.I.)
  
  
• A playful mind | Duke University's Stanley Hauerwas relishes a good dose of controversy along with his theology (World)
  
  
• Court warns Wanjiru and Kamangu | A judge yesterday warned televangelist Margaret Wanjiru and the man claiming to be her husband James Kamangu to stop commenting on matters before the court (The Nation, Kenya)
  
  
• Jesus might be alive and well in Houston | Jose de Jesus drinks, smokes and claims to he's the Second Coming (ABC News Primetime)
  
  

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Other stories of interest:

• Defamation lawsuit filed by Hank Hanegraaff thrown out of court | A defamation lawsuit filed by Hank Hanegraaff against Christian apologist Bill Alnor has been thrown out of court (Religion News Blog)
  
  

• Girl placed with Protestant foster parents sues | A Roman Catholic teenager has brought a landmark legal action against a council for sending her to live with Protestant foster parents (The Times, London)
  
  
• Rise of the funerals that leave out God | More than 30,000 funerals in Britain last year were nonreligious, as families turn increasingly to "celebration-of-life" ceremonies rather than church services, according to new figures (The Telegraph, London)
  
  
• Numbers drop for the married with children | Institution becoming the choice of the educated, affluent (The Washington Post)
  
  
• Muslims are too sensitive, says Pell | The Muslim community is overly sensitive and is the only migrant group to have plotted violence against Australia, Catholic Archbishop Cardinal George Pell has claimed. (The Australian)
  
  
• Baptists in the Holy Land | As a Baptist journalist in Israel for the past 25 years, I've often been shocked at how little Israelis know about my denomination (David Smith, The Jerusalem Post)
  
  
• The value of their values | It is much easier for the international community in theory than in practice to admire and empower an unfamiliar society (Rory Stewart, The New York Times)
  
  
• Scriptural violence can foster aggression (Nature, sub, req'd.)
  
  

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