Taliban shuts down two more aid agencies While members of Germany-based Shelter Now await trial in Afghanistan for promoting Christianity through their relief work, the Taliban has begun expelling other aid organizations. Kabul-based International Assistance Mission has been working in the country for more than 35 years, having survived communist rule and other oppression. Now the agency, which ran two eye hospitals and several health clinics, is closed and the 50 or so workers (mainly American expatriates) have been given 72 hours to leave the country. Likewise, SERVE (Serving Emergency Relief and Vocational Enterprise), a Christian ministry with offices in the Netherlands, Britain, and elsewhere, has done refugee work, housing, health education, solar technology, and disability training. No more. “No one is left here and we are not allowed to let any foreigners in,” a Taliban official outside the International Assistance Mission said. “All foreigners left this morning after we closed their offices.”
Mandatory Labor Day link:
- Religious leaders take on labor dispute | Clergy enter San Francisco’s oldest labor dispute—Local 2 of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union versus the downtown Marriott Hotel (San Francisco Chronicle)
Religious freedom abroad:
- Pakistan’s cruel blasphemy law | Younus Shaikh’s death sentence and the blasphemy law that underlies it are an embarrassment to Pakistan and a threat to the basic liberties of its citizens (Editorial, The New York Times)
- Danforth set to be special envoy | Bush picks ex-senator to bolster efforts to end Sudanese conflict (The Miami Herald)
- Clergy, rock stars rally to end slavery | “Rock the Desert” Christian music festival takes aim at Sudan (The Washington Times)
- Renewed Christian-Muslim clashes claim lives | At least 15 killed as Nigeria’s northern Bauchi State fights over Shari’ah law (UN Integrated Regional Information Network)
- A struggle to survive on Russian soil | Jehovah’s Witnesses, denied permission to register as a legal entity in the largely Orthodox Christian nation, face both cultural and religious obstacles. (Los Angeles Times)
- Attack on Christians in Gujarat alleged | Hindu activists reportedly beat orphanage workers with sticks (The Times of India)
- Also: Christian nuns beaten by Hindu radicals | Christian groups demand investigation (AFP)
Irish priest murdered in Philippines:
- Philippines arrests suspect in Irish priest killing (Reuters)
- Vatican calls for justice for killers of Australian priest in Papua New Guinea (Radio Australia)
- Son of former rebel accused of killing missionary | Rufus Halley was apparently victim of botched kidnapping (Associated Press)
- Murder of priest was no surprise | Father Rufus Halley’s murder in Mindanao, in the southern Philippines, came on the eve of a meeting of the island’s 40 Catholic bishops to discuss the promotion of peace (The Irish Times)
- Priest eighth Columban killed (The Irish Times)
- Rebels protecting killers of Irish priest, say police | Ceasefire agreement prevents government forces from assaulting MILF positions (The Irish Times)
- Funeral held in Papua New Guinea for murdered Australian priest | Killers remain at large (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Other murders:
- Washington state executes man for murder in church | James Elledge had been church janitor (Reuters)
- Also: Church tries to overcome hurt, anger caused by killer’s betrayal | Lighthouse Free Methodist Church’s James Elledge is to be executed Tuesday (The Seattle Times)
- Killer said posed as missionary | Gang of escaped prisoners posed as devout Christians and concocted elaborate tales while on the lam in Colorado (Associated Press)
Kidnappings:
- Philippine army witheld reinforcements against Abu Sayyaf | Officer says generals gave kidnappers time to escape (AFP)
- Kidnapped priest freed in El Salvador | Family members paid ransom, says church official (Associated Press)
- Kidnappers free daughter of Brazilian media mogul | Patricia Abravanel credits God with safety, release (Reuters)
Sexual abuse:
- Child sex case brings battle on admission to clerics | A man charged with sexually abusing two girls in a Massachusetts congregation asked a judge to throw out a confession that he made to several ministers, who then reported him. (The New York Times)
- Also: ‘Confession’ in sex abuse case a bind for clergy | Leaders of the United Church of Christ are being asked to defend in court their decision to turn in one of their own religious education teachers (The Boston Globe)
- One of Sudan’s ‘Lost Boys’ is charged with rape | 19-year-old accused of Arlington assault (The Boston Globe)
- Lookalike pastor’s prayers answered | The Rev. Jack M. Copas was mistaken by FBI agents for pedophile Eric Rosser (New York Post)
- Indecency exposure | Sex abuse allegations meet the healing air at New Covenant church (The Boston Globe)
- Church leader, adopted son guilty of abusing 14-year-old | Jury deliberated only 45 minutes before returning the verdict after three days of testimony (Associated Press)
Sexual ethics:
- Fla. ban on gay adoptions upheld | National implications of federal judge’s ruling are unclear (The Washington Post)
- Also: U.S. judge upholds Florida gay adoption ban | “No fundamental right to adopt,” says judge (CNN)
- Churches urged to introduce sex education | Organization of African Instituted Churches calls for education, compassion (P.M. News, Lagos, Nigeria)
Law and the courts:
- Wisconsin school board: Girl may hand out religious cards | After apology and clarification, “no one will be denied distribution solely based on religious issues” says board superintendent (Associated Press)
- Religious bias alleged at school supplies company | Former employees say they were denied stock benefits, management positions and sales territory because they weren’t Dutch Reformed (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
- Swaggart, publishers may face federal trial in Nashville | Children of Swaggart hero Finis Jennings Dake say evangelist plagiarized (The Tennessean)
- Bishop’s arrest sparks furor | Leader of revival meeting ticketed for disorderly conduct and making unnecessary and unusual noise (Associated Press)
- AOL sued by Muslims over chat room harassment | Group says AOL did not sufficiently monitor and edit out harassing incidents (Reuters)
- Indian divorce bill passes | Legislation gives Christian women right to seek divorce (Times of India)
- Earlier: Hindu Government Moves to Change Christian Divorce (Christianity Today, Feb. 16, 2001)
Life ethics:
- Abortion wording blocks U.N. draft document | U.S. delegates have refused to insert any language allowing abortion counseling for children (The Washington Times)
- Also: With conservative stand on minors’ rights, U.S. irks its allies | It’s not that the U.S. government doesn’t support children’s rights, American diplomats say. But the Bush administration does oppose the way the U.N. wants to ensure those rights and is taking a conservative stand that is leaving even its usual friends behind. (Los Angeles Times)
- Also: U.S. draws abortion line at U.N. | Officials may boycott session on children (The Washington Post)
- Pastor’s £2m sanctuary plan for pregnant girls splits prolife activists | Catholics criticize American’s plan in Scotland for removing girls from families and other support (The Scotsman, Edinburgh)
- Vatican decries embryo experiments | Experimentation could spawn a new form of slavery by creating a “sub-category” of human beings, says document aimed at U.N. conference on racism (Associated Press)
- Religions ponder the stem cell issue | Episcopal Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, United Methodist Church, and others have not issued opinions (The New York Times)
- Catholic bishops unveil subtle anti-abortion ads | Second Look Project does not mention religion (Religion News Service)
Books:
- Spiritual spoofs | The Mantra of Jabez and Right Behind are part of a rarity in evangelical Christian life: humorists who poke fun at churches’ sacred cows (The Washington Times)
- The trials of Jabez | New books say prayer bestseller gets it wrong (U.S. News & World Report)
- The Prayer of Jabez continues to enlarge its territory | After half a year as a New York Times bestseller, Wilkinson’s book continues to be a phenomenon. (The Hartford Courant)
- Author angers the Bible Belt | Philip Pullman’s humanist tales of good and evil are a far cry from CS Lewis and A A Milne. But to the horror of the religious Right, they are a runaway hit. (The Observer, London)
- Holy realists | Alan Wolfe reviews Grant Wacker’s Heaven Below (The New Republic)
- When morals bend to personal choice | Alan Wolfe talks about his new book, Moral Freedom: The Search for Virtue in a World of Choice. (The Christian Science Monitor)
- My morals, myself | Personal rules, as described in Alan Wolfe’s Moral Freedom, mean trying to have it both ways (John Leo, U.S. News & World Report)
- Humor and insight in a Christian’s observations about Jewish life | Harvey Cox shares his sojourn in Common Prayers: Faith, Family, and a Christian’s Journey Through the Jewish Year (Los Angeles Times)
- Cupid with a saintly streak | Heroes and heroines don’t romp through Christian romance novels, but they do have heavenly encounters (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
- Bible teachings inspire pictures | Robert Flores’ book illustrates the New Testament epistles of 1 John, James and Jude (The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, California)
Catholicism:
- Many young Catholics stay with the church despite disagreeing on some issues | But on core beliefs such as the divinity of Jesus, 80 percent to 90 percent of young adults adhered to the church’s traditional teachings (The New York Times)
- Pope seeks apology for slave trade | Vatican apologized nearly a decade ago, says its other countries’ turn (Associated Press)
Science and studies:
- Science in search of God | When it comes to religious faith, scientific communities reflect the societies in which they are embedded (The Guardian, London)
- Study shows religious teenagers have more self-esteem (CNN Sunday)
- Study looks at effect of church on kids | The poorer the neighborhood, the stronger the link between youngsters going to worship services and doing well at school (Gannett News Service)
Popular culture:
- D’oh and the deity | The Simpsons has sometimes been called sacrilegious—rather than satirical—for its jabs at clergy and the faithful alike. But religious commentators, especially this year, have looked at the animated series and found plenty to like (Associated Press)
- Doubts don’t deter Christian rappers | Just as Christian hard-rock and metal bands fought for critical legitimacy and retail shelf space in the ’70s and ’80s, Christian rap and hip-hop artists are now struggling to gain acceptance and support from their brethren (Billboard)
- Spirituality on celluloid | Film festivals in Seattle, Los Angeles, examine faith and evil (The Washington Times)
- A Web site `that could shake the world’ | KillingtheBuddha.com is an online “religion magazine for people made anxious by churches” (Kathy Shaidle, The Toronto Star)
- KCET probes the nation’s faith | Los Angeles station is devoting prime-time hours to issues of life, death and sexuality (Los Angeles Times)
- Michelle Shocked brings a more spiritual edge on tour | But singer’s enduring appeal has been her music, not her religious convictions (The Boston Globe)
- Slayer censor “God” | Band designs additional, less offensive artwork for new record (Rolling Stone)
Church advertising:
- Anger over church shock tactics | Posters invoke body piercing, marijuana to lead youth to Church of England (Birmingham Post)
- Methodists hope TV will fill pews | Marketing campaign emphasizes children’s ministries and dynamic, diverse worship services (WYFF, Greenville, South Carolina)
Sports:
- Youth coach blasts film | Hard-edged depiction of kids called inaccurate (Chicago Tribune)
- Detroit’s archbishop notches hole in one on wind, no prayer | Cardinal Adam Maida doesn’t credit God with amazing shot (Detroit Free Press)
- A coach’s leap of faith | No matter the foe, Moeller High has a prayer (USA Today)
Other important stories:
- Water to flow, cooling decades-long Mexican religious dispute | In exchange for the resumption of service, evangelicals agree to make community payments for nonreligious events and to drop lawsuits against Catholics (Reuters)
- In the beginning was the question | New Library of Congress exhibit examines creation stories (The Washington Post)
- Also: World Treasures: Beginnings (Official exhibit site, Library of Congress)
- Program for poor is kicked out of mansion | Planning commission says religious group founded by Mother Teresa must leave residential area (Los Angeles Times)
- Florida prisons turning to religion | Florida Department of Corrections officials have created a statewide, $4.5 million effort to provide specialized services and housing to religious inmates and hire additional chaplains and counselors at seven prisons (Associated Press)
- International house of prayer | In a major evangelical movement its leaders say is ordained by God to herald the Second Coming, seven-day-a-week, 24-hour houses of prayer are being established throughout the country. (The Plain Dealer, Cleveland)
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