“Students must be protected from every form of fundamentalism.”Swedish Education Minister Jan Björklund, on the government’s plan to ban private schools from introducing religious ideas into subjects other than religion classes. (Source: Associated Press)
“Losing the building is stunning. To stand and look at all this is a kick in the gut. But because the heart of the church is the people, I don’t feel the sense of devastation.”Annie Kauffman, a congregant of Malibu Presbyterian Church, which burned to the ground in the October California wildfires.(Source: Los Angeles Times)
“Giving oneself and one’s possessions voluntarily for the wellbeing of others and without compulsion is a Christian duty.”The Church of England, on organ donation. The Anglican body did not take a position on opt-in or opt-out donation systems, saying Christian concerns could be reflected in either case. (Source: BBC)
“What should we do, should we send him to hell or to another parish?”Luis Alfredo Rios, priest at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Crystal Lake, Illinois, after playing his congregation a phone message that said, “I attended Mass on Sunday and I have seen poor homilies, but yesterday broke all records.” The parishioner who left the message filed a “false light” invasion of privacy lawsuit. (Source: Religion Clause)
“We apologize to the Christians for desecrating the church and hurting their religious sentiments.” Muslim leaders in Gowindh, Pakistan, after 300 villagers vandalized New Apostolic Church and the town’s eight mosques broadcast, “Become Muslims or be prepared to fight or die.” (Source: Compass Direct)
“It is not a matter of opposing belief and science, but it is necessary to prevent belief from opposing science.”The European Parliament, in a resolution urging member states “to firmly oppose the teaching of creationism as a scientific discipline on an equal footing with the theory of evolution and in general resist presentation of creationist ideas in any discipline other than religion”. (Source: Council of Europe)
Copyright © 2007 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
Related elsewhere:
Earlier Quotation Marks columns are available from the November 2007, October 2007, September 2007, August 2007, July 2007, June 2007, May 2007, April 2007, March 2007, February 2007, January 2007, December 2006, and earlier issues of Christianity Today.
