Monthly Archives: December 2004
NEWS STORY: Seventh-day Adventist Who Objected to Combat Training Sentenced by Marines
By Adelle M. Banks — December 17, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) A Seventh-day Adventist U.S. Marine was sentenced to seven months in the brig at Camp Lejeune, N.C., Tuesday (Dec. 14) for his refusal to take part in combat-related activities. According to Adventist church officials, military leaders rejected religious reasons cited by Joel David Klimkewicz _ who also was demoted […]
COMMENTARY: Religion Scholar Picks Top 10 Stories of 2004
By RNS Blog Editor — December 17, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Here are my picks for the top ten religion stories of 2004: 1.This year’s American presidential election is the easy winner for first place. The three Gs of God, guns and gays were shorthand for the politically potent package of “moral values” that included stem cell research, abortion, creationism […]
NEWS STORY: In Peace Message, Pope Urges the World to `Overcome Evil With Good’
By RNS Blog Editor — December 17, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ In his message for the World Day of Peace, Pope John Paul II on Thursday (Dec. 16) condemned the evils of conflict and poverty in Africa, violence between Israelis and Palestinians, terrorism and the war in Iraq. He also called on all men and women of goodwill […]
COMMENTARY: Christian Revival Shakes the Big Apple, With More to Come
By RNS Blog Editor — December 16, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service NEW YORK _ They are patriotic, hard-working, mostly Democratic and mainly from immigrant families. They are also born-again Christians. Their faith is increasingly typical of this city. On Sunday mornings about 1.5 million out of 8 million New Yorkers now attend an evangelical, charismatic or Pentecostal church, according to a […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — December 16, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service Instructor to Be Investigated for Alleged Comments on Religious Voters LOUISVILLE, Ky. (RNS) A University of Louisville sociology instructor has had his contract to teach withheld pending an investigation into comments he allegedly made in class saying President Bush was re-elected by “religious zealots” who should be shot with automatic […]
NEWS STORY: 2004: When Religion Glowed Red Hot
By Kein Eckstrom — December 16, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Red, color experts tell us, is a serious color. It denotes passion, heat, importance, even danger. Power ties, celebrity carpets and stop signs are all red. Red says, “Stop what you’re doing and pay attention.” So it was with 2004. From the red-state heartland that re-elected President Bush to […]
NEWS ANALYSIS: Religious Issues Shape Turkey’s Bid for EU Membership
By RNS Blog Editor — December 16, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) In early December, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan presided over the opening of a new synagogue, mosque and church _ the last partitioned into Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox sections _ in the Mediterranean resort area of Belek. It was a rather flamboyant gesture on Erdogan’s part, designed to […]
NEWS STORY: Alabama Judge Dons Robe Bearing Ten Commandments
By Connie Baggett — December 16, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service ANDALUSIA, Ala. _ A rural Alabama judge began wearing a robe embroidered with the Ten Commandments to court this week, in his own way echoing the statement made by the state Supreme Court chief justice ousted over a Ten Commandments display. Covington County Presiding Circuit Court Judge Ashley McKathan said […]
RNS Weekly Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — December 15, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service Former Bishops’ President Named to Lead Archdiocese of Atlanta (RNS) The Illinois bishop who guided the U.S. Catholic Church through a bruising clergy sexual abuse scandal received a major promotion from Pope John Paul II on Thursday (Dec. 9) when he was named the archbishop of Atlanta. Bishop Wilton Gregory […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — December 15, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service Biology Curriculum Evolves Into `Intelligent Design’ Court Fight (RNS) Civil liberties groups and 11 parents filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday (Dec. 14) aimed at blocking a Pennsylvania school board’s decision to teach “intelligent design” in a ninth-grade biology course. The Dover School Board voted 6-3 in October to require teachers […]
COMMENTARY: A Time to Be With Family and Fellow Exiles on the Highway of Life
By Tom Ehrich — December 15, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) With Windham Hill’s haunting “Celtic Christmas III” filling the living room, my 13-year-old son and I string lights on our Christmas tree, while my wife hangs the stockings with care. I remember my father doing this duty in what seems another lifetime, in that childhood when my images of […]
NEWS FEATURE: Muslim Writers in Europe Test Limits of Expression
By Elizabeth Bryant — December 15, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service PARIS _ The letter arrived just a week after Aziz Chouaki spoke about his writing on a French Jewish radio show. “Aren’t you ashamed of speaking to Jewish people?” asked the chilling missive, which threatened to unleash an “Islamic revolution” against the 53-year-old playwright. “Are you with the Jews?” Sent […]
NEWS FEATURE: Girl’s Dramatic Recovery From Rabies Follows Web-Fueled, Worldwide Prayer
By RNS Blog Editor — December 15, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service FOND DU LAC, Wis. _ When a brown bat fell into the aisle during a Mass at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, 15-year-old Jeanna Giese didn’t hesitate to scoop up the furry mammal and hurry it outdoors to freedom. The soft-hearted teen was well-known for rescuing creatures in need. A bite […]
NEWS STORY: As Catholic Sex Abuse Scandal Wanes, Reform Group Presses On
By RNS Blog Editor — December 14, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) The reform group Voice of the Faithful was created by lay Catholics in response to the clergy sex abuse scandal amid revelations that some bishops protected priests from prosecution. The group, whose mission is to increase roles for laity in church governance, quickly drew thousands of people, its membership […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — December 14, 2004
c. 2004 Religion News Service United Church of Christ Files FCC Complaint Over Rejection of TV Ads (RNS) The United Church of Christ has asked the Federal Communications Commission to deny licenses to two Miami television stations after church ads were rejected as “too controversial” by the NBC and CBS networks. The church accused the […]
