Monthly Archives: September 2005
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — September 28, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service FEMA Extends Faith-Based Initiative With Hurricane Reimbursements (RNS) The Federal Emergency Management Agency intends to reimburse religious groups that have offered relief to victims of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, marking a new step in the White House’s faith-based initiative. The move by FEMA is being criticized by a church-state watchdog […]
Hurricanes Provide Teachable Moment, Spur Interfaith Cooperation
By Adelle M. Banks — September 28, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Less than a month into his job, the Rev. Reid Doster is coordinating disaster recovery for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Louisiana, helping victims near Lacombe deal with the devastation of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. As he works with Presbyterians, Lutherans and other volunteers to help remove wet furniture […]
On First Day of Trial, Biology Professor Calls Intelligent Design `Dangerous’
By RNS Blog Editor — September 28, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service HARRISBURG, Pa. _ The lone witness in a federal lawsuit being scrutinized across the country testified on the trial’s first day that a statement on intelligent design being read in the Dover Area School District is “terribly dangerous.” Kenneth R. Miller, a biology textbook author and professor of biology at […]
COMMENTARY: On so Many Issues, No Single `Right’ Opinion
By Tom Ehrich — September 28, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Here is a question to ponder. My son and I recently went to play tennis. All five courts were empty, as they are most days. A generation ago, people lined up to play tennis. What changed? Some will say, Who cares? I don’t play tennis. If it doesn’t touch […]
Hurricanes’ lessons; intelligent design
By RNS Blog Editor — September 28, 2005
Tuesday’s RNS report includes a story about the lessons hurricanes offer to people of faith. Adelle M. Banks and Jason Kane write: The one-two punch of hurricanes Katrina and Rita is serving as both a test of faith and a teachable moment for the nation, religious leaders say. As resources are stretched to aid those […]
Actor says “Jesus is the only way to Heaven”
By Tracy Gordon — September 27, 2005
Quote of the Day: Actor Kirk Cameron “If we present the gospel simply as a life improvement program, well, boy-there’s lots of things that work to improve your life. You could get into yoga, become a vegetarian.” -Actor Kirk Cameron, known for his role in the 1980s situation comedy “Growing Pains” as well as a […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — September 27, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Pope Meets with Dissident Theologian Hans Kung VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Benedict XVI has met with dissident theologian Hans Kung in a push to improve relations with an outspoken Vatican critic that many regard as the pope’s main theological adversary. In a statement released Monday (Sept. 26), Vatican spokesman Joaquin […]
COMMENTARY: It’s OK to Question God About the Hurricanes
By RNS Blog Editor — September 27, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Even if you’re not the sort of person who believes God is directing the path of all these storms, it’s been hard not to throw a lamentation or two in the Almighty’s direction lately. Maybe yours came with Arlene. Perhaps you waited for Dennis or held off until Katrina’s […]
NEWS SIDEBAR: Why Rosh Hashana and Ramadan Meet Only Once Every 33 Years
By RNS Blog Editor — September 27, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Everybody knows that there are 365 days in the solar year. But how many know the number of days in a lunar year? The answer is 354, 11 days fewer than the solar calendar. Judaism and Islam, which both observe a lunar calendar, treat this disparity differently, explaining why […]
Interfaith Activities to Celebrate `God’s October Surprise’
By RNS Blog Editor — September 27, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) If all goes as predicted, Tuesday, Oct. 4, will indeed be a holy day. For the first time in 33 years, two world religions would mark the beginning of their most sacred seasons on the same day. Jews will begin celebrating Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year that also […]
Dalai Lama Urges Peace Through `Science of Emotions’
By Jeff Diamant — September 27, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service PISCATAWAY, N.J. _ Sharing the simple spiritual lessons that have become his calling card, the Dalai Lama drew the largest crowd for a non-athletic event in Rutgers University history Sunday (Sept. 25) for a wide-ranging speech on what he called the “science of emotions.” From a massive stage behind the […]
Katrina’s displaced pastors; intelligent design case; and the giant Jesus
By RNS Blog Editor — September 24, 2005
In Friday’s RNS report, Bruce Nolan reports from New Orleans on the struggles faced by displaced pastors, who lost not only their church buildings and their congregations, but also their chief source of personal income: The rebuilding, such as it is, presents enormous challenges to displaced pastors struggling to find hundreds of church members scattered […]
Court Battle Joined on Teaching of Intelligent Design
By Mary Warner — September 24, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service HARRISBURG, Pa. _ In Harrisburg on Monday, as the nation watches, a 21st-century courtroom drama will emerge from an old and ongoing cultural divide in America. It’s about evolution. In a nonjury civil trial expected to last until late October, the latest challenge to evolution in public schools receives its […]
New Orleans Pastors Struggle to Reconnect and Rebuild
By RNS Blog Editor — September 24, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service NEW ORLEANS _ The same storm winds that shattered New Orleans neighborhoods scattered its faith communities. In the weeks following Hurricane Katrina, once-solid New Orleans churches struggled to reconstitute themselves, worshipping in new, unfamiliar cities. Then came Hurricane Rita, wreaking even more damage. The rebuilding, such as it is, presents […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — September 24, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Report Provides New Details of Secret Election of New Pope VATICAN CITY (RNS) Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina received enough votes during the conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI to have blocked the pontiff’s election, according to a detailed report published Friday (Sept. 23) in Italy. The report, published […]
