Resorts are finding a travel niche for Jewish families celebrating Passover, reports Holly Lebowitz Rossi: It’s an emotional moment in the Passover seder, when Jews pray that they will be able to celebrate “next year in Jerusalem.” But “next year in Acapulco” might be more likely for many Jewish families, a growing number of whom are traveling to exotic vacation spots to celebrate the holiday that commemorates Jewish freedom from slavery. Some tour operators have carved out a niche, organizing luxury Passover tours to the top vacation spots in the world. Jews have traveled away from home for Passover for decades. A generation or two ago, there were only two locations that drew great crowds-the Catskill Mountains in New York, and Miami Beach. But today, Jews can travel to Spain, Italy, Mexico, the Caribbean and various U.S. hot spots knowing that they will be able to both enjoy a luxury vacation and observe the Passover holiday within the strictures of Jewish law.
Sarah Kellogg reports on a bill that would ban protests at soldier funerals: Legislation slapping protesters at funerals of U.S. soldiers with hefty fines and federal jail time is on the fast track in Congress. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., the bill’s main sponsor, said he hopes the House and Senate will approve the bill by May so President Bush can sign it into law before Memorial Day. A House hearing on the bill is scheduled for next week. In the last month, a spate of protests at military funerals around the country have angered state and federal officials. The protests were led by the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., which argues that the war in Iraq is God’s way of punishing the United States for tolerating homosexuality. Some of the church’s signs say: “God Blew Up the Soldier,” “Thank God for Dead Soldiers” and “Too Late to Pray.”
A new study casts doubt on the the power of prayer in healing, reports Jeff Diamant: It’s a profound if unanswerable question for many who ask God to heal the sick: Can prayer actually help another person recover from disease? A group of prominent scientists recently sought at least part of the answer in the largest study of its kind, and concluded that prayer from strangers had no effect on whether people suffered complications from coronary artery bypass surgery. “The effect of intercessory prayer was neutral. It showed no sign of any benefit,” said Charles Bethea, an Oklahoma cardiologist and researcher who participated in the $2.4 million study by the John Templeton Foundation, which supports exploration of ties between religion and science. Results appear in the American Heart Journal next week.
