Monthly Archives: April 2006
Ohio’s Piece of `Gospel of Judas’ Puzzle Unveiled to World
By RNS Blog Editor — April 21, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) They are tiny brown pieces of papyrus with torn edges _ smaller than a playing card, almost woodlike in their appearance _ with lettering most people wouldn’t recognize. Some of these pieces are being revealed via television and Web images. The fragments were photographed in an Akron, Ohio, law […]
A Fascinating Life
By RNS Blog Editor — April 20, 2006
OBITUARY The Rev. William Sloane Coffin, Protestant Social Activist, Dies at 81 The RNS obituary of William Sloane Coffin, by Jason White and Adelle M. Banks (linked above), makes for interestng reading. Coffin was, among other things, a paratrooper in WWII, translator for Patton, CIA agent, activist minister and model for a Doonesbury character. Quote: […]
D.C. Church, Lured by Development, Ended Up With `Short End of the Stick’
By Kein Eckstrom — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ When the Rev. Amy Butler arrived at Calvary Baptist Church three years ago, she inherited not only a church that had dwindled from 5,000 parishioners to about 70 on a Sunday, but also a real estate headache. Located in the heart of the city’s revitalized Chinatown neighborhood, Calvary […]
N.Y. Church Holds Cautionary Tale for Churches Considering Development
By Kein Eckstrom — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service NEW YORK _ St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal on tony Park Avenue is one of those churches that can prompt a case of professional envy for some pastors. Big building. Big congregation. Big money. Big ideas. But 25 years ago, mired in a divisive real estate battle that split the church and […]
Pope Evaluates First Year as `Gentle and Firm’
By RNS Blog Editor — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ Pope Benedict XVI commemorated the first anniversary of his election Wednesday (April 19), describing his leadership as “gentle and firm” while recalling the emotion he felt being elected to follow the juggernaut papacy of John Paul II. The comments underscored the pontiff’s continuing effort to balance the […]
In Ownership Disputes, Churches Find `Messy and Uncertain’ Answers
By Kein Eckstrom — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) When the Rev. Allen Kannapell and most of St. Andrew’s parish in Livonia, Mich., decided earlier this year that they could no longer remain Episcopalians, the conservative pastor knew he had a choice. Kannapell could either launch an expensive legal fight to claim ownership of St. Andrew’s that he […]
In Ownership Disputes, Churches Find `Messy and Uncertain’ Answers
By Kein Eckstrom — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) When the Rev. Allen Kannapell and most of St. Andrew’s parish in Livonia, Mich., decided earlier this year that they could no longer remain Episcopalians, the conservative pastor knew he had a choice. Kannapell could either launch an expensive legal fight to claim ownership of St. Andrew’s that he […]
COMMENTARY: You Can’t Reason With Murderers Who Think They’re Martyrs
By RNS Blog Editor — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Iran announces it will give Hamas $50 million to meet the bills. Pin money, you might say. Grenade pin money, more like it. The day after the award, a suicide bomber kills eight at a lunch stand in Tel Aviv. Hamas, speaking with the exquisite sense of nuance and […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service Southern Baptists Report Slightly More Members, Fewer Baptisms (RNS) The Southern Baptist Convention saw a slight membership increase in 2005 but its churches are reporting a decline in baptisms at a time that officials have made baptisms and evangelism a denominational focus. The latest statistics from the Annual Church Profile, […]
For Urban Churches Selling Hot Real Estate, the Sky’s the Limit
By Kein Eckstrom — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service NEW YORK _ The Rev. Bob Brashear rubs his fingers against the 117-year-old walls of his church and a shower of red dust sprinkles the sidewalk. Above him, scaffolding protects pedestrians from falling 20-pound chunks of sandstone. Inside, water stains line the walls and cracks trace the barrel-vaulted ceiling of […]
Sky’s the Limit for Urban Churches Selling Hot Property
By Kein Eckstrom — April 20, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) A crunch on open space in many rejuvenated cities has developers courting churches with multimillion-dollar offers to buy their property and sometimes even the air above their heads. Finding the sky is the limit, many congregations are cashing in. “In an urban area, air rights are just as much […]
COMMENTARY: At 100, American Jewish Committee Alert as Ever to Anti-Semitism
By RNS Blog Editor — April 19, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) What qualities are required to reach the age of 100? Willard Scott, my Virginia high school classmate and now Florida neighbor, who salutes centenarians on NBC-TV’s “Today” show notes such people generally have three things in common: they have good genes, they’ve stayed mentally active, and they possess a […]
Should `Jesus’ Name’ Be Scratched From Public Prayers?
By Adelle M. Banks — April 19, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Retired Army Chaplain David Peterson models how he thinks sensitive Christians should pray in public. “I pray in Jesus’ name but I always give a little introduction, just two or three seconds: `I’m going to pray according to my tradition and I encourage you to pray according to your […]
The Rev. William Sloane Coffin, Protestant Social Activist, Dies at 81
By Ed White — April 19, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) The Rev. William Sloane Coffin Jr., a fiery and controversial social activist, Protestant minister and author who saw social justice “at the heart of the Gospel,” died Wednesday (April 12). He was 81. Coffin, who had been suffering from congestive heart failure, passed away at his home in Strafford, […]
RNS Weekly Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 19, 2006
c. 2006 Religion News Service Carter Leads Baptists in Issuing New `Covenant’ (RNS) Former President Jimmy Carter, the nation’s most famous ex-Southern Baptist, has forged a “Baptist Covenant” with Baptist groups that do not embrace Southern Baptists’ conservative tilt. Carter met with 17 Baptist leaders for four hours at the Carter Center in Atlanta on […]
