Monthly Archives: January 2009
Catholic Democrats question pope’s silence on Holocaust
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
WASHINGTON-Nearly 50 Catholic members of the U.S. House asked Pope Benedict for “clarification” on Friday (Jan. 30) about why he readmitted a schismatic bishop who has publicly doubted that 6 million Jews were killed in the Holocaust. The lawmakers, all Democrats, acknowledged the pope’s right to lift the excommunication of Bishop Richard Williamson and three […]
George Beverly Shea marks 100 years
By Adelle M. Banks — January 31, 2009
George Beverly Shea, the longtime singer who accompanied evangelist Billy Graham on his crusades across the world, turns 100 on Sunday. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association announced it will mark the milestone the next day at a private gathering at the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove in Asheville, N.C. The association noted that […]
College loses president, but receives $10 million gift
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
OKLAHOMA CITY (RNS) A Christian liberal arts college in Florida lost its president to Oral Roberts University on Wednesday-but gained a $10 million pledge from a business associated with the chairman of ORU’s board of trustees. Southeastern University in Lakeland, Fla., announced the donation Thursday (Jan. 29) by Oklahoma-based Hobby Lobby Inc., an arts and […]
Report: African-Americans surpass others in religiosity
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
WASHINGTON (RNS) African-Americans surpass others in the U.S. in a range of expressions of faith, from praying more to attending religious services more frequently, a new report shows. “Compared with other racial and ethnic groups, African-Americans are among the most likely to report a formal religious affiliation, with fully 87 percent of African-Americans describing themselves […]
Men plead not guilty in arson of black church
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (RNS) Three white men accused of setting fire to a black church hours after President Obama’s election pleaded not guilty in federal court on Thursday (Jan. 29), even though investigators claim the men had previously confessed. Michael F. Jacques, 24; Benjamin F. Haskell, 22; and Thomas A. Gleason Jr., 21; pleaded innocent at […]
Vatican to probe U.S. nuns’ dwindling numbers
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
WASHINGTON-Prompted by a steep decline in the number of women entering the Catholic sisterhood in the U.S., the Vatican has ordered an unprecedented review of the nation’s 400 women’s religious congregations, officials announced here Friday (Jan. 30). The “Apostolic Visitation of Institutes of Women Religious in the United States,” officially began Friday, said Sister Eva-Maria […]
Holocaust-denying bishop apologizes to pope
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
VATICAN CITY-A Holocaust-denying bishop who was readmitted to the Catholic Church apologized Friday (Jan. 30) to Pope Benedict XVI for the “unnecessary distress and problems” caused by his “imprudent remarks.” Bishop Richard Williamson, one of four leaders of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) whose 1988 excommunications were lifted by the pope on […]
Tips for altar-ing the spiritual balance of your home
By Tracy Gordon — January 31, 2009
(UNDATED) Covered with photos, to-do lists, notes to loved ones and the collected magnets of a dozen vacations, a refrigerator door may say more about your heart than any other spot. If that’s the case, you might want to think about creating an actual altar-a designated space where whatever you love can renew your spirit […]
Redeemed, how he loves to proclaim it
By Kevin Eckstrom — January 30, 2009
Patton Dodd has a good piece over at Slate about Ted Haggard’s “restoration,” or to be more precise, what his restoration looks like vs. what it should look like. Money quote: “The problem for people like Ted Haggard … is that he was in a position of public trust. Once fully lost, that trust can […]
Seminary sues over embezzled funds
By Kevin Eckstrom — January 30, 2009
Dallas Theological Seminary is suing its former chief financial officer, attempting to recover more than $165,000 that the school says he embezzled.
For better or worser
By Daniel Burke — January 30, 2009
Pope Benedict said Catholic officials are granting marriage annulments too readily, according to the this CNS story. Moneyquote: “`We run the risk of falling into an anthropological pessimism which, in the light of today’s cultural situation, considers it almost impossible to marry,'” the pope said in a speech Jan. 29 to members of the Tribunal […]
Darwain Day proposal creates controversy
By Daniel Burke — January 30, 2009
Removing the names of Charles Darwin and Galileo Galilei seemed to be the sticking point last night for a resolution that would declare February “Science Month” in Whitehall. The councilwoman who proposed the resolution said it wouldn’t be worthwhile without naming the two specific scientists, even though it looked as though the proclamation wouldn’t pass […]
Priests defends Holocaust-denier
By Daniel Burke — January 30, 2009
ROME-A priest in an ultraconservative society recently rehabilitated by Pope Benedict XVI has defended a bishop in his group and joined him in expressing doubts about the Holocaust.
Priests’ remarks embarrass pope
By Daniel Burke — January 30, 2009
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Outbursts about Jews and Muslims by Italian leaders of an ultra-traditionalist Roman Catholic group show the challenge facing Pope Benedict as he tries to bring them back into the Church.
LA archdiocese confirms federal probe
By Daniel Burke — January 30, 2009
Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, the Roman Catholic archbishop of Los Angeles, confirmed Thursday that a federal grand jury is investigating whether the archdiocese mishandled priests who had sexually abused children.
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