The arrest of a Somali-born teenager accused of trying to bomb a crowded Christmas tree-lighting ceremony in Portland, Ore., has raised questions about the government’s use of sting operations to capture terrorism suspects, the NYT reports.
In related news, the FBI is offering a $10,000 reward for information about the apparent torching of an Islamic center in Corvallis, Ore. that the suspect, Mohamed Osman Mohamud, attended intermittently. Folks in Corvallis are standing behind the mosque.
A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order against Oklahoma’s anti-Sharia ballot measure.
A long-awaited Pentagon study says gay troops could serve openly without hurting the military’s ability to fight. A new poll suggests broad support across religious groups for lifting Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell.
Pope Benedict XVI’s election as pontiff in 2005 took American diplomats by surprise, according to newly released documents. The U.S. Catholic Bishops endorsed a largely symbolic congressional resolution condemning attacks on Iraqi Christians. Seven in 10 Filipinos support a contraception bill that the country’s Catholic bishops, and the pope, oppose, according to Reuters.
First lady Michelle Obama asked faith leaders to “shake up their congregations” and help her eliminate childhood obesity, according to Politico. Former President George W. Bush went to Saddleback Church with the intention of “shamelessly peddling my book.” “I think religion is discipline,” Bush said.
Conservative Christian groups are none too pleased that the Southern Poverty Law Center has deemed them “hate groups” for their outspoken opposition to homosexuality. A Minnesota court denied a motion filed by an anti-gay marriage group to intervene in a lawsuit challenging the state’s Defense of Marriage Act. Apple’s iTunes App Store has removed a program for the Manhattan Declaration after critics decried the declaration as “anti-gay” and “anti-woman,” according to Christianity Today.
Three New Mexico men have been charged under the revamped Hate Crimes Act for branding a mentally disabled Navajo man with a swastika and other “White Power” symbols.
Faith groups have gotten creative in shaking loose donations from recession-wracked Americans, USA Today reports.
Hanukkah begins on Wednesday, and some Jews can’t believe the holiday’s here so soon, Dreidelpalooza and all. Utah’s Catholic bishop wants his flock to hold off on celebrating Christmas until Dec. 24. No parties, no tree lightings, no ornate decorations until then, says Bishop John Wester. School officials near Boston are thinking about removing all religious holidays from next year’s school calendars.
A Buffalo Bills wide receiver is blaming God after he dropped an easy, potentially game-winning pass in the End Zone on Sunday. “I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!!” tweeted Stevie Johnson. That’s Stevie at top left. Make sure not to stand near him in a lightning storm.
