Friday’s Religion News Roundup: Pink Bibles, Tebowing and Gingrich on celibacy

Christopher Hitchens, the acid-tongued atheist and lovably roguish essayist, has met his maker (or not) at age 62. Saith Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, a friend and sparring partner: “He was religion’s most vociferous enemy but you could not help but develop an affection for him due to his warmth, wit, and, bizarre as it may sound, […]

Christopher Hitchens, the acid-tongued atheist and lovably roguish essayist, has met his maker (or not) at age 62. Saith Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, a friend and sparring partner: “He was religion’s most vociferous enemy but you could not help but develop an affection for him due to his warmth, wit, and, bizarre as it may sound, humility.”

WaPo sits in on a choir practice at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, where the “gleaming flaxen bob” in the alto section belongs to none other than Callista Gingrich. Speaking of, Newt says that if Catholic priests can choose to be celibate, so can the gays.


POTUS will be speaking to the nation’s largest Jewish movement this afternoon in Washington, and our own Lauren Markoe profiles the new president of the Union for Reform Judaism, Rabbi Rick Jacobs.

Howard Friedman’s Religion Clause is reporting that Congress passed a Pentagon spending bill that includes a line that military chaplains cannot be forced to officiate at same-sex weddings.

In Foggy Bottom, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hosted a summit this week on protecting religious minorities; it was a work-around to the resolutions against the “defamation of religion” that the U.S. finally managed to derail this year at the U.N.

A chain of Southern Baptist-owned Christian bookstores has pulled a line of “pink Bibles” to help support breast cancer research after people complained that the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation supports Planned Parenthood.

HuffPo looks into the intriguing Tri-Faith Initiative in Omaha, Neb., which plans to build a mosque, synagogue and Episcopal church on a shared campus.

Someone get on the phone to Denver: several students at a Long Island high school were suspended for “Tebowing” in the halls; school officials called it a safety hazard and a distraction.

Minnesota officials said a anti-gay marriage DVD sent to some 400,000 Catholics last year didn’t count as official lobbying; the Land of 10,000 Lakes will vote next year on a state constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.


Speaking of marriage, a (former) church secretary in Tennessee is seeking $500,000 in damages after she claimed she was fired for marrying a black man.

A new report says thousands of Dutch children were abused in Catholic institutions. From the AP: “Based on a survey among more than 34,000 people, the commission estimated that one in 10 Dutch children suffered some form of abuse broadly in society. The number doubled to 20 percent of children who spent part of their youth in an institution like an orphanage or boarding school – whether Catholic or not.”

And, when you need a break from your Christmas shopping or latke prepping or hanging your stockings with care, check out our compilation of the year’s top religion stories and trends.

— Kevin Eckstrom

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