Tuesday’s Religion News Roundup: Contraception battles * Yoga fight * Bible sequel

The New York Times endorses the Obama administration's contraception guidelines. Yoga does not advance religion. NBC plans a sequel to the hit cable series "The Bible."

Producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett attend 'The Bible Experience' Opening Night Gala. Courtesy Shutterstock, http://shutr.bz/14Mz4nT
Photo of producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett of the Bible miniseries.

Producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett attend ‘The Bible Experience’ Opening Night Gala. Photo courtesy Shutterstock

The New York Times in an editorial today endorsed the Obama administration’s new guidelines that require employers to cover the cost of contraception. It then takes to task the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals for allowing Hobby Lobby, a craft store chain that describes itself as “a faith-based company,” to pursue its case against the rule.

Onto another legal opinion: Yoga does not advance or inhibit religion, said a San Diego Superior Court judge who ruled that the Encinitas Union School District may continue to teach yoga to school children as part of the physical education program. Not surprisingly, some Christian parents are appalled.


The chancellor and head of the seminary at Yeshiva University, the flagship U.S. school for Orthodox Judaism, resigned Monday and acknowledged he had mishandled sex abuse allegations against staff members in the 1980s.

Two top managers of the Vatican Bank resigned on Monday too. Something about corruption.

The data dump released Monday by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee as part of a deal reached in bankruptcy court with clergy sex abuse victims is still being sifted.

So far, AP is reporting the documents provide new details on former Archbishop Timothy Dolan’s plan to pay some abusers to leave the priesthood and move $57 million into a trust for “improved protection” as the Milwaukee archdiocese prepared to file for bankruptcy.

Prisoners at the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are asking a federal court to halt the force-feeding of inmates on a hunger strike. A motion filed on behalf of four prisoners argues that the military’s practice is inhumane, violates medical ethics, and will prevent prisoners from observing Ramadan, which begins Monday.

Jonathan Merritt is on a roll. He interviewed Jimmy Carter who is on a quest to educate religious leaders about gender inequality. The former president can quote scripture; we all knew that. But at 88, he’s still sharp and incisive.

“It’s this elective use of verses from the Quran and Bible that permits some male leaders to assert that women are inferior. I object to that no matter who the entity might be.”

Stay tuned for Part 2 of the interview.

Gay marriage and abortion have called it quits as twin pillars of the culture wars, reports the Christian Science Monitor. Public opinion on abortion has held remarkably constant in the last 30 years. But on gay marriage, acceptance has grown dramatically.


To wit: Texas, where there has been a pitched battle over abortion law. The Washington Post says the squabble has thrust Republican Gov. Rick Perry back into the role of social conservative darling. Perry is now weighing whether to run for reelection.

But over in the Dominican Republic, religious groups say they are outraged by the nomination of a gay U.S. ambassador to the conservative Caribbean country.

St. Callistus Catholic Church celebrated Mass in its new home, the formerly Protestant Crystal Cathedral site in Los Angeles.

The U.S. Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009 is expected to enter a formal plea on the charges today.

NBC says it will air a sequel to the hit cable miniseries “The Bible.” The working title? “A.D.: Beyond the Bible.” The series will open in the days following Jesus’ death.

A.D., as Latin-loving Roundup readers know, means Anno Domini, or “Year of the Lord.” Not sure how well that will go over with atheists and people of other faiths.


And finally, infuriating as it is, I couldn’t help watching a video gone viral of a Baptist preacher insulting members of his congregation during a sermon. I have two-word diagnosis for the minister: anger management.

And with that, it’s back to the grindstone. As you too head back to work, don’t forget to sign up for tomorrow’s installment. Blue button below.

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