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Friday, August 29, 2008

Praying in a multicultural world

In years past, debates and even a suit by atheist Michael Newdow followed controversial inaugural prayers by evangelist Franklin Graham and Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell of Houston.

Now, Hunter’s benediction has been declared “unusual’’ by a Wall Street Journal blog and noted by ChristianityToday.com’s Ted Olsen.

“Yes, he prayed in Jesus’ name,’’ Olsen wrote. “But I don’t think I’ve ever seen that long of a preface to praying in Jesus’ name.’’

Beliefnet.com’s editor-in-chief Steven Waldman learned that Franklin Graham’s father gave Hunter this advice as crafted his benediction: “Just say what God gives you.”

YouTube.com features Hunter’s Thursday night prayer on its Web site.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Poking the Buddha

If St. Augustine can have a Myspace page, then I guess it’s cool if the Buddha’s on Facebook.

Also, I’m told you can send someone good karma via Facebook.   

Here’s the Facebook version of a Zen sesshin:

Q: Why can’t I use a limited edition karma that my friend just sent me?

A: You can only send Karmas that you have unlocked.

And in Japan in the spring we eat cucumbers.

/\ to The Worst Horse

Thursday, August 28, 2008

We all make sacrifices

Big news out of the Empire State, yesterday, where police in Greenburgh, NY, nabbed a father-son duo they say mistreated animals with the intent of sacrificing them in Santeria rituals. From our friends at the Lower Hudson Journal-News: 

“Authorities found a pen containing about 30 goats and sheep; a half-dozen crates full of chickens, pigeons and doves; four ducks, eight quail and four turtles.”

The quail and turtles seem a bit excessive—perhaps they were planning a opening a French restaurant? Or an Ark?

It’s also worth noting that animal sacrifice itself is legal, but police charged the two men with violating zoning restrictions (it was a residential neighborhood), unlawfully transporting the animals, and cruelty. And now you know.

For more on animal sacrifices, check out this interview with University of Chicago religion professor, Jonathan Zittell Smith, where he describes a colleague who sacrficied a lamb for his class.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Film title in dispute

The Council on American-Islamic Relations has asked Warner Bros. to reconsider naming an upcoming film “Towelhead,’’ but the movie company does not plan to back down, reported Moviemaker.com.

“The title ... is of great concern to us, since the word is commonly used in a derogatory manner against people of the Muslim faith or Arab origin,’’ wrote CAIR-LA executive director Hussam Ayloush.

But Warner Independent Pictures responded by apologizing for “any offense that that is caused by this title” but remaining supportive of the title that was used by the author of the novel on which the film is based.

“One of the ideas conveyed in the film is that we all make assumptions about each other, without knowing, based on racial stereotypes. It was our goal in releasing ‘Towelhead’ to help make this point,’’ the studio said.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Brad Pitt, space Jesuit

The Washington Examiner carries news today that Brad Pitt has signed on to play Father Emilio Sandoz, a Jesuit priest who travels to some make-believe world, like  Kyrgyzstan, but with more vowels. The movie is based on Mary Doria Russell’s novel “The Sparrows.”

As usual, the Rev. Jim Martin asks the most pressing question: Is Pitt handsome enough to play a Jesuit?

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Devotion in a forsaken land

(Matthew Streib is traveling across the country on his bicycle exploring religious sites that are inspiring and uniquely American. You can read more about his travels at http://www.americanpilgrimage.com.)

BYRNESVILLE, Pa. - The term “ghost town” generally conjures up images of tumbleweeds and abandoned saloons, not picturesque green hillsides in central Pennsylvania. But other than ominous clouds of steam and carbon monoxide, nothing is left of the tiny town of Byrnesville, except the Virgin Mary.

Byrnesville was demolished by the government in 1990s due to the dangerous conditions caused by an underground coal mine fire that started in nearby Centralia in 1962. Once a town of 28 families, now there is nothing but empty streets, a fractured highway, and vacant lots. The only people who come here are tourists to see the destruction and Mike and Jim Reilley, devoted sons who keep up the town’s shrine to Mary, the last standing structure.

“I don’t really go to church anymore,” says Mike, who trims the shrubs, cleans the stone, and replaces the statue when vandals steal it. A Catholic, he also prays to the Virgin Mary, who has been said to work miracles for inhabitants who pilgrimage from neighboring towns. “In a way, this has become my expression of faith,” he says.

Mike lived in Byrnesville for almost 50 years before he evacuated due to loss of electricity, water, and the danger of carbon monoxide seeping in through the basement. When he was 15 (he’s now 72), his father dreamt up the idea of the shrine, and the whole family built it out of concrete and old bathtubs. He misses the town deeply, and maintains a website to remind people of the town’s history.

“There were blueberries all over the place, blackberries, huckleberries, and we’d go out in the woods all the time,” he says. “The coal mines were actually a nuisance—they’d be digging for coal, with big shovels, dirt, and lots of noise. But it was also entertainment. We’d be sitting there, watching the trucks go by, with all the lights on at night.”

The coal fires under the ground still burn, and have enough fuel to last for another 250 years. The town is uninhabitable, and will remain so indefinitely. But for the two brothers who so loved the town, its memory will never die.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Pope slams crucified frog

I know a blog should add some value, but I just can’t improve on the headline that the Italian wire service ANSA chose for this story.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

No contest

An Italian priest who proposed a beauty pageant for nuns says it was all a big Miss Understanding.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Preaching to the test

Are you a “Thumpin’ Theocrat”? A “Radical Reformer”? How about a “Private Patriot”? Just in time for the first day of school, Christianity Today has a new quiz up on its website allowing you determine what your political ideology would like like if charted on a graph. More specifically, it aims to measure political engagement in conjunction with the role of religion in government. You can take the test here.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Orwell is blogging

This is not directly religious, but since the Democratic Convention, with all attendant hoopla, begins today, I thought it appropriate to note, with the NYT, that University of Westminster in London is publishing George Orwell’s diaries in blog-form online.

Seventy years ago today, our man in Kent was noting oats harvest and owls. With WWII on the horizon, different matters will soon take the great writer’s attention.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Grahams differ on upcoming film

Evangelist Franklin Graham and his sister Gigi Graham have aired differences over the upcoming film about their father, “Billy: The Early Years.”

Franklin Graham, president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, issued a statement declaring that the movie is not endorsed by the BGEA.

“While the movie covers many aspects of my father’s early years, it depicts events that never happened or are greatly embellished,” he said.

ChristianityToday.com reports that Gigi Graham, the oldest of the five children of the 89-year-old evangelist and a consultant promoting the film, doesn’t agree with her brother.

“Franklin called me and said he thought the movie was dorky. But I think it’s good and positive, and I think it honors the Lord and my mother and daddy,” she told CT.com. “I don’t know why Franklin felt like he had to make a public statement. I wish he’d just left it alone.”

The Charlotte Observer quoted Franklin Graham spokesman Mark DeMoss citing examples of concern that “producers would refer to as creative license,” such as a scene when a young Billy Graham faints upon learning his wife has given birth to Gigi when in reality he was not at the hospital but away preaching at the time.

Friday, August 22, 2008

The pope’s “trustworthy guide”

Benedict pays tribute to his older brother Georg, his companion in the “last stage” of life.

Friday, August 22, 2008

We are the sequel we’ve been waiting for

Just when when it looked like all hope was lost, the skies opened, the seas parted, a great light shone down, and John McCain’s campaign delivered us this piece de resistance, a special minute-and-a-half sequel to the celebrated opening act, ”The One.” Perhaps this will be the video that finally wins over Timothy Lahaye.

See if you can spot the religious imagery:

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Jesus was a skeet shooter

In case you missed it, Wednesday’s New York Times featured a front page story on U.S. Olympic archery coach, Kisk Lee. Lee, a devout Christian, has been a witness at the baptism of three of the team’s five archers. He has been accused of proselytizing by some, and drawn a warning from the United States Olympic Committee. Read the full story here.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Strang drops DNC benediction plans

There’s been an update since we blogged about the announced lineup of people giving invocations and benedictions at next week’s Democratic National Convention. Cameron Strang, editor of Relevant magazine, has decided not to give the benediction on Monday after all, OrlandoSentinel.com reports.

“If my praying at the DNC was perceived as showing favoritism and incorrectly labeling me as endorsing one candidate over the other, then I need to have pause,’’ Strang said.

Convention staff confirmed the change of plans and said author Don Miller will replace him. ChristianityToday.com has covered the developments, too, noting that Miller is most known for his book, “Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality.”

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Comeback crusaders

Now even the Vatican’s official newspaper is proclaiming the innocence of the Knights Templar. Maybe Pope Benedict is preparing to settle?

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Catholic politicians and abortion (cont’d)

If anyone thought that moving to the Vatican would silence former St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke on the abortion-Communion question ... it hasn’t.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

A Southern Baptist first

According to The Christian Index, a Georgia Baptist newspaper, a small college in North Georgia has become the first Southern Baptist educational institution to choose a former Muslim as president.

Truett-McConnell College in Cleveland, Ga., elected Emir Caner, the founding dean of The College at Southwestern in Fort Worth, Texas, as its eighth president on Aug. 8. The school’s announcement notes that Caner’s brother, Ergun, was chosen as the first former Muslim to lead a seminary, Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary in Lynchburg, Va.

(Photo credit: www.swbts.edu)

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Off with his head

Catholic lay group Voice of the Faithful says Cardinal Francis George of Chicago should resign, a week after court documents reveal his missteps in handling clergy sex abuse cases. George, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and a good friend of Pope Benedict XVI, is one of the country’s most influential churchmen.

As part of an settlement with 16 victims, most of whom were abused before George’s term began, the cardinal agreed to release the deposition he gave during litigation over the cases. 

VOTF says George’s deposition reveals poor “pastoring skills and his inability to lead the people of Chicago.“

“When will Catholic citizens demand morality and justice in our own Church?”

No response yet from George. If I find one, I’ll post it.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Drop it like it’s hot

I never thought of Burning Man, the yearly arts festival in the Nevada desert, as an attractive wedding spot. Too artsy, too hedonistic, too many obvious jokes playing on the festival’s name.

But apparently, BM organizers are pushing couples to tie the knot at BM this year. (Dates are Aug. 25-Sept. 1) They’re directing couples to the Universal Life Church, where, they say, your friends can get ordained in less than three minutes. Presumably, it’s difficult to find a priest amid the desert decadents.

“While
the unpredictable desert can be an unusual venue for a couple’s
big day, the couples who have wedded in BRC reflect on their ceremonies
with fondness, and most of them emphatically insist that it was
the perfect spot for their matrimony,” organizers say.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

“Pounds for Petrol”

A New Hampshire congregation has invented a way to deal with pending winter fuel costs: ``Pounds for Petrol.”

The Portsmouth Herald reports that Newfields Community Church in Newfields, N.H., designed the concept after walk-a-thons.

Fifteen church members have volunteered to lose weight and be sponsored for a fixed donation or an amount per pound.

Pastor Jean Bass said the fundraiser will prevent the church from sacrificing its missions, such as a food cupboard, to pay for fuel, which cost the small congregation $7,700 last year.

(Photo credit: www.scales-4-less.com)

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Rock ‘n’ roll rabbi

WOODSTOCK, N.Y. – Sitting on his porch, the Rabbi Yisroel Gootblatt
is strumming a guitar, playing an old Bob Dylan ditty. In a town known for
artists, musicians, and other eccentric personalities, he blends in with the
scenery. But he’s actually trying something quite different.

Gootblatt
is a rabbi in the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in Orthodox Judaism who
believes in the existence of the as yet unrevealed messiah on Earth. In
order to speed the revelation process, Lubavitchers believe Jews must
be united
in their tradition.

“Woodstock is extreme in that
regard. It’s a place where there’s an incredible percentage of the population
of Jews who happen to be a lot less knowledgeable of their tradition, and even
hostile to it,” Gootblatt says.

So he gets
creative, creating a relaxed atmosphere where beer, music and conversation flow
freely and loudly. “There’s actually a saying from the Talmud: ‘When the wine
goes in, the secrets come out,’ ” he says. “When people are relaxed and having
a good time, it’s the best way to share things that are meaningful.”

Those who jam with him call him the
Rock ‘n Roll Rabbi, and his porch is a constant stream of punks, hippies, and
other alternative types, covered in tattoos and piercings. While Gootblatt
doesn’t necessarily approve of their choices, he’s willing to let a certain
amount slide.

After
the partying is done, the Torah comes out, and the rabbi is set for
instruction. Unfortunately for Gootblatt, this is
when a lot of the neighborhood avoids the house.

He has
managed to catch one big fish, however. Eddie “Mad Dog” Caridi was the bassist
for punk band Murphy’s Law and is a mainstay of the New York punk scene. When
he decided to reconnect with his Jewish heritage, he heard about the Rock ‘n
Roll rabbi all the way down in Brooklyn, and moved to Woodstock.
He’s been living with Gootblatt for three months, and says that the rabbi hopes
he will influence the youth who look up to him to learn of their heritage.

“We jam for like and hour, and then
he’s like Torah, Torah, Torah, Torah, Torah. He gets overbearing with it.”

(Matthew Streib is traveling across the country on his bicycle exploring
religious sites that are inspiring and uniquely American. You can read more
about his travels at www.americanpilgrimage.com.)

Monday, August 18, 2008

Saddleback-gate

Did John McCain know ahead of time what questions he’d be asked at Saturday’ Saddleback forum?

The internets are buzzing this morning over reports that the Arizona senator may not have actually been in a “cone of silence” while the Rev. Rick Warren interviewed Barack Obama. Both candidates were asked identical questions, but Obama went first after a coin-flip.

The New York Times reports that McCain was en route to the event in his motorcade during the first round of questioning-a fact that came as a surprise to Warren on Sunday. Read the full story here.

Whether or not McCain could have benefited from advance knowledge is unclear, as the forum could at times have just as easily doubled as an interview for an entry-level managerial position at the neighborhood Popeye’s franchise (for example, “What’s the most gut-wrenching decisions you’ve ever had to make?")

But at the very least, it gives us an excuse to bring back this “debate-gate” of yester-year, which remains the most exciting thing ever to happen at a presidential debate.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Who’s giving the invocations, benedictions at the DNC

An interfaith crop of religious folks will be giving the invocations and benedictions at the upcoming Democratic National Convention, the organizing committee has announced.

“Among the group selected to deliver these opening and closing prayers are a Republican pastor of a leading evangelical church in central Florida, a major young evangelical leader, a nun from a diocese in Cleveland and a Methodist couple, both ordained ministers ...,’’ the Democratic National Convention Committee and the Obama for America campaign said Saturday.

Here’s who is scheduled for each day:

Monday, Aug. 25:

Invocation: Polly Baca, Catholic, Greeley, Colo.

Benediction: Cameron Strang, evangelical, Orlando, Fla.

Tuesday, Aug. 26

Invocation: Rev. Cynthia Hale, Disciples of Christ, Decatur, Ga.

Benediction: Revs. Jin Ho Kang and Young Sook Kang, Methodist, Aurora, Colo.

Wednesday, Aug. 27

Invocation: Archbishop Demetrios, Greek Orthodox, New York

Benediction: Sister Catherine Pinkerton, Catholic, Cleveland

Thursday, Aug. 28

Invocation: Rabbi David Saperstein, Union for Reform Judaism

Benediction: Pastor Joel Hunter, evangelical, Longwood, Fla.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Tisha B’av at the Tribune

With all the layoffs hitting newspapers across the country, Manya Brachear of the Chicago Tribune, which announced Friday it will fire another 14 percent of its newsstaff, asks what the holy day can teach us about life’s painful transitions.

Tisa B’av, an annual fast day, commemorates the destruction of the First and Second temples in Jerusalem, and is known as “the saddest day in Jewish history.”

Manya says:

Friday, August 15, 2008

How would Jesus vote?

Tired of being erroneously sighted on pancakes and seeing his mother reduced to appearances on greasy servings of comfort food, Jesus has (finally) endorsed a candidate in Utah’s 3rd congressional district.

Television reporter-turned state Sen. Bennion http://www.bennionspencerforcongress.com/index.asp">Spencer told the Salt Lake Tribune recently that if it was up to Jesus, he’d be the choice to replace Rep. Chris Cannon.

His comments triggered an escalating series of attacks in the fightin’ third, with both Spencer and his opponent Jason Chaffetz (a former kicker at BYU) accusing the other of being “sacrilegious.” Read the full story here.

Interestingly enough, the top endorsement listed on Spencer’s website come from “legendary anchor Dick Nourse.” More legendary than Jesus?

Friday, August 15, 2008

Revival leader and his wife separate

Just weeks after Canadian evangelist Todd Bentley announced that he would end his regular appearances at a Pentecostal revival in Lakeland, his ministry has revealed that he has filed for separation from his wife, The Ledger in Lakeland, Fla., reports.

Bentley’s revival began in April and had created crowds and controversy since that time.

“It is with considerable sadness ... that we must temper the jubilation we know you all feel with the sobering news that Todd and Shonnah Bentley are presently experiencing significant friction in their relationship and are currently separated,’’ reads a note from the board of directors of Bentley’s Fresh Fire Ministries. “We want to affirm that there has been no sexual immorality on the part of either Todd or Shonnah, nor has there ever been. Undoubtedly the pressures and the burden of the Outpouring, which approaches 144 days on August 23rd, have helped to create an atmosphere of fatigue and stress that has exacerbated existing issues in their relationship.’’

Prominent leaders in charismatic circles, including Steve Strang and J. Lee Grady, have written about their views on the development.

(Photo credit: www.theledger.com)

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Humane Society, clergy support cage-free eggs

The Humane Society and religious leaders have teamed up to raise awareness about how animals are raised for food.

``We are urging people of faith to take a small step in their daily lives by switching to cage-free eggs or egg substitutes during the month of October as an act of compassion for farm animals,’’ said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, in a Wednesday announcement.

Among religious leaders joining the cause is the Right Rev. John Bryson Chane, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, D.C., who said the ``All Creatures Great and Small’’ campaign fits with “the religious spirit that compels us to show them our mercy and regard.’’

(Photo credit: Humane Society of the United States)

Thursday, August 14, 2008

The hard work of forgiveness

Sister Camille D’Arienzo examines how victims of sexual abuse and the priests who abused them can search for healing and some type of reconciliation in this piece in America magazine.

She acknowledges the raw wounds of betrayal and soulshock many survivors still feel. But D’Arienzo also says that God’s grace extends to everyone, even the worst of sinners.

“Has the church, from top to bottom, determined that those who have
sexually abused minors are outside of the circle of those whom God can
forgive? Is there no grace left for them?” D’Arienzo writes.

The sister suggests that Catholics look to Maya Angelou, the eminent poet who was sexually abused at age 7.

“She has embraced this formula for self-healing: One who has suffered a
great evil must name it, learn from it, forgive it and move forward
with courage and focus on the future. Forgiveness had no power to
change her past, but it had enormous power to mold her future.”

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Osteen cleared

Victoria Osteen, wife of Houston megachurch pastor Joel Osteen, has been cleared of assault charges, the Associated Press reports.

A jury found Thursday that Osteen, who co-pastors Lakewood Church with her husband, did not assault a Continental Airlines flight attendant in an argument about a stain on her airplane seat.

Flight attendant Sharon Brown had sought $405,000 in damages. 

 (Photo credit: www.lakewood.cc)

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Swiftboating Satan

There’s been a lot of talk lately in political and religious circles about a John McCain ad that pokes fun at Barack Obama’s supposed messiah complex. More that just a snarky dig, some say the ad plays on dark fears that Obama is actually the anti-Christ.

As Beliefnet’s editor-in-chief Steve Waldman points out there are Web sites, t-shirts and radio hosts who are running with the anti-Christ idea. They also say his conduct in Vietnam was not all it’s cracked up to be. Whoops, sorry, I thought it was 2004. 

Christian Democrats at the Eleison Group have a detailed deconstruction of the ad here.

For what it’s worth, Tim LaHaye, author of the “Left Behind” series, says Barack can’t be the anti-Christ--because he’s not “from an obscure place, like Romania.”

To which these Romanian gymnasts said: “Who’s Tim LaHaye?”

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Focus pulls ‘Pray for Rain’ video

Focus on the Family Action has pulled a controversial video from staffer Stuart Shepard, in which he asked people to pray for rain when Sen. Barack Obama accepts the Democratic nomination for the presidency at an outdoor stadium on Aug. 28.

The Gazette in Colorado Springs, Colo., reported that while Shepard thought the video that appeared on the organization’s Web site was ``mildly humorous,’’ some Focus supporters did not.

``If people took it seriously, we regret it,’’ said Tom Minnery, vice president of public policy for Focus on the Family Action.

The video in question is still posted on YouTube.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

“Run in such a way as to get the prize”

One of the more intriguing athletes in Beijing (at least for me) is Ryan Hall, an evangelical Christian and marathoner who owns the record for the fastest 26.2 miles ever run by an American-born citizen (2:06:17). Hall wasn’t a runner until high school, when he says God appeared to him in a vision and told him to run. The rest, as they say, is history. 

The men’s marathon finals are Aug. 23. Between now and then, check out two interesting profiles on Hall. The first, here, appeared in Runner’s World, and gives a good deal of space to Hall’s faith. The second, from the New Yorker, (excerpt here), focuses more on the rise of marathons popularity in the U.S. Interestingly, neither mentions what kind of Christian Hall is, though from context it sounds like he’s evangelical.

Christianity Today names Hall one of the “confessing Christians” most likely to medal in Beijing. Hall and his wife, who is also a competitive runner, plan on being missionaries when they retire. 

RNS’ own Philip Turner wrote an article about the spirituality of running last year.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Osteen accuser testifies

As the trial of Victoria Osteen, wife of Houston megachurch pastor Joel Osteen, continues, the flight attendant accusing her of assault has taken the stand, the Associated Press reports.

Continental Airlines flight attendant Sharon Brown told jurors Tuesday that she saw Osteen, the co-pastor of Lakewood Church, eye the cockpit.

“I looked in her eyes and realized she was looking at the cockpit,’’ she said. ``My main concern was I wasn’t going to let this lady in the cockpit.’’

Rusty Hardin, Osteen’s lawyer, prompted laughter in the courtroom when he countered, “Can you look into my eyes and tell me where I am going to go?’’

(Photo credit: www.lakewood.cc)

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Not exactly Saint PETA

The philo-feline Pope Benedict is known as favoring the ethical treatment of animals, but now an Italian group wants the pontiff to prove it by shedding his ermine trim.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Wichita diocese sued over English-only policy

Three hispanic familes who say that a Catholic school’s “English-only” policy violates their freedom of speech will have their day in federal court, today. The archdiocese of Wichita, Kan. argues that the school’s policy was established for disciplinary--not discriminatory--reasons. The AP has the full report here.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Would God still have to swear an oath on the Bible?

A recently retired atheist state senator from Nebraska hit  a bump in the road in his attempt to file a lawsuit against God. But after a judge announced plans to dismiss the suit for failure to properly notify the defendent, Ernie Chambers offered a compelling argument: God knows everything. Read the full story here.

For more on Chambers, check out this 2006 profile in Mother Jones. Of note:

In the 2005 session, he blocked the legalization of concealed weapons, as well as a constitutional amendment protecting the right to hunt, which he said would “trivialize and pollute” the state constitution. In classic Ernie Chambers style, he introduced a raft of riders to the amendment that would protect such other rights as “creating, recreating, conversating and procreating,” “hunting for the link between Noah’s Ark, Joan of Arc and Archimedes,” and “sitting on the front porch on a warm summer evening, drinking a glass of cold lemonade, dreamily watching the silvery moon rise to begin its journey across a darkening velvet sky powdered with stardust.”

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Cult blamed in toddler’s death

Police in Baltimore have issued arrest warrants after a two-year-old boy was found dead in a suitcase in Philadelphia. According to police, Javon Thompson was killed by leaders of the “1 Mind Ministries” cult for neglecting to say “amen” after a meal. From the Baltimore Sun:

“Police say the five suspects belonged to a small group of adults and children who operated for a time in East and West Baltimore. Police allege that the victim’s mother, Ria Ramkissoon, 21, the first to be charged with murder, and others neglected Javon and allowed the boy to starve to death because they thought he was a demon for not saying amen after he was fed, according to police charging documents.”

Monday, August 11, 2008

Canada hates Westboro Baptist Church

Westboro Baptist Church founder, Fred Phelps, center, sporting the latest advancement in sunglass technology

Americans who had hoped their neighbors to the north would kindly take the Westboro Baptist Church off their hands were dealt a setback, Thursday, when Canadian border officials denied members of the church entry into the country.

The protesters were heading to Canada to picket at the funeral of a man who was murdered on a Greyhound bus last month. The Winnipeg Free Press caught up with Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of church founder Fred Phelps, who offered this horrifying tidbit:

“They won’t let us in, but we have a group that will cross in another spot,” Phelps-Roper said. “They’ll have to strip search everyone who crosses that border or they won’t know who we are. They’ll have to see the WBC (Westboro Baptist Church) tattoo on our butts.”

Reports of the church’s invasion sparked Winnipeg residents to action. Counter-protests were organized over Facebook, where one group tallied 778 members.

The church has become infamous for staging protests (or “love crusades") at military funerals and prayer services. It has come out in support of everything from 9/11, to tornadoes, to the Virginia Tech shootings.

Friday, August 08, 2008

A breathtaking house of worship

This Italian church gives another meaning to the theological term “pneumatics.”

Friday, August 08, 2008

McCain, Obama on faith

Time magazine has scored two personal essays from John McCain and Barack Obama about their faith. For as much attention as Obama’s faith has generated during this campaign, I was a bit surprised he wasn’t a bit more open.

McCain: In the life of our country, faith serves the same ends that it can serve in the life of each believer, whatever creed we might profess. It sees us through life’s trials. It instills humility, calling us to serve a cause greater than ourselves. At its best, faith reminds us of our common humanity and our essential equality by the measure that matters most.

Obama: I don’t believe we should ignore the debate over traditional “values issues” at the expense of these other moral challenges. But we can’t just talk about “family values.” We actually have to stand up for policies that value families.

While you’re at Time, be sure to check out David Van Biema’s worthwhile profile of megachurch pastor Rick Warren, who will host Obama and McCain at Saddleback Church on Aug. 16.

Thursday, August 07, 2008

Victoria Osteen in court

Victoria Osteen, who co-pastors a Houston megachurch with her husband Joel Osteen, is in court this week, fighting a suit that charges her with assaulting a flight attendant.

The Associated Press reported that another flight attendant on the Continental Airlines flight in 2005 said Victoria Osteen ``was demanding that attention be given to her immediately’’ after a small spill on her plane seat.

Rusty Hardin, Osteen’s lawyer, said in his opening statements: “This is nothing more than an attempted extortion.”

Reginald McKamie, the lawyer for plaintiff Sharon Brown, told jurors: “Sharon was attacked by someone in the community who supposedly represents a higher degree of human decency.’’

Both Joel Osteen, who accompanied his wife to court, and his wife are expected to testify.

(Photo credit: www.lakewood.cc)

Thursday, August 07, 2008

Congressional candidate removes controversial ads

A Democratic congressional candidate in Memphis is facing charges of anti-semitism over an ad that attacks her opponent for not supporting school prayer.

Nikki Tinker, who is trying to unseat the incumbent Rep. Steve Cohen in Tennessee’s majority-black ninth congressional district, has made race and a religion focal points of her campaign ahead of today’s primary. The new ad, in addition to an earlier clip which featured images of Klansmen, has now been taken down from Tinker’s youtube page.

The ad features the sound of a child praying in the background, as narrator attacks Cohen’s record:

“Who is the real Steve Cohen, anyway? While he’s in our churches clapping his hands and tapping his feet, he’s the only senator who thought our kids shouldn’t be allowed to pray in school. Congressman, sometimes apologies just aren’t enough.”

Cohen, who is Jewish, defeated Tinker in a crowded primary in 2006.  

In February, the Anti-Defamation League condemned a flier circulated in Memphis that said “Steve Cohen and the Jews hate Jesus.” A pastor from Murfreesboro, Tenn., 250 miles away, took responsibility for the flier.

The Memphis Commercial Appeal notes that Cohen has been honored by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and writes that Cohen has amassed a “consistently strong” civil rights record during his political career.

Tinker has yet to comment on the school prayer ad, but said previously that the KKK ad, “merely states the facts.”

UPDATE: Via Politico, here’s the school prayer ad. Judge for yourself:

Thursday, August 07, 2008

News Flash! (Well, not really)

So the British press is all atwitter today about private correspondence between Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and a U.S. theologian in which Williams compares gay relationships to marriage and concludes that both have value before the eyes of God.

But here’s the thing --- the letters are from 2000, when Williams was still the archbishop of Wales. That’s 8 YEARS AGO!

Money quote, from The Times of London: “(Williams) argued that scriptural prohibitions were addressed to heterosexuals looking for sexual variety. He wrote: “I concluded that an active sexual relationship between two people of the same sex might therefore reflect the love of God in a way comparable to marriage, if and only if it had about it the same character of absolute covenanted faithfulness.”

When Williams was appointed to head the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion in 2002, he was fairly well known to have left-of-center views on several issues, including homosexuality. But he was never (and still isn’t) a fire-breathing liberal. But against the backdrop of the recent Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, the British media is treating this like some new revelation that will forever alter the course of the Anglican Communion.

The Times’ Ruth Gledhill: “The news threatens to reopenbitter divisions over ordaining gay priests, which pushed the Anglican Communion towards a split.”

Except that it’s not really new. The last graf of Gledhill’s story is probably the most important, and puts the whole thing in perspective: “Lambeth Palace quoted a recent interview in which the Archbishop said: “When I teach as a bishop I teach what the Church teaches. In controverted areas it is my responsibility to teach what the Church has said and why.”

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Study: Television promotes non-marital sex

A new report from a prominent national parents group argues that prime-time television is guilty of overexposing children to adultery and non-marital sex.

“Happily Never After,” the study released Tuesday by the Parents Television Council, surveyed five major broadcast channels over a four-week period last fall. It found that references to non-marital sex outnumbered references to marital sex by a ratio of 2.8 to 1, across all hours of programming.

The survey found that the ratio was at its highest during the 8-9 p.m. time frame commonly known as “family hour.” References to non-marital sex outnumbered references to marital sex 3.9 to 1 during that block.

While that data seems to support the groups hypothesis that television programs negatively impacts youths, the study is not without some cases of empirical overstretch.

According to the report, references to “incest, pedophilia, partner swapping (involving married and non-married couples), prostitution, threesomes, transsexuals/transvestites, bestiality, and necrophilia combined outnumbered references to sex in marriage by a ratio of 2.4 to 1.” Parents Television Council did not provide any numbers to support the claim that any of those acts have increased in likelihood among teenagers due to television, however.

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Courting the youth vote

Fresh from successfully parting the Red Sea in a recent John McCain television ad, Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama will take another step closer to immortality in a picture book due out later this month.

The book, “Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope,” will hit bookstores August 26—just in time for the start of kindergarten—and emphasizes the role faith has played in the Illinois senator’s life.

In a column in Saturday’s Boston Globe, Alex Beam offers a glimpse at what awaits readers:

“One Sunday when Barack was sitting in church,

Barack heard God say, ‘Slow down,

Look around you.

Now look to me.

There is hope enough here

To last a lifetime.’”

If the accompanying teaching guide is any indication, the new release will do little to tarnish Obama allegedly “Messianic” image. One question asks: “When Barack was a young man, he saw a beggar and wanted to help him. Have you ever seen anything that makes you want to help? Can kids do anything to make a difference?”

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Update: Imperials, Classic Imperials settle dispute

We blogged back in March about a family feud between Armond Morales, a co-founder of the Christian singing group dating to the 1960s, and his son, Jason Morales, a member of a contemporary group by the same name.

A Texas resident who responded to our blog has alerted us to a settlement in the dispute over who had the right to the “Imperials” name, announced on the Web site of The Imperials.

The statement says Armond Morales affirmed he transferred rights to the name in 2005. The result: The younger group is called “The Imperials,” the older group, “The Classic Imperials.”

In the statement, Shannon Smith of MOSH Group, Inc. (also known as The Imperials) seems to be ready to move from fighting to forgiveness: “We believe that our message to the world is not necessarily that Christians never disagree, never make mistakes or even sin; rather our message is of a God who heals, restores and loves unconditionally.’’

Armond Morales said he was “extremely thankful’’ about the agreement that ends the legal dispute and Jason Morales, responding to his father’s previously released open letter, expressed his love for his parents and said, “I know that the public will understand the desire to resolve our family issues privately.”

(Photo credit: theimperials.com)

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Oremus

(That’s Latin for “Let us Pray” for all you non-Catholics and memory-challenged Catholics...)

Our pal Jim Martin up at America magazine tells us that the U.S. bishops have posted the Vatican-approved translations for the Catholic Mass. Who cares, you ask? Well, everyone who regularly attends Mass—and especially those who pop in once or twice a year—should care because the words and prayers they’ve recited from memory for 40-odd years are going to change.

From what I can tell, what the bishops have posted is only what the priest prays during Communion, not the congregation’s response (fitting, some might say).  But to give you a sense of what’s to come, Catholics will no longer say, “Lord, I am not worth to receive you ...” they will now say, “"Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof.”

And instead of the priest praying, “Let your Spirit come upon these gifts, to make them holy”, he will now say, “Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall.”

Perhaps the most obvious change will be the scrapping of the familiar “Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again” in favor of something that speaks of the congregation as a body gathered together. Something like “When we eat this bread, when we drink this cup, we proclaim your death, O Lord, until you come again in glory.”

It’s worth noting that most parishes won’t implement these changes for several years, but they’re coming. Here’s Jim’s take on what it all means:

“First, almost all priests and parishioners will have to struggle through the new translations for a few months, perhaps even a few years, until they learn them.  (This will mean more parishioners loudly flipping through missalettes, and fewer priests knowing the prayers by heart, since most churchgoers can say these prayers by rote, as can their priests and deacons).  Most parishioners will find it odd to have to consult a booklet to remember a prayer that they’ve known for forty years.  Second, while some may find some of the newer translations jarring--like the “dewfall"--others may cheer what they see as a more reverent tone.  Third, for some time, many will reflexively say the old responses, especially with the more familiar phrases like, “And also with you."  Rumors are that some more liberal-leaning parishes may stubbornly stick to the old books, but this will become increasingly difficult, as the old Sacramentaries, the books used by the priests during Mass, wear out. 

For a time, it means that the most familiar thing in Catholic life—the Mass—will become, at least in parts, unfamiliar.”

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Political Buddhism

(Matthew Streib is traveling across the country on his bicycle exploring religious sites that are inspiring and uniquely American. You can read more about his travels at www.americanpilgrimage.com.)  

BARNET, Vt. _  Buddhism, which often focuses on the inward journey towards enlightenment and favors the middle path, isn’t known for taking a prominent place in politics. But one man is on a mission to change that. At Karme Choling, the birthplace of the Shambhala Buddhist tradition, I met Ethan Nichtern, who is striving to bring Buddhist teachings into the sphere of activism in New York City.

He transformed his meditation community in the East Village into a non-profit activist organization called the Interdependence Project, which advocates the connectedness of the world, but doesn’t take hard stances. They’re mostly anti-war and pro-environmentalism, but the issues they take on are fluid and mutable.

“The idea of interdependence is that nothing happens in a vacuum, and we have to understand every event as a complex system that arises from a lot of subjective viewpoints and causes coming together,” he says.” “It gets very hard to take sides, because you realize the complexity of reality and how much any pair of opposites rely on each other for their viewpoints.”

Activists often think that if they fight hard enough, they’ll get their way, and even if they’re successful, they create negativity, Nichtern says. Those who follow Buddhist teachings are generally more tacit in their approach, he adds, but getting them involved can be tricky.

First, even among lay people, he says that there is a tendency for seclusion. Second, he says many people don’t realize that Buddhist teachings include many political statements. Third, because his organization doesn’t take a hard-line stance on any specific issue, it’s hard to get people to agree on anything, much less become politically involved together.

They’re currently trying to eliminate the use of plastic bags in the city, but Nichtern admits that the issue is trendy, and other issues might not get the same turnout.

Much of these tensions arise because Nichtern says that Buddhism has spread to democratic societies and until recently. “Buddhism has a lot of teachings from a societal structure that doesn’t include political awareness,” he says. “We’re still trying to apply an ethics system that didn’t have a democratic worldview in a world of democracy. It’s going to need to be updated.”

“One of the reasons that it was even possible to create monastic communities is because in traditional Asian society and the ancient world it was actually possible to leave society. With globalized culture, I don’t think the monastic tradition is going to be very doable anymore.”

Monday, August 04, 2008

The sound of silence

(RNS Correspondent Gregory Trotter is spending the summer in Japan and files this report from the road ...)



I am not really a Buddhist, but I’ve always appreciated certain things about Zen Buddhism, in particular the embracing of nothingness, the strange sense of humor, the simple meditation form, the thought-provoking ‘koans.’



So when my fiance, Kerry, and I went to Kyoto last week, it was my intention to see some of the temples and perhaps deepen my understanding. It was not a pilgrimage per se, but it meant more to me than basic sight-seeing.



We woke early our first morning in Kyoto. We were staying at a ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn, in the Gion district of Kyoto. I went for a run along the Kamo-gawa, while Kerry explored the grounds of a nearby temple, Chion-in. When I got back, she insisted that we go back up to the temple. After hitting up the neighborhood Starbucks for an iced coffee fix (enter self-loathing here), we walked back up the hill to Chion-in.



It was early, and amazingly, we were the only people up there. We walked up the massive stairs, ducked our heads in the elaborate main hall and admired its gold altar. We were taken aback by the decadence of the altar but later learned that such altars were common to the Amida school of Buddhism.



The temple was built in 1234, according to our handy guide book, but Amida, or ‘Pure Land,’ Buddhism goes way further back to India and China before coming to Japan, pre-dating the distinctly Japanese schools of Buddhism—Zen and Nichiren. The altars are supposed to symbolize the ‘Western Paradise’ that awaits devout practitioners. But alas, photos of the altar are forbidden. Sorry,folks.



It wasn’t until we kept climbing up the hill, though, that we felt an overwhelming sense of sacredness. More stairs led us to some meditation rooms that looked out over a sweeping view of Kyoto. Continuing up, we wound our way through an old cemetery surrounded by ancient forests. Incense burned in giant bowls of ash. The day’s intense heat started to burn through the morning’s coolness.



There was a dense feeling of centuries past, our fleeting lives and nothingness.



I was reminded of mono no aware, a phrase that I learned from a Japanese literature class almost 10 years ago. With no exact translation into English, it roughly means when there is something about an experience that taps you on the shoulder and says, ‘It will all be over soon. This is how to miss me while I am still here.’ It is, I suppose, a gentle sadness on the passing of time, missing something while it’s still there.



We walked down the hill in silence.

Monday, August 04, 2008

Kay Warren discusses personal story of molestation at AIDS meeting

Kay Warren, AIDS advocate and wife of California megachurch pastor Rick Warren, brought up her personal story of being sexually molested as a child when she addressed a pre-conference of the XVII International AIDS Conference on Friday in Mexico City, Mexico.

“We have to ask ourselves, `What can the church do?’’’ she said. ``There is only so much governments, NGOs and relief organizations can do. We have to speak up for those who have no voice.”

Warren’s personal struggles with the child molestation she suffered were reported by ABC News last year, as well as in her book, “Dangerous Surrender.”

Monday, August 04, 2008

Jonathan Who?

(Matthew Streib is traveling across the country on his bicycle exploring religious sites that are inspiring and uniquely American. You can read more about his travels at www.americanpilgrimage.com.)

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. _ This city in western Massachusetts is the home of Jonathan Edwards, who began the First Great Awakening, a revolution in religious thought in the 18th century when emotional preaching became commonplace and the amount of American churches doubled. A fascinating man, Edwards had the ability to make parishioners cry and swoon with his fire-and-brimstone lectures, something that hadn’t been seen before in staunch New England.

I stopped by the First Churches, Edwards’ home church, now a combined congregation of the American Baptist Church and the United Church of Christ. It was closed for renovation. So I went to Edwards Church down the street, a UCC congregation started by Edwards’ followers. That Sunday, there was a joint service for members of both First Churches and Edwards Church.

Just walking in, images of Edwards were everywhere: his portrait in the vestibule, keepsakes from his 300th birthday celebration are in the common room, and a hand-drawn timeline with important church dates hangs above the pews.

It was a rather pleasant service with a welcoming sermon from a guest preacher about being ready for God’s grace and learning to admire the beauty of God’s creation. Most striking was both congregations’ adamant promotion of inclusiveness, regardless of race, sexual orientation, gender, you name it.

Now, that didn’t seem to fit the profile of Edwards, as he made judging others one of his main pastimes. In fact, his parishioners eventually turned him out for judging them too harshly.

After the service, I sought out someone who could tell me of Edwards’ legacy, but no one knew anything about him. Granted, the ministers for both churches were out of town, but I expected the congregants would have some knowledge. No luck. The closest I got was a woman who offered to read me from a pamphlet on Edwards’ life. 

It was a little sad that I had to leave empty-handed, but I certainly got my answer about Edwards’ legacy on the church. Just as Edwards prompted churches in America to change, giving our country its unique style of evangelistic preaching, new trends have caused his church to change and leave him behind. And, as the Great Awakenings are uniquely American, perhaps this ability to change forms of faith is also a part of our religious heritage.

Monday, August 04, 2008

5 years of trial and error

The ever-magnificent Michael Paulson up at the Boston Globe profiles Cardinal Sean O’Malley five years after he arrived to take over the scandal-scarred Archdiocese of Boston.

Money quote: “Five years after he was installed as the Roman Catholic archbishop of Boston, O’Malley remains in many ways the most unusual of public figures - the prince who dresses as the pauper, the leading man who hates the spotlight, the shy man prone to bouts of silence who has, in his own inexorable way, tackled one crushing problem after another, delivering the archdiocese from something close to free-fall to something akin to stability.”

While you’re at the Globe site, be sure to check out Michael’s new blog, Articles of Faith, where he often performs the function of personal ombudsman to try to explain to his readers how a story came together, and why. It’s worth a bookmark.

(photo credit: David L. Ryan/Boston Globe)

Friday, August 01, 2008

“He Can Do No Wrong”

John McCain’s new YouTube Ad compares Barack Obama to Moses ... and it’s not meant as a compliment:

Friday, August 01, 2008

Poll: Huckabee, Powell among top vp picks for religious voters

Religious voters’ views on potential vice presidential choices for Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama were revealed in a recent poll by Zogby International for Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly, the PBS newsmagazine program.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee seemed to prompt the most interest among many likely voters who are religious, gaining 46 percent of white born-again/evangelical voters, 32 percent of white Protestants, 28 percent of white Catholics, and 28 percent of non-white Protestants who said they’d be more inclined to vote for McCain if he chose him.

High percentages of likely voters who are religious said they would be more likely to support Obama if he chose former Secretary of State Colin Powell: 39 percent of white born-again/evangelicals, 49 percent of non-white born-again/evangelicals, 47 percent of white Protestants, 48 percent of white Catholics, and 43 percent of non-white Protestants.

See the link to the poll for other results, such as McCain choosing former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney or Sen. Joseph Lieberman and Obama choosing Sen. Hillary Clinton.

Friday, August 01, 2008

Raining on Obama’s parade

I’ve now tried to post this four times today, but the technology gods seem to be amassing against me.

So here, without futher commentary, is the “humble prayer request” sent up by Focus on the Family’s Stuart Shepard for “umbrellas-aint-gonna-help-you” downpours during Barack Obama’s prime-time (outdoors) acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Someone ought to tell him that prayers don’t always get answered the way you want.

Friday, August 01, 2008

The Vatican goes Hollywood

What’s an enterprising filmmaker to do when prohibited from shooting in the Eternal City? 

Just build another one ...