Religion & Ethics NewsWeeklyis a production of THIRTEEN Productions LLC for WNET. Visit www.pbs.org/religionandethics for additional information. Show #1803 will be fed over PBS at 5:00 p.m. EST on September 19 (check local listings).

Identifying Missing Immigrants –The Arizona desert is so brutal it can take the lives of some would-be immigrants. As David Tereschuk reports, that can mean their families never know whether their father or husband is alive or dead, and whether they should be given their Church’s last rites – unless they are helped by Robin Reineke. She is a compassionate young anthropologist who has made it her work to try to identify the Sonoma Desert’s dead and tell the families what she has discovered. One daughter is so grateful she calls Reineke an “angel.”

Depicting Jesus:  The new series “Black Jesus” on the Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim channel has generated controversy on many fronts, including for how the show physically portrays Jesus. Throughout history, visual representations ofJesus–in sacred art and pop culture–have prompted both devotion and debate. Kim Lawton talks with San Diego State University History Professor Edward Blum, co-author of the book The Color of Christ, about the potential implications and pitfalls of depicting Jesus.

Beit T’Shuvah – The Jewish High Holidays begin at sundown on Wednesday, September 24. Rabbi Mark Borovitz, spiritual leader of residential treatment center Beit T’Shuvah, in Los Angeles, speaks about this period of reflection and prayer. A former addict who spent time in prison, Borovitz sees addiction as a spiritual illness, and the act of repenting, or doing teshuvah, as central to the recovery process.