It’s a crazy crazy world out there, folks. Here’s what you need to know:
From the Dept. of Give Us This Day Our Daily Jackpot: What are Americans praying for? Well, besides themselves, a favorite sports team (Go NATS!), a winning lottery ticket, a good parking space and, curiously, the end to someone else’s relationship.
The “Buddy Christ” statue from “Dogma,” via Wikimedia Commons
From the Dept. of You Just Can’t Make This Stuff Up: Brian Pellot serves up an epic Religious Freedom Recap, including this choice line: “In more statue porn news, a Pennsylvania teen faces two years in prison on charges of ‘desecrating a venerated object.’ He got frisky with a Jesus statue.”
From the Dept. of What a Freakin’ Mess: The NYT has all the gory details about the complete meltdown between the faculty, the president and the board of the Episcopal Church’s flagship seminary in Manhattan. Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori sat in on chapel services yesterday, the AP reports. Meanwhile, Mark Silk offers a tongue-in-cheek rebuttal to the “belly-aching” faculty.
From the Dept. of Spare the Rod … No, Really, Spare the Rod: Americans say they’re cool with spanking misbehaving children, but are not cool with using instruments (whips, belts, switches) as part of corporal punishment, according to a new poll.
From the Dept. of Not the Kind of Guy You’d Want to Share a Beer With: Gregory Holt will get a chance to hair, I mean, air his grievances at the Supreme Court next week over prison officials’ refusal to let him grow a beard in accordance with his Muslim religious beliefs. Looks like he’s got pretty much everyone outside of Arkansas on his side.
From the Dept. of Not So Happily Ever After: Remember the Oregon bakery that refused to bake a wedding cake for a lesbian couple? The owners say the $150,000 fine will likely lead them to bankruptcy.
From the Dept. of Oh, He’s Still Around?: Nation of Islam head Louis Farrakhan says the U.S. developed Ebola to kill black people.
From the Dept. of Not Everyone Loves Francis: The Vatican says that it’s planning to take all papal blessings (and the parchment they’re written on) in-house as of Jan. 1. That has Roman calligraphers and vendors absolutely livid.
From the Dept. of The Wheels on the Bus Go Flat Flat Flat: A pro-Israel group has filed suit against New York’s Metro Transit Authority for rejecting an ad containing the words “Hamas Killing Jews.” I still don’t understand why people feel compelled to play out their politics on the side of a bus.
From the Dept. of My Name Is Bob and I’m Here to Get Gay Married: A Baptist church in Louisiana told a local AA chapter to find a new home because they’re afraid that if they have to host AA, they’ll also have to host gay weddings. Or something like that.
From the Dept. of Not the Kind of Guys You’d Want to Sit Next To: Did you hear about the in-flight turbulence when ultra-Orthodox men refused to sit next to women on an El Al flight? Now an online petition wants the Israeli airline to seat the men in their own section. Likely on the wing.
From the Dept. of Suffer the Children: It’s National Down Syndrome Awareness Month, and Amy Julia Becker writes about the struggle to find friends for her daughter, Penny. Read it. You won’t be sorry.
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