Outgoing Baylor University Interim President

Quote of the Day: Baylor University Interim President Bill Underwood

"If we are to be a great Christian university, we cannot be afraid to pursue the course of truth, wherever that course might lead. Indeed, if our pursuit of truth leads us to question our existing view of God, it may just be that God is trying to tell us something."

-- Outgoing Baylor University Interim President Bill Underwood, speaking at the December commencement ceremony at his Waco, Texas, school before departing for a new position as president of Mercer University in Macon, Ga. He was quoted by Associated Baptist Press.

Like a Thief in the Night ...

For one Philadelphia priest, Jesus' prediction that he would return like "a thief in the night" has hit home a little too close for comfort. The Philadelphia Daily News has the story here.

Shame on the "NunBun" thief!

Quote of the Day: `NunBun' Owner Bob Bernstein

"They went right for the bun. What the heck they are going to do with it, I can't imagine. It's sure not something anyone would eat. I hope they do eat it. It will teach them a lesson."

-- Bob Bernstein, owner of the Bongo Java coffee shop in Nashville, on the theft of the famous "NunBun," a cinnamon bun that was discovered in 1996 and preserved for its uncanny resemblance to the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The bun was stolen from Bernstein's coffee shop on Christmas day. He was quoted by the (Nashville) Tennessean newspaper.

Mormon scholar talks about Joseph Smith

Quote of the Day: Mormon Scholar Richard Lyman Bushman

"I do think there is a growing willingness to respect Joseph Smith because of the success of the Mormon Church. With so many sensible, likable people who are Mormons and who believe in him, it's not as easy to dismiss him as it was in the 19th century."

-- Richard Lyman Bushman, author of "Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling," a new scholarly biography of the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Bushman was quoted by Beliefnet in an interview timed to the observance of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Smith on Dec. 23, 1805.

$1,000 Award for Missing `NunBun'

The Grinch didn't steal Christmas, but he may have made off with the NunBun.



Friends and fans of the famous "NunBun" at Bongo Java cafe in Nashville have posted a $1,000 reward for the safe (and uneaten) return of the famed cinnamon bun that bears an uncanny resemblance to the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The bun was the only item stolen from Bongo Java in a Christmas morning break-in.

The bun made worldwide news when it was discovered in 1996. Its story can be found here. Mother Teresa's lawyers, including current White House faith-based initiative director Jim Towey, eventually lobbied cafe owner Bob Bernstein to stop using Mother Teresa's name in association with the cinnamon bun.

"What I can't figure out is why anyone would steal it," Bernstein told the Reuters news agency. "They can't sell it on eBay, it' s not fit to eat, there was no ransom note, and the police put its value at only $25 on their report."

Speaking of the police report, the Nashville Tennessean tells us the bun was classified under property category No. 77, for "other."

Huston Smith, a leading authority on religions

Quote of the Day: Religion Expert Huston Smith

"Christianity has always been my meal. I only receive vitamins from other faiths."

-- Huston Smith, author of "The World's Religions" and a member of Trinity United Methodist Church in Berkeley, Calif. He was quoted by United Methodist News Service.

Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks at funeral for "Tookie"

Quote of the Day: The Rev. Jesse Jackson

"Tookie is dead. We're not safer, we're not more secure, we're not more humane."

-- The Rev. Jesse Jackson, civil rights activist, speaking at the funeral Tuesday (Dec. 20) of Stanley Tookie Williams, who was put to death by injection for the 1979 murders of a 7-Eleven clerk and three motel owners. Jackson was quoted by the Associated Press.

The Year in Review

RNS's Kevin Eckstrom reviews the year 2005, in this week's full-text article:

"And come he slow, or come he fast," Scottish poet Sir Walter Scott once wrote, in a passage that could be applied to 2005, "It is but death who comes at last."

Remembering the true meaning of Christmas

Quote of the Day: Pope Benedict XVI

"In today's consumer society, this time of year unfortunately suffers from a sort of commercial pollution that threatens to alter its true spirit."

-- Pope Benedict XVI, speaking Dec. 11 about the meaning of Christmas. To help remember the religious meaning of Christmas, families should set up Nativity scenes, he said.

Teaching intelligent design ruled unconstitutional; Kirtland, historic place of Mormon revelations

Adelle M. Banks and Bill Sulon report today on Tuesday's ruling in Dover, Pa., calling intelligent design unconstitutional: A federal judge dealt a setback to the teaching of intelligent design Tuesday (Dec. 20) by ruling a Pennsylvania school district's policy promoted an unconstitutional variation of creationism, a religious theory. U.S. Middle District Judge John E. Jones ruled that intelligent design violates the First Amendment's Establishment Clause, which bars government from establishing a religion or favoring one religion over another. Jones said it is "abundantly clear" the Dover Area School District's policy -- which requires that ninth-grade students hear a statement on intelligent design prior to the start of a unit on evolution -- "violates the Establishment Clause." He added that the theory "cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents."

As we approach the 200th birthday of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, David Briggs writes about Kirtland, Ohio, the site of Smith's revelations: Anyone with a birthday close to Christmas will recognize the dilemma faced by leaders of two churches linked to the man they call the Prophet Joseph Smith Jr. Smith, who is said to have discovered the Book of Mormon, received revelations here that remain effective for millions today. He was born Dec. 23, 1805. Yet as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints celebrates the bicentennial of Smith's birth, it does so with some wariness that their reverence for Smith not be seen as taking away from their devotion to Jesus, whose birthday is celebrated two days later. So here at the Historic Kirtland complex, Smith's portrait was taken down in the multipurpose room and replaced with an exhibit of Nativity scenes. Nonetheless, attendance has soared this year as Mormons visit the place where they believe their founder received 65 revelations.

Worried over "Peanuts"

Quote of the Day: "Charlie Brown Christmas" Producer Lee Mendelson

"We told Schulz, `Look, you can't read from the Bible on network television.'"

-- Lee Mendelson, executive producer of "A Charlie Brown Christmas," about initial fretting over "Peanuts" creator Charles Schulz's insistence that the program include the reading of the Christmas story from the Gospel of Luke. The program remains a hit 40 years later, with the gospel reading intact. He was quoted by USA Today.

Roman Catholic Spokesman on Rev. Ned Reidy

Quote of the Day: Roman Catholic Spokesman Howard Lincoln

"What this is not is a Galileo trial of 1633. This is based on revised canon law of 1983. No one's going to be burned at the stake."

-- The Rev. Howard Lincoln, spokesman for the Diocese of San Bernardino, Calif., on the church's charges of heresy and schism against the Rev. Ned Reidy, a former priest. Reidy formed his own parish that rejects the authority of the pope, mandatory priestly celibacy and prohibitions against the ordination of women and the blessing of same-sex unions. Lincoln was quoted by the Los Angeles Times.

Bishop Receives a Gift of `Mercy' for Christmas

Bishops, in church-speak, are supposed to be the good shepherds who look out for the flock. But in South Dakota, it seems one of the sheep is looking out for the shepherd. Episcopal Bishop Creighton Robertson found the new kidney he desperately needed from one of his priests, the appropriately named Rev. Mercy Hobbs. The story can be found on the South Dakota Diocese web site and Robertson's journal from the transplant recovery center can be found on the caringbridge site here (enter "bishoprobertson").

Gay Priest-Pedofilia Link is `Seriously Mistaken,' new Archbishop Says

The pope's pick to be the next archbishop of San Francisco says people who want to link the clergy sex abuse scandal to gay priests are "seriously mistaken." Archbishop-elect George Niederauer, who is a former seminary rector, also seems to leave the door wide open for gay men to be priests: Intermountain News

Not a big fan of "holiday" greetings...

Quote of the Day: Banner outside Without Walls International Church

"To HELL With Happy Holidays."

-- Banner outside Without Walls International Church in Tampa, Fla., a megachurch co-pastored by Paula and Randy White.

Gay Italian priests protest Vatican document; Joseph Smith's 200th birthday; and a dark side to dreidel?

Thursday we report on gay Italian priests who are protesting the Vatican document on homosexuality. Stacy Meichtry writes from the Vatican City: Describing their sexuality as an asset to the Catholic priesthood, a group of gay Italian clergy has issued an open letter that criticizes a recent Vatican document on homosexuality. Signed by 39 priests, the letter is a rare demonstration of open dissent in a country where public debate over the new Vatican guidelines has been relatively muted. The letter was posted late Wednesday (Dec. 14) on the Web sites Gaynews.it, a gay advocacy news outlet, and Adista, a leftist Catholic news agency that originally leaked the guidelines days before their official publication in late November. According to Ludovica Eugenio, an Adista staffer, the identities of t hose who signed -- 26 diocesan priests and 13 others from religious orders -- were not made public out of concern that doing so would jeopardize their standing in the church.

As we approach the 200th birthday of Joseph Smith, founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, on December 23, Adelle M. Banks reports on the diversity of the expanding church: An interracial team of Mormon teenagers and men presents the sacrament of bread and water, passing the elements to congregants in silver trays. The congregation sings "O Come, All Ye Faithful," with blacks joining in with Latinos and whites. The scene illustrates how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, celebrating the 200th birthday of founder Joseph Smith, has expanded far beyond white Utahans to include -- and some say embrace -- people of color. While the church doesn't keep statistics by race, there are now more Mormons abroad than in the United States, highlighted by growth over nine years of 133 percent in Africa, 64 percent in the Caribbean and 51 percent in Central America.

Rachel Pomerance looks at the game of dreidel traditionally played by children during Hanukkah, and the concern raised by some about its potential link to gambling: Is Hanukkah a gambler's holiday? Well, it has the potential. Among the festivities associated with the holiday is the children's game of dreidel -- a penny-betting game involving a spinning top. Innocent enough. But at a time in American culture when gambling is increasingly popular -- with poker matches online and on television and increased venues for legalized gambling -- some say the holiday could provide a window into abuse, and a key moment for examining the issue of gambling. Others in the Jewish community see the connection to pennies wagered over dreidels as an overreaction at best.

No Church on Christmas Day?

Some Churches to Close on Christmas Sunday

Some megachurches are taking Christmas Sunday off this year, as reported by Adelle Banks and Jason Kane in the RNS article of the week, linked above.

Quote: When Christmas and Sunday occur on the same day -- which last occurred in 1994 -- what's a church to do? At a time when evangelicals have criticized retailers for ignoring the religious reason for the season, this December dilemma raises a broader question for Christians: Should Christmas Day be a time for faith or family, or both?

but

At Catholic churches, crowds are expected to be larger than usual on Christmas Day -- considered a holy day of obligation. Thumma and other Protestant researchers expect the numbers to be far lower than usual in Protestant pews.

One reason is the liturgical calendar, which Catholic and some mainline Protestant congregations follow. Christmas is a prominent date. Non-liturgical congregations, including most evangelical and nondenominational churches, may have more extended Christmas celebrations that occur on days other than the specific holiday.

Iraqi elections; federal budget protests; our year-end review; and 2005's disastrous "acts of God"

Ashtar Analeed Marcus reports on the concerns of exiled Iraqi Christians casting their votes here for the elections in their homeland: Yalda Hajey, draped in traditional Assyrian scarves around his neck and waist, with red and green feathers protruding from his hat, dropped his vote into a ballot box, dipped his finger into a purple ink sponge and sprang into an Iraqi version of the jig. But Hajey's mood turned somber as he talked about recent killings of fellow Christians in Iraq, including bodyguards protecting a Christian ministry official and men putting up posters in support of a Christian candidate. Media reports said their splattered blood covered the posters. "I'm voting for those who martyred themselves," said Hajey, of Chicago, who cast his ballot Tuesday (Dec. 13). Like Hajey, many of the tens of thousands of Iraqi Christians in the United States are deeply concerned about the future of their religious community in their native land.

Jim Wallis of Sojourners was among the activists arrested today outside the U.S. Capitol while protesting the 2006 federal budget. Kevin Eckstrom reports: More than 130 singing church activists were arrested Wednesday (Dec. 14) outside the U.S. Capitol in their most direct confrontation with a 2006 federal budget they say is "morally disgraceful." Protesters were arrested after they blocked the main entrance of the Cannon House Office Building during a carefully choreographed protest that was coordinated by religious progressives at Sojourners and Call to Renewal. Singing "Caring for our neighbors, we shall not be moved," demonstrators were frisked, photographed and booked on trespassing charges by the Capitol Police. The misdemeanor carries a $250 fine or 90 days in jail.

RNS presents its year-end review of the biggest religion stories of 2005. Kevin Eckstrom writes that death was a major theme: They say death waits for no one and makes no appointments. Indeed, for the 181,000 killed a year ago by the tsunami in Southeast Asia, the 70,000 dead in a Pakistani earthquake or the 1,000 taken by Hurricane Katrina, death came suddenly, with unusual ferocity. But for the year's biggest religion newsmaker, Pope John Paul II, death seemed to hover at a distance. It was almost a final touch of grace, a pause that allowed the charismatic former playwright one final moment of drama before he slipped away on April 2 at age 84. The death of John Paul -- and the election of his successor, Benedict XVI -- easily ranked as the biggest religion story of the year. Yet death weaved its way throughout 2005 and touched on high-profile stories.

Correspondent G. Jeffrey MacDonald writes about 2005 as "the year of disastrous `acts of God'": Millennia have passed since biblical times when every disaster seemed to be a call to repentance, but a look back at 2005 makes clear that some human impulses die hard. The year's catastrophic hurricanes, earthquakes, famines and other disasters raised choruses of prayer, not only for relief from suffering, but also for guidance to light a better moral path. And it wasn't just Christian conservatives who read blighted landscapes as urgent messages for individuals and societies. From American environmentalists concerned with global warming to Asian Muslims worried about encroachments of Western culture, survivors of this year's myriad disasters were quick to link what they regard as moral improvements with the establishment of a more stable future. In doing so, they confirmed the health and breadth of an impulse that seems as natural to human beings as fighting to survive a storm.

Christmas "commercial pollution"

Quote of the Day: Pope Benedict XVI

"In today's consumer society, this time of year unfortunately suffers from a sort of commercial pollution that threatens to alter its true spirit."

-- Pope Benedict XVI addressing a Sunday (Jan. 11) general audience on the meaning of Christmas. The pope encouraged people to set up nativity scenes as a reminder of the holiday's religious significance.

Benedict on new weapons; tourism in Bethlehem; and the origins of Hanukkah

We start off Tuesday's RNS report with a story from the Vatican City about Pope Benedict's message against new weapons of war. Stacy Meichtry reports: Pope Benedict XVI called for countries at war to uphold international law Tuesday, urging the international community to apply current arms regulations to "newer and more sophisticated weapons." Benedict did not name any countries in his appeal. But the United States has been under heavy scrutiny in Europe for its perceived disregard for United Nations war conventions. Benedict made his appeal in the first World Day of Peace message of his papacy following a much-discussed November Italian television documentary alleging that the United States "indiscriminately" used white phosphorus as a weapon against insurgents during the battle for Fallujah. Asked at a press conference whether the pope's message applied to the Iraq war, a spokesman responded, "That's correct."

Michele Chabin reports on the loss of tourism in Bethlehem since the latest Palestinian intifada began in September 2000 and the prospects for tourism in Jesus' birthplace this holiday season:
Most of the items for sale in the Bethlehem Star Store have been sitting, undisturbed, on glass-encased shelves since 2000, the last time large numbers of pilgrims frequented this town, the place where Jesus was born, according to the Christian Bible. "Back then we worked day and night," recalls George Baboul, the shop's Greek Orthodox owner, sizing up his overflowing inventory of mother-of-pearl crosses and olivewood Nativity scenes. But when the Palestinian intifada erupted in September 2000 "the tourists stopped coming and there was no business. None." Residents of this mixed Christian-Muslim town, who derive almost all their income from tourism, are trying to remain upbeat this holiday season, especially since Christmas falls on the same day Hanukkah begins. But so far the signs are hardly encouraging.

Hanukkah is a reminder that light can fix the world, writes Cecile Holmes in her feature on the Jewish holiday: The Jewish principle of "tikkun olam," meaning to fix the world, resounds this time of year with the coming of Hanukkah and its emphasis on light and freedom. Hanukkah's origin dates to Hellenistic oppressions of the Jews in 168 B.C. when Antiochus Epiphanes decreed the worship of images in the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. After three years of fighting, the Maccabees drove their enemies from the city, regaining their religious freedom. The eight-day festival recalling the Maccabean revolt celebrates divine light. Legend has it that the Judeans realized their supply of oil was defiled when they entered the temple. Only one unsealed vial was found to light the candelabrum. Though that oil should have lasted only a day, it burned for eight, providing enough time to ready a new supply and rededicate the temple. "Hanukkah is a festival of light celebrating the fact that during the darkest time of the year, there came a little light shining in," said Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, an author, lecturer and scholar in residence at San Francisco's Temple Emanu-El.

Peter Mayer; Rabbi Steven Greenberg; and a Joyful Noise

RNS starts off on December 12 with a feature on Jimmy Buffett's lead guitarist, Peter Mayer, who produces his own spiritual music when he's not performing with Buffett. Evelyn Theiss writes: Pop guitarist and vocalist Peter Mayer was in India long before the Beatles made their famous trip there in 1968. Of course, his situation was different. Mayer was a child, living in Tamilnadu because his parents were Lutheran missionaries. Today, any self-respecting Parrothead, as devout Jimmy Buffett fans are known, can tell you that Mayer is the lead guitarist of Buffett's Coral Reefer Band. He's been playing and touring with Buffett for 17 years. But memories of his childhood in India's far southern region and his parents' work there are two things that infuse Mayer's second career as an artist in his own right. He puts out CDs with a spiritual bent, and his latest is "Musicbox."

Renee K. Gadoua reports on a rabbi who says Jews can make room for gays: When Rabbi Steven Greenberg attends synagogue with his male partner, the two do not sit together to worship. That's one way Greenberg deals with the seeming contradiction of being a gay Orthodox Jew. Respecting the Orthodox Jewish tradition of separating husbands and wives during prayer services allows him to honor his religious convictions while acknowledging his partner's role in his life. Greenberg is thought to be the first openly gay Orthodox rabbi in the world. He recently spoke at Ithaca College and Cornell University about his experiences, some of which are outlined in his 2004 book, "Wrestling With God and Men: Homosexuality and the Jewish Tradition."

Religious cartoons and jokes are now featured on RNS in "A Joyful Noise," a unique column of religious cartoons and humor with a holiday theme. As a gift for December, RNS subscribers can use free samples. Just download as you normally would, but we won't charge your account. A new column will be posted each week this month. The text (jokes) are moving on the wire today. The cartoon AND the jokes are on our photo Web site, with an easy-to-use link on our home page. We ask that you package the cartoon and jokes together, and credit Joyful Noise, which wants your readers to send in their jokes. Let us know if you'd like us to continue this feature when the new year begins.

"Winter program" lyrics

Quote of the Day: Secularized `Silent Night' Lyrics

"Cold in the night, no one in sight/winter winds whirl and bite/How I wish I were happy and warm/safe with my family, out of the storm."

-- Lyrics to an altered version of "Silent Night" that will be sung during Ridgeway Elementary's "winter program" in Dodgeville, Wis., cited by Citizen Link, an e-newsletter produced by the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family, as the latest affront to the religious significance of Christmas.

Turntables and Jesus

Quote of the Day: Hip-Hop Church Pastor Tommy Kyllonen

"Hip-hop has what all corporate America wants -- 18-35-year-old employed adults with growing families. That's why you see Russell Simmons producing clothes, Snoop Dogg hawking Chrysler. Everyone wants us. Why not the church?"

-- The Rev. Tommy Kyllonen, senior pastor of Crossover Community Church in Tampa, Fla., a hip-hop church where sermons are enhanced by rap music and videos. He was quoted by USA Today.

Faith or family?; Steven Curtis Chapman promotes adoption

In Thursday's RNS report, Adelle M. Banks and Jason Kane look at another issue in the current debate about the religious significance of Christmas: When Christmas and Sunday occur on the same day -- which last occurred in 1994 -- what's a church to do? This year's December dilemma has prompted serious thought, truncated services and, in some cases, no Sunday services at all. The issue highlights an underlying conflict for some Christians: Is Christmas Day a time for faith or family or for both? Some see a redefinition of Christmas taking place, ironically at a time when many evangelical Christians have been complaining about retailers and others neglecting the religious meaning of Christmas. A divide is seen between liturgical and non-liturgical churches. While more Catholics than usual are expected to attend church on Christmas Day, Protestant attendance is expected to be significantly lower.

Doug Pullen recently interviewed Grammy-winner Steven Curtis Chapman about his Christmas concert tour, in which he promotes adoption: Some Christian musicians don't practice what they preach. Steven Curtis Chapman does. One of the most successful artists of the genre has become a leading spokesman for adoption. With his new Christmas album and 21-city tour with MercyMe, he's using his celebrity to further the cause. The CD, "All I Really Want for Christmas," and the tour, which ends Dec. 20, will raise money for Shaohannah's Hope, the nonprofit adoption support group he started with wife Mary Beth. It's named for his 6-year-old daughter, one of three Chinese children the Chapmans have adopted over the last five years. "I kind of feel like everything we do now moves in that direction," Chapman, a five-time Grammy winner, said by phone recently.

Taking "Christ" out of Christmas

Quote of the Day: Catholic League President Bill Donohue

"They'd better address this, because they're no better than the retailers who have lost the will to say `Merry Christmas.'"

-- Bill Donohue, president of the New York-based Catholic League, reacting to the 2005 White House Christmas card that includes "best wishes for the holiday season" but no mention of Christmas. He was quoted by The Washington Post.

It's Christmas at Macy's

Activist's Boycott Ends After Macy's Allows 'Christmas' Back in Stores

Retailers are under pressure to allow Christmas back into the holiday season, as Kevin Eckstrom reports in the RNS article of the week, linked above.

Manuel Zamorano's one-man boycott of Macy's seems to have worked:

"In a Nov. 17 letter to Zamorano, Macy's Executive Vice President Louis Meunier said the store's electronic gift cards feature "Merry Christmas" this year, as well as "Christmas" in its advertising jingle, print ads and in its flagship New York store windows."

Granny on a lark

Quote of the Day: Baby Jesus snatcher Virginia Voiers

"It was a lark; it wasn't any serious stealing. My granddaughter commented that no one had taken the baby Jesus this year and said, `Grandma?' I said, `Oh, what the heck?'"

-- Virginia Voiers, a 70-year-old grandmother from Eureka Springs, Ark., who was caught stealing the baby Jesus from the city nativity scene. Voiers was charged with misdemeanor theft and was quoted in The Washington Times.

Religious expression of Christmas in the public square

In Tuesday's report RNS offers three stories about the growing conflict over the religious expression -- or in some cases lack of expression -- of Christmas in the public square.

Associate Editor Kevin Ecktrom updates us on a story we published one year ago about a boycott launched against Macy's for refusing to allow its employees to say "Merry Christmas." Macy's has given in: About this time last year, Manuel Zamorano was making his list, checking it twice, and Macy's department stores came up as naughty, not nice. This year, the Folsom, Calif., grandfather is singing a different tune, something more like "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." Angry that the venerable department store refused to use "Merry Christmas" in its advertising or among its sales clerks, Zamorano launched a boycott, which Macy's officials quickly dismissed out of hand last year. But as increasing numbers of retailers face pressure from conservative Christians to ditch the more generic "holidays" for more explicit references to Christmas, Macy's relented and Zamorano called off the boycott. The difference this year, Zamorano and other activists say, is that their complaints are starting to have an effect. The U.S. Capitol Holiday Tree has been renamed the Capitol Christmas Tree, and rank-and-file people are growing tired of what Zamorano calls "political correctness run amok."

Andrea Useem writes about the the unexpected support coming from Jews and Muslims to acknowledge Christmas as a Christian holiday: The movement defending Christmas as a Christian holiday has attracted some unlikely allies: religiously observant Jews and Muslims. Their support bucks the assumption that religious minorities prefer a neutral approach to the season, desiring "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" at retail checkout lines or "Frosty the Snowman" over "O Holy Night" at public school concerts. Motivations differ, with Jewish leaders calling retailers' omission of "Christmas" an ominous sign for a country that used to consider itself "Judeo-Christian." Muslim leaders offer a more strategic reason: establishing firm ground on which to make their own holiday demands. Scholars say the ballooning controversy and the unusual alliances taking shape illustrate the challenge an increasingly multicultural society faces trying to accommodate many religious expressions.

And Bobby Ross looks at how a town in Oklahoma solved the "December Dilemma": When the superintendent in this Bible Belt town yanked baby Jesus from a fifth-grade school play -- but left in symbols of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, not to mention Santa Claus -- a small army of parents erupted in protest. Some even blamed the defeat of a $12.9 million school bond election on voters irked by Superintendent Karl Springer's exclusion of the nativity scene. But in the months after last year's controversy, school officials, religious leaders and parents came together to develop a religious liberties policy that has helped mend, if not heal completely, the strained relations, observers say. As school districts nationwide grapple with the "December Dilemma" of how to mark the holidays, some see this Oklahoma City suburb's experience offers a case study in what can go wrong -- and right.

The Salvation Army Church?

Quote of the Day: Major George Hood of the Salvation Army

"People admire what we do, but they would prefer to worship at a Baptist church or a Presbyterian church or that megachurch that's in their neighborhood. They'll donate money to us and volunteer to help, but they don't want to worship with us on Sunday mornings."

-- Major George Hood, community relations officer for the Salvation Army, noting that the organization is a church as well as a charity. He was quoted by Scripps Howard News Service.

Mercy Me; The Magic Elf

In Friday's RNS report Greg Garrison talks to Mercy Me keyboardist Jim Bryson about the band's Christmas plans. The group has a new Christmas recording out and will also make a national TV appearance on ABC's Disney Christmas special on Christmas Day.

A spiritual "Magic Elf" can guide you through Advent, according to an article by Kristen Campbell: At first glance, your confusion can be forgiven: He's an elf! He's an angel! He's Santa Claus! The Magic Elf, 12 inches from the bottoms of his pointy green boots to the top of his faux-fur-rimmed stocking cap, depicts all three in one. He has the Santa beard, the elf get-up and the angel's wings. It's a lot to take in. What's more, The Magic Elf isn't just another Yuletide knickknack. He's designed to serve as a sort of interactive Advent calendar and to help teach children about the religious meaning of Christmas. Unlike typical, chocolate- or picture-filled cardboard calendars that likely spend all of Advent in the same spot, The Magic Elf flies -- with the help of a parent -- around the house each night and lights in a new location. Every morning, from Dec. 1 through Dec. 25, children search for him and his message about Christmas' significance.

AIDS Activist Kay Warren

Quote of the Day: Evangelical AIDS Activist Kay Warren

"The evangelical church has pretty much had fingers in our ears, hands over our eyes and mouths shut completely. We're not comfortable talking about sex in general and certainly not comfortable about talking about homosexuality -- and you can't talk about HIV without talking about both of those things."

-- Kay Warren, an evangelical AIDS activist and wife of megachurch pastor and best-selling author Rick Warren, quoted by the Associated Press. The couple hosted a national conference that coincided with World AIDS Day on Dec. 1 at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif.

Update on Vatican Instruction; the science of Christmas music; Amish puppies

Vatican correspondent Stacy Meichtry leads Thursday's RNS report with an update on the Vatican document on homosexuality: The ordination of gay priests is valid, but they should not lead Catholic seminaries, according to a newly disclosed cover letter accompanying a Vatican Instruction on homosexuality. As U.S. bishops wonder how much discretion they have in interpreting and implementing the Instruction, released Tuesday (Nov. 29), the cover letter appears to communicate that the Vatican expects concrete steps to be taken. It says gay priests with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" should not be appointed by bishops to seminary teaching and management positions. The letter was not made public with the Instruction, which bars men with "deep-seated" homosexuality from becoming priests. Catholic News Service, the official news agency of the U.S. Bishops' Conference, published excerpts of the letter Wednesday.

Just as we're beginning to hear Christmas music everywhere we go, Adelle M. Banks writes about the planning that goes into deciding which songs will be played where: It's that time of year again, when "Silent Night" or "Jingle Bells" greets you when you turn on the radio, walk into a shopping mall or head down a city street. What you hear -- whether traditional and religious or secular and contemporary -- depends on where you are and on careful planning by the programmers, retailers and musicians who bring it to your listening ears. There's even an organization that studies these musical matters. Last year, Media Monitors began tracking the songs played by the 50 all-Christmas stations in the top 50 markets between Thanksgiving and Christmas. And though no religious tunes were part of its top "Christmas Ten," the words "Savior's birth" and "angels" pop up quite often on the airwaves.

Brian T. Murray goes to Lancaster, Pa., to report on the growing business of dog breeding in the Amish community: A few scattered pumpkins dot the muddy fields where bearded men in wide-brimmed hats lead teams of shaggy plow horses tilling the soil. It is autumn in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania's Amish country, and the fields that sustain the simple lifestyle are mostly bare. But one crop -- the most important crop to some -- remains: puppies. "They're more expensive now because of Christmas coming up," said a bonneted young girl, barely 10, who cheerfully greeted visitors to her picturesque dairy farm. Bred for bulk and retail sale, puppies are a growing cash crop for hundreds of farmers in and around Lancaster County, where Amish and Mennonite settlers from Switzerland and Germany arrived in the early 1700s in search of religious freedom. Critics call it factory farming of dogs.

A champion for the right to choose

Quote of the Day: Dr. William F. Harrison

"It's not a baby to me until the mother tells me it's a baby."

-- Dr. William F. Harrison, 70, a Fayetteville, Ark., physician who estimates he has terminated about 20,000 pregnancies. He was quoted in The Los Angeles Times.

Vatican Gay Ban: Now Official

The Vatican has now officially published its much-leaked guidelines banning openly gay priests. See our full text article of the week, here.

Some key quotes:

"Critics have claimed that the widely leaked document's ban on men with “deep-seated homosexual tendencies” is too ambiguous for local Catholic officials to effectively screen the sexual orientations of priestly candidates.

But the Vatican forcefully responded Tuesday, asserting that the ban was clear, since the church regards homosexuality as a condition akin to a medical disorder rather than a fixed sexual identity or orientation."