Faith and liberty

Quote of the Day: former U.S. Ambassador Robert A. Seiple

"For faith to be authentic, it must be freely embraced. ... In a post-9/11 world where individuals die for their faith while others kill in the name of their religion, America's founding principle of religious liberty takes on even greater prominence."

-- Robert A. Seiple, the nation's first ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, who was recently named president of the Council for America's First Freedom in Richmond, Va.

Coretta Scott King; Supreme Court Associate Justice Alito; NPR's Sacred Classics

Coretta Scott King, who died today at the age of 78, was "a woman of faith and devotion," writes Adelle M. Banks: Coretta Scott King, who died Tuesday (Jan. 31), held firmly to her faith as one of the nation's most famous pastors' wives before becoming a civil rights leader in her own right after the death of her husband. Leaders with connections to the King family and the civil rights movement recalled how the 78-year-old widow of the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. blended a commitment to her marriage with a determination to achieve justice for others. Bishop Eddie Long, pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, said he asked her how she handled having a husband who was away so often, working on movement causes. "She said, `Let me tell you something, I did not just marry a man. I married a destiny,'" he recalled.

Jeff Diamant's analysis of the Alito nomination notes that the new Supreme Court justice may swing the court right on religion and cultural issues: With the confirmation of Samuel Alito Jr., the Supreme Court gets a justice labeled a "judicial conservative," a "strict constructionist," a "traditionalist" and maybe a few other "-ists" that make him a conservative's dream for the highest court in the land. The Senate voted 58-42 Tuesday (Jan. 31) to confirm Alito after hearings that may be most remembered for intense questioning that often failed to extract controversial answers. Still, Alito's decisions and memos as a federal appellate judge, an U.S. attorney and a lawyer for the Reagan administration indicate he could move the divided high court to the right -- especially on high-profile religious and cultural issues for which Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor -- whom he replaces -- often issued decisive "swing votes" that angered conservatives.

NPR listeners may have noticed a new program on Sunday mornings called "Sacred Classics." Nicole LaRosa writes: "Here is music based on Mary's song of praise to God: The Magnificat," says Stephanie Wendt's smooth, crisp voice from the radio. "`He has put down the mighty from their seat,' says Mary, `and has exalted the humble and meek.'" Ethereal voices fill the airwaves. They rise and fall in a rich melody written by Flemish Renaissance composer Nicolas Gombert, and, thanks to Wendt, in some context. Wendt is the host of "Sacred Classics," a choral music program that National Public Radio began offering to its affiliate stations Jan. 1. Sunday morning listeners can now revel in haunting motets and cantatas that span the centuries, and learn a little something about what inspired them.

God and taxes

Quote of the Day: University of Alabama Law Professor Susan Pace Hamill

"Faith in Christ isn't just about waiting for him to take you to the promised land at the end of time. It's also about being his steward on Earth during your life until such time."

-- Susan Pace Hamill, tax expert at the University of Alabama School of Law, who wrote a biblical interpretation of Alabama's tax code during her studies at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham. She was quoted by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Muslim girls playing basketball; and Jewish girls assimilating

In Monday's RNS report Jeff Diamant writes about a team of Muslim girls who play high school basketball. There are fewer than a half-dozen girls basketball teams at Islamic schools in the country: Each afternoon before basketball practice, Hiba Hussain swaps her regular polyester Muslim head scarf for a cotton one. The cotton better absorbs sweat as she hustles down the court, scurries for rebounds and dives for loose balls. Hiba, 15, is a point guard for New Jersey's only girls basketball team from an Islamic school. The players at Noor-Ul-Iman School in South Brunswick compete while wearing head scarves -- called hijabs -- long sleeves and sweat pants. Win or lose, the team is a minor spectacle, attracting stares for its garb and surprising opponents with its aggressive play. The head scarves initially make the girls seem out of place on the court to many fans. To the girls themselves, the scarves are an afterthought.

Stephen Witty reviews the film "La Petite Jerusalem," which looks at issues of Jewish assimilation: To some eyes, perhaps, Laura is the stereotypical image of the nice Jewish girl. She studies hard in college, holds down a work-study job on campus and picks up extra money tutoring. She lives at home with her mother, older sister, brother-in-law, and four rambunctious nieces and nephews. She dresses modestly, doesn't date, curse or use drugs -- what's not to like? But in the eyes of her immigrant Orthodox family, Laura's in danger of not being Jewish at all. The film "La Petite Jerusalem," by carefully observing Laura's small world, gradually grows to give us a universal look at generational conflicts and the agonies of assimilation.

Top-notch chicken wings

Quote of the Day: Monsignor Isidore Rozycki, Catholic priest

"I look it as a very fun place. ... You forget about the tensions and stress of daily life and get an opportunity to laugh with friends. And it's great food."

-- Monsignor Isidore Rozycki, a Catholic priest, explaining why he blessed a new Hooters restaurant in Waco, Texas, despite concerns by 60 local ministers about waitresses who wear tight tops and short skirts. He was quoted in The Waco Herald-Tribune.

When Cleanliness Is Next to Godliness

Or maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.

A Catholic church in NW Indiana has to pay $100,000 to clean up its rectory after its old pastor was apparently trying to recreate Noah's Ark with a host of dogs, cats and guinea pigs. The problem, however, is that the priest never cleaned up after them. The Northwest Indiana News has the story here.

Looking for more than a phone call

Quote of the Day: Family Research Council President Tony Perkins

"I welcome the president's remarks -- but he'd be more effective if he made them in person. Even Jimmy Carter doesn't phone in to Habitat for Humanity."

-- Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, comparing President Bush's annual telephone call to March for Life anti-abortion protesters to former President Carter's role in a prominent house-building ministry. He made his comments in his conservative Christian organization's e-newsletter, Washington Update.

Evangelicals on immigration

On Immigration Issue, Big Evangelical Groups Conspicuously Mum

In the latest RNS article of the week, linked above, G. Jeffrey MacDonald looks at reasons why evangelicals seem to be keeping quiet on the issue of immigration. Sample grab:

Evangelicals' hesitancy traces, observers say, to political as much as moral reservations. Evangelicals might be inclined to sympathize with fellow Christians from south of the border who have taken a grave personal risk in order "to support their families back at home," World Relief staff attorney Amy Bliss says, but those views apparently can't survive in public discourse. "The rhetoric is considered a liberal issue," Bliss says. "Fear of looking weak or too liberal permeates a lot of the discussion. I think that's the concern."

Bush speaks at Kansas State University

Quote of the Day: President Bush

"One of the great strengths of this country is our faith-based programs that rose up in indignation about the slavery that was taking place in the Sudan."

-- President Bush, speaking Monday (Jan. 23) at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan.

Nuns' resolve; and what the assisted suicide ruling means for states and for one particular senator

In Tuesday's RNS report David Briggs reports on a solution to the issue of dwindling numbers of nuns: The Sisters of St. Joseph of Cleveland, becoming part of a national trend finding strength in numbers amid rapidly declining and aging populations, have voted to join with six other congregations of St. Joseph from Louisiana to Illinois. The Cleveland community became the fifth congregation to approve the plan, joining the Sisters of St. Joseph of Tipton, Ind.; LaGrange, Ill.; Medaille in Baton Rouge, La.; and Nazareth, Mich. Under the plan of union, local leadership will continue in all seven communities for a transition period of more than a year. The new order, to be called the Congregation of St. Joseph with no geographic distinctions, will have its headquarters outside of Chicago in LaGrange, Ill. If approved by all seven congregations, the new group will have about 900 members.

Don Colburn asks if the Supreme Court's ruling on assisted suicide will turn Oregon's unique law into a national model: At least six other states have proposed or are considering some form of an assisted suicide law, with bills currently in the legislatures of California and Vermont. Polls show most Californians support such a law, but the sheer size and diversity of the state and the influence of the Roman Catholic Church, among other opponents, make the political battle more complicated than in Oregon.

The assisted suicide issue is painfully personal for one of Oregon's senators, writes Jim Barnett: Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., rarely shies from action when public policy collides with his private pain. But if his Senate colleagues try again to thwart Oregon's assisted-suicide law, this time Smith wants no part of it. The issue has become too raw and too personal, said Smith, a Mormon who remains opposed to assisted suicide on moral grounds. But his eldest son, Garrett, committed suicide in September 2003 after battling clinical depression for several years. And although Smith supported a previous effort to block the Oregon law, he won't again. Smith's change of course could lead to an ironic outcome: It effectively would shield the Oregon law from further action by Congress, allowing the suicide Smith so passionately opposes. His inaction also carries political risk; anti-suicide advocates, many of them religious, may sense that he has lost his resolve.

A father breaks his silence

Quote of the Day: Frank Lindh, Father of Former Taliban Fighter

"In simple terms, this is the story of a decent and honorable young man embarked on a spiritual quest. ... He certainly didn't go to Afghanistan to do anything against America. He never fired a gun at an American. He was simply rescued."

-- Frank Lindh, father of former Taliban fighter John Walker Lindh, an American now serving 20 years in federal prison after being captured in Afghanistan by U.S. troops in late 2001. He was quoted by the New York Times.

Choice of actor concerns Baptist Press

Quote of the Day: Filmmakers of `End of the Spear'

"We cast Chad Allen because he had the best audition of anyone else by far. We know that the character in the film and the actor are not the same. If as a film company we could only work with people who were completely sanctified, then the film would never have been made."

-- Filmmakers of "End of the Spear," a new movie about American missionaries and tribesmen of Ecuador, responding to concerns that the actor portraying the lead character is gay. They were quoted in Baptist Press, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention.

A Catholic's tour of Rome; Love letters from a nun

A Roman Catholic explores Rome, sweet Rome, the city of his religious roots. Frank Franzonia writes: As Jerusalem calls to a Jew and Mecca to a Muslim, the Eternal City bid me, a Roman Catholic, to explore my religious roots. St. Peter's, Catholicism's grandest basilica, was high on this pilgrim's list and it induced goosebumps even before entering, as I approached for the first time the famous square. Then again, this is not just any square. It is surrounded by Bernini's open-armed pair of quadruple colonnades topped by a balustrade and statues of 140 saints, all waiting in welcome. Rome, it turns out, is a city of churches, numbering about 900. Heck, even the Pantheon, once a pagan temple, is now a Catholic house of worship. In a visit with three young men (my sons) more bent on bar-hopping, shopping or scooting around on a Vespa, I managed to get inside St. Peter's, Santa Maria Maggiore and St. John Lateran -- three of Rome's great basilicas.

Karen R. Long reviews "Letters of a Portuguese Nun" by Myriam Cyr: Who can resist a gorgeous love letter, particularly the throbbing words of a nun whose soldier has returned to duty, leaving her distraught in her convent? Not many, it turns out, when the letters are this frank, intelligent and lush -- both back in 1669, when they first appeared, and now. The five epistles are reprinted in English translation in a new book, "Letters of a Portuguese Nun." The first edition created a sensation -- selling out immediately, counterfeited within a month and sparking a controversy about their authorship that has divided European scholars to this day. Myriam Cyr, a multilingual, Canadian-born actress who fell in love with the letters at a reading, has written a passionate if unpolished book, the product of three years of travel and research in defense of the authorship of one Mariana Alcoforado.

Lying: no big deal?; Sharon's generation

In Friday's RNS report Andrea Simakis questions if lying has become acceptable, judging by reactions to incidents such as author James Frey's embellishments, Martha Stewart's stock dumping and Bill Clinton's activities with Monica Lewinsky: It's official. Fibbing is OK if it serves a higher purpose. Oprah said so. The queen of all media tossed this ethical grenade recently when she called CNN's Larry King to defend his guest, James Frey, author of mega-bestseller "A Million Little Pieces." Frey's memoir of addiction and recovery was featured on her show when it was anointed the October selection of the world's most powerful book club. The champagne went flat Jan. 8 when a Web site posted a story that showed how Frey had embellished and, in some cases, fabricated significant events in the vomit-stained account of his life. Yet it appears plenty of Americans agree with Oprah. So when did public lying become a resume booster rather than the end of a career? Are we so used to being duped that over time, our outrage muscles have gone all slack and gooey?

Israel's fighting pioneers, contemporaries of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's, watch an era fade as Sharon lies in the hospital after a stroke. Joshua Mitnick reports from Tel Aviv, Israel: On most afternoons, the veterans from Israel's War of Independence in 1948 can be found around a table at a cafe in central Tel Aviv. They are contemporaries of Ariel Sharon, the lionized Israeli prime minister who recently suffered a massive stroke. For them, the likely end of Sharon's political career also signals something of a swan song for their generation -- a group that came to Israel in the shadow of two world wars and then fought for the country's survival. Wrinkled and hard of hearing, they can be curt at the approach of a stranger. But when asked about their past, they pull out plastic health care cards identifying them as former members of the Palmach, the military division of the largest Jewish underground in pre-state Palestine.

Boiling point taken

Quote of the Day: Ken Smitherman of Association of Christian Schools International

"We're not teaching that water boils at a different temperature."

-- Ken Smitherman, president of the Association of Christian Schools International, who says the Constitution prevents state universities from denying applicants credit for courses that add a religious viewpoint to "standard material." He was quoted by USA Today.

The Vatican on ID; Germany's growing Jewish population; Brooks explores Islamic humor

The Vatican's newspaper has rejected the science of intelligent design, according to an article by Stacy Meichtry in Thursday's RNS report: The Vatican's official newspaper has published an article that dismisses the scientific validity of intelligent design and endorses a recent court ruling in Pennsylvania to keep the theory out of classrooms. Writing in the Jan. 17 edition of L'Osservatore Romano, Fiorenzo Facchini, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Bologna, Italy, accused proponents of intelligent design of improperly blurring the lines between science and faith to make their case that certain forms of biological life are too complex to have evolved through Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. "If the model proposed by Darwin is held to be inadequate, one should look for another model. But it is not correct methodology to stray from the field of science pretending to do science," he wrote.

Elizabeth Bryant in Berlin reports that Germany is boasting the world's fastest-growing Jewish population: By almost any benchmark, Boris Rosenthal is a German success story. Fifteen years after arriving here with his family and a few suitcases, the native Ukrainian juggles a teaching job with a blossoming musical career, and speaks proudly in his adopted language of having a "German" mentality. But Rosenthal's is no ordinary immigrant's rags-to-riches tale. Sixty years after the fall of Nazi Germany, he is among an estimated 200,000 Jews from former Communist states who have flocked here in recent years, reviving a once-minute postwar community. Since 1990, the number of registered Jews has soared to nearly 106,000 from 30,000. Indeed, Germany boasts the world's fastest-growing Jewish population, thanks to a generous immigration policy drafted partly to atone for the Holocaust.

Stephen Whitty reviews Albert Brooks' supposedly edgy film on Islamic humor: Albert Brooks goes on a State Department mission to explore Islamic humor in "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World," a supposedly brave, secretly scared comedy about culture clashes. Unfortunately, the film is set safely in India, and few of the jokes confront religion, politics or any other controversial issues. Like a poorly updated Cold War comedy, the film seems to weakly suggest that if we could simply share a few laughs we'd all get along. If only it provided more of them. The film opens Friday (Jan. 20) in New York.

Hoping for anonymity

Quote of the Day: Former Praise the Lord (PTL) Leader Jim Bakker

"Most of you are so young you don't know who I am, and that's good."

-- Former Praise the Lord (PTL) Leader Jim Bakker speaking at MorningStar Fellowship Church in Fort Mill, S.C., a congregation that is located on the site where his ministry was headquartered before he was embroiled in a sex and money scandal in the late 1980s that resulted in prison time. He was quoted by The Herald in Rock Hill, S.C.

Now They Call Him `Father' for Another Reason ...

Catholics in Ireland say the church is losing good, qualified priests who are leaving their jobs because of mandatory celibacy. The Irish Examiner has the story of a 73-year-old priest, Father Maurice Dillane, who left the church after he fathered a baby with a 31-year-old woman. Critics of the celibacy policy say many men would stay priests if only they could marry. Dillane has since left the church and is raising the child with the baby's mother.

Crowd Control

Crowd Control Can Save Lives at Large Islamic Gatherings

The RNS article of the week (linked above) looks at crowd control strategies for major religious pilrimages.

Quote:

As desirable as it may seem to make all pilgrimages safe and comfortable, a certain degree of hardship has always been part of the pilgrimage experience, according to Kerry Walters, a philosophy professor at Gettysburg College who has studied the phenomenon.

Victories for assisted suicide law; Evangelicals grapple with immigration policy

In Wednesday's RNS transmission Jim Barnett reports that efforts to block the assisted suicide law will likely wither: Republicans control both chambers of Congress and likely could muster enough votes to block an Oregon law allowing physician-assisted suicide. But an apparent about-face by an Oregon senator could alter the political landscape dramatically in the Senate. After winning a 6-3 Supreme Court decision Tuesday (Jan. 17), supporters of the Oregon law gained a second, unexpected victory: the grudging support of Republican Sen. Gordon Smith. Because Senate rules protect personal prerogative, senior Republicans likely would defer to Smith's wishes. Smith's decision is yet another blow to religious groups trying to derail the Oregon law.

G. Jeffrey MacDonald examines reasons why evangelicals are sitting out the fight on U.S. immigration policy: As the U.S. Senate begins to grapple this month with the fate of an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants, some of the nation's best-known and most powerful organizations are opting to watch from the sidelines. That decision comes despite decades of evangelical initiative to make America a hospitable haven for religious and political refugees. The search to explain their silence on broader immigration policy leads through several layers of reasoning. For starters, the Christian right has other fish to fry at the moment, namely the confirmation of conservative judges. Beyond that, some suspect evangelicals don't want to appear soft on lawbreakers of any kind. And on a level that plumbs the depths of what it means to bear Christian witness, evangelicals confide they're still struggling as a community to determine the right thing to do.

Pastor John Piper

Quote of the Day: Author and Pastor John Piper of Minneapolis

"The most dangerous thing in the world is the sin of self-reliance and the stupor of worldliness. The news of cancer has a wonderfully blasting effect on both. I thank God for that."

-- Author John Piper, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, writing in a letter to church members and supporters about learning that he has prostate cancer.

Assisted suicide ruling; Traffic evangelist

In Tuesday's RNS report Adelle M. Banks reports on reaction to the Supreme Court's assisted suicide ruling today: Advocates reacted with triumph and disappointment to Tuesday's U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding Oregon's physician-assisted suicide law, which touches on a variety of religious and ethical issues. In a 6-3 decision, the nation's highest court determined that the U.S. attorney general is not permitted to prevent doctors from prescribing drugs for physician-assisted suicide when a state law permits such action. "The attorney general ... is not authorized to make a rule declaring illegitimate a medical standard for care and treatment of patients that is specifically authorized under state law," wrote Justice Anthony M. Kennedy for the majority in the case.

Greg Garrison writes from Birmingham, Ala. about an evangelist who preaches the gospel in traffic: On a chilly Saturday afternoon, evangelist John Brown, also known as "Jesus Man," holds a microphone to his mouth and melodically chirps out a sermon in a Jamaican accent as cars go by. "The reason why I'm here is because God put me here," Brown said. "What is wrong with one righteous man in the street telling people about God? I'm only a servant." For five years, Brown has been preaching nearly every Saturday afternoon along Lakeshore Drive, at the intersection of Interstate 65. "People cuss me up," he said. "Some come by and shake my hand." For anyone who asks, Brown will show off his teeth, which are embossed with gold letters that spell out the word "Jesus." He features a repertoire of 4-foot-wide signs and banners. "I got 100 signs," he said. They bear such slogans as "If you love Jesus, honk; if you don't, pull over" and "Make some noise for Jesus!" But some people think Brown makes too much noise for Jesus.

Crowd control at religious events; Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: local pastor

Following Thursday's stampede during the hajj in Saudi Arabia, RNS is transmitting an updated version of a story by Andrea Useem that first ran on September 6, after the stampede in Baghdad. A sidebar lists deadly stampedes at religious events: When at least 363 people were trampled to death near Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Thursday during the hajj's symbolic stoning of the devil, it was not the first time a large number of Muslims have died as they performed a religious ritual. Experts say mass religious gatherings always carry the danger of stampedes -- and that such danger is sometimes seen as a sacrificial aspect of the pilgrimage. Nonetheless, they say history proves practical steps, such as the installation of clear signage, can and should be taken to control crowds and save lives. Unfortunately, that hasn't always happened. An Aug. 31 stampede during a Shiite religious pilgrimage in Baghdad, Iraq, left nearly 1,000 dead. In 2004, nearly 250 pilgrims died in a stampede near Mecca during an annual Muslim pilgrimage. An earlier stampede during the hajj, in 1990, left more than 1,450 dead in a pedestrian tunnel.

In time for Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday on Monday, Kim Lawton of Religion & Ethics Newsweekly writes about the often forgotten role Dr. King as a local pastor: Martin Luther King Jr. led a nonviolent freedom movement and became a world figure. But he was first and foremost a pastor. "The pastor role was central to everything, virtually everything, that Dr. King achieved," Lewis Baldwin, professor of religious studies at Vanderbilt University, told the PBS program "Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly." As the nation prepares to mark King's birthday Monday (Jan. 16), Baldwin said he fears King's pastoral side is being forgotten. He believes the nation must develop an appreciation for that part of King's life if it is to fully grasp the whole of King's life and legacy. "Being a pastor, for him, was being a civil rights leader," Baldwin said.

Don't bet on gambling and campaign contributions

Quote of the Day: Focus on the Family Chairman James Dobson

"If the nation's politicians don't fix this national disaster, then the oceans of gambling money with which Jack Abramoff tried to buy influence on Capitol Hill will only be the beginning of the corruption we'll see."

-- Focus on the Family Chairman James Dobson, commenting on the need for Congress to address gambling. Dobson was a member of the National Gambling Impact Study Commission and has criticized politicians who accept campaign contributions from gambling interests.

Bishops urge Iraq withdrawal; Christian Scientists fight bird flu with prayer

U.S. Catholic bishops have urged the withdrawal of troops in Iraq "sooner rather than later," writes RNS associate editor Kevin Eckstrom in today's report: America's Catholic bishops said Thursday (Jan. 12) that U.S. troops should leave Iraq "sooner rather than later," and expressed concern that the war's costs have drained funds from poverty programs at home and abroad. Nearly three years after U.S. troops invaded Iraq, the bishops said the country needs an "honest assessment" of the situation there, including human rights abuses, religious freedom in the new Iraq and the plight of refugees. The bishops' eight-page statement, issued by Bishop Thomas Wenski of Orlando, Fla., said the nation "cannot afford a shrill and shallow debate that distorts reality and reduces the options to `cut and run' versus `stay the course."'

Sarah Price Brown reports on Christian Scientists' plan to battle bird flu with prayer: A potential bird flu pandemic has the world worried. While the U.S. government stockpiles antiviral medications, scientists work on developing new treatments and vaccines, and infectious disease experts try to detect and contain a virus, Christian Scientists are taking their own line of defense: They are praying. Christian Scientists believe in spiritual, rather than medical, healing. They believe in the power of prayer to both prevent a bird flu pandemic and heal those who are sick should an outbreak occur despite their efforts. During the world's deadliest flu pandemic in 1918, Christian Scientists in Los Angeles successfully challenged in court a city ordinance that prohibited people from gathering in certain public places, including churches. Some Christian Scientists say that today, too, they would object to any law prohibiting them from going to church. Some also say that if a vaccine were developed, they would not get vaccinated unless they were required to do so by law.

Bishop/victim speaks up

Quote of the Day: Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas Gumbleton

"I don't have any animosity for him. I hope he's praying for me in heaven."

-- Roman Catholic Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Gumbleton of Detroit, saying he harbors no ill feelings toward the priest, now dead, who molested him 60 years ago at a school in Detroit. Gumbleton was the first U.S. bishop to disclose that he had been the victim of a predatory priest. He was quoted by The Washington Post.

Iraqi Liberation and Women's Rights

Islam to Govern Iraqi Law, Women's Rights

This week's full-text RNS article (linked above) looks at the introduction of Islamic law into the Iraqi constitution, and its impact on Iraqi women.

Two views:

"Muslim women are going to suffer if the civil courts are completely abolished," said Annam Al-Soltany, a lawyer and a member of the Progressive Women's League, an Iraqi group lobbying for constitutional reforms benefiting women.

and

"Islamic law will give women far more protection than the civil law," said Boushra Hassan, a 31-year-old who founded Batool Cultural House for Women in the Kadhimiya section of Baghdad. "Mankind created the civil laws, but God created mankind and the Islamic laws, so it stands to reason that the Islamic laws are superior."

"Book of Daniel" as PR challenge; Gospel musicians remember Pilgrim Baptist Church

In Wednesday's RNS report Kevin Eckstrom looks at another angle of NBC's "Book of Daniel" -- that the program presents Episcopalians with an interesting public relations challenge: The Episcopal Church, in a bid to double its Sunday attendance by 2020, has revamped its Web site, updated its logo and tried to bill itself as open to anyone at any point in his or her spiritual journey. So you'd think that a prime-time drama about an Episcopal priest -- with vestments and bishops and sermons and stained glass -- would be a welcome gift worth millions in free advertising. Except the Vicodin-popping Rev. Daniel Webster (played by Aidan Quinn) and his deliciously dysfunctional family in NBC's saucy new "The Book of Daniel" isn't exactly what they had in mind. Some Episcopalians, embarrassed by Hollywood's image of a church where the theology is lukewarm and a philandering bishop rummages through Webster's desk in search of drugs, wish the show would simply go away. But others, sensing that the only thing worse than bad publicity is no publicity at all, want to embrace the show and use it as a vehicle to introduce people to the church, warts and all.

Adelle M. Banks reports on gospel musicians remembering the historic Pilgrim Baptist Church that burned down on Friday: From her 16th-floor apartment more than a dozen blocks away, gospel singer Albertina Walker watched the Chicago church, long known as the foundation of traditional gospel music, burn. When Pilgrim Baptist Church literally went down in flames Friday (Jan. 6), so went the historic structure where the late Thomas Dorsey created the music now known as gospel. Recent and distant memories flowed from music experts and archivists saddened to learn of the loss of the Chicago landmark. While some of Dorsey's most famous documents may have been housed elsewhere, the place where artists performed to standing-room-only crowds is gone. Even as church leaders vow to rebuild for the future, Chicagoans and people across the country remember the past.

Mormon Elder's reaction to recent deaths

Quote of the Day: Mormon Elder M. Russell Ballard

"The safest place in the world for 19-21-year-old young men and 21-year-old young women is in the service of the Lord in the mission field, scattered out over the four corners of the Earth."

-- Elder M. Russell Ballard, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, reacting to the recent deaths of three missionaries. One was shot Jan. 2 in Virginia and two died Friday (Jan. 6) in a New Zealand automobile accident.

Bishop Puts a New Face on Abuse Scandal

Alan Cooperman over at The Washington Post has a story today about Bishop Tom Gumbleton of Detroit revealing that he was a victim of clergy sexual abuse some 60 years ago. Gumbleton, a liberal pacifist and one of the youngest (and now one of the longest-serving) men ever made a bishop in the U.S.

Gumbleton revealed the abuse in preparing to testify in favor of an Ohio law that extends the statute of limitations in abuse cases. Our colleague David Crumm at the Detroit Free Press also has the story here.

The money quote, speaking of his (now deceased) abuser: "I don't have any animosity for him. I hope he's praying for me in heaven.''

Finding an Islamic way to "party"

Quote of the Day: Islamic sorority founder Althia Collins

"Partying is allowed in Islam, but it's how you party. You can have fun with girls and it doesn't have to include men."

-- Althia Collins, an Alexandria, Va., businesswoman who has helped create Gamma Gamma Chi, the nation's first Islamic sorority. She was quoted by The Washington Times.

Pope's would-be assassin soon to be released from prison; more on Book of Daniel

Vatican correspondent Stacy Meichtry reports on Monday on the upcoming release from jail of the man who tried to assassinate Pope John Paul II: Mehmet Ali Agca, the gunman who shot John Paul II in St. Peter's Square, is reportedly set for release from a Turkish prison this week, capping decades of jail time that resulted from the 1981 assassination attempt and a previous murder conviction. According to the state-affiliated news agency Anatolia, Agca could be released Thursday (Jan. 12) as a result of a court ruling that drastically reduced his initial sentence for the 1979 murder of Abdi Ipekci, a newspaper editor. Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the Vatican had not received word from Turkish authorities of Agca's pending release as of Sunday evening. "The Holy See has learned only from news agencies of the news of the possible freedom of Ali Agca," he said in a brief statement late Sunday (Jan. 8).

We take another look at the controversial new NBC drama that premiered on Friday (Jan. 6), "The Book of Daniel": NBC's new series "The Book of Daniel" is the first network show in years to center on a man of God: an Episcopal priest played by Aidan Quinn. But those who tune in expecting a rehash of the WB's "7th Heaven," a warmhearted drama about a minister's family that built lessons in every hour, will be bewildered and possibly shocked. "What I tried to do," said series creator Jack Kenny, "is show religion in a very real context with these particular people, not to say, `You should be like this,' or `This is the way all priests are, and the way all people's families are,' but `This is how this one particular family is. Please take a look."' By Matt Zoller Seitz.

Torture issue unresolved; Romanian church in the U.S.; NBC's 'Book of Daniel'

In Friday's RNS report Senior Editor David E. Anderson looks at the issue of torture and says it remains unresolved in the United States: The debate over Sen. John McCain's anti-torture law and the strong bipartisan political and public support it enjoyed suggest there is a broad moral consensus against the use of torture and cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment of those the United States holds in captivity. But how that consensus is put into law and then parsed into policy -- from definitions of torture to permissible techniques for interrogation -- and whether public deliberation might yet be cast in the language of religion and ethics remains largely unresolved.

We're also publishing a feature on what is possibly the largest Romanian church outside of Romania, in Portland, Ore. Gosia Wozniacka writes: Elegantly dressed women fill the pews on the right, heads covered in gauzy scarves. Men in suits take the left. Some whisper to themselves. Others pray aloud or wail in the singsong language of Romania. And in a throne-size chair up front sits the immigrant who takes responsibility for all of them. Neculai "Nicky" Pop, 68, presides over what may be the largest Romanian church outside his homeland. On a typical Sunday, 3,000 people convene under the wooden dome of his Romanian Pentecostal church, all of them Romanian immigrants or the children of Romanian immigrants. Since 1979, when he arrived in Portland and started holding religious services in his bedroom, Pop estimates that he has sponsored or helped sponsor 15,000 immigrants, about half the Romanians living in Oregon.

Peter Ames Carlin offers his take on "The Book of Daniel," which premieres tonight on NBC: "The Book of Daniel" comes with a lot of spinning wheels and fast-moving parts. But it works, thanks both to a slew of delicate performances (particularly Aidan Quinn) and to a creative vision that owes as much to the remembered lessons of Sunday school as it does to the Sunday night flamboyance seen each week on "Desperate Housewives." Like CBS' "Joan of Arcadia," the last talking-to-God show to hit the airwaves, "Daniel" comes with a spiritual subtext that hovers somewhere between traditional Christianity and New-Age-style, hands-on spirituality. And though it's not clear if Quinn's visions of Jesus -- who appears to him as a laid-back, witty hippie of a deity -- are the real thing or merely a side effect of his Vicodin-heavy diet, they both affirm his faith and leave him with a kind of transcendent grace.

Praying for an appeal ...

Quote of the Day: Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma

"We are a nation of laws, even laws that we disagree with."

-- Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma, speaking about how House members will continue a new practice of preceding official state business with voluntary prayer in the back of the chamber while a ruling prohibiting legislative prayers promoting Christianity is appealed. He was quoted by the Associated Press.

Who Does Pat Robertson Speak For?

Jeff Jarvis over at Buzz Machine has an interesting discussion about the media's responsibility in covering Pat Robertson, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and others. If the media pay attention to their outrageous comments, are these men getting more attention than they deserve, or do they deserve attention simply because they are known figures?

Unhappy evangelical mainliners; Holistic churches; Merry Russian Orthodox Christmas

Jason Kane reports in Thursday's RNS report on evangelical mainliners who say their denominations have become too liberal. They've vowed to try and change them from within: In the traditionally liberal Northeast, United Methodist minister Chuck Ferrara has been coping with what he calls "the very definition of insanity." Over the course of several decades, the conservative Connecticut minister has mounted the pulpit each Sunday increasingly frustrated with his denomination's liberal leanings and its refusal to change despite slipping numbers. Ferrara's frustrations mirror an escalating movement within each of the mainline denominations as conservatives gather strength from within to reintroduce evangelism and combat liberal interpretations on issues from homosexuality to abortion. At times, the self-described evangelical has considered completely abandoning the church. But Ferrara and thousands of other conservatives in the Protestant mainline describe themselves as missionaries in their own faith.

Molly Bloom reports on churches that take a holistic approach to healing their members, by offering weight-loss and exercise classes: Clad in black sweat pants and a baggy black T-shirt, Tammy Holmes wasn't appropriately dressed for church, but it was the perfect ensemble for her to lead one of the weekly Christian holistic weight-loss and exercise classes offered by Morning Star Community Christian Center. Holmes is the pastor of the church's health ministry, which illustrates how churches nationwide are increasingly finding ways to address their members' bodies as well as their spirits. Morning Star's 2-year-old health ministry was a natural at a church led by a medical doctor.

Ryan Mills writes about the Russian Orthodox Christmas, which is celebrated on January 7: During the first week of January most people are finishing boxing up Christmas ornaments and disposing of dried-out Christmas trees. But for the Rev. Benedict Tallant of St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, the first week of January is a time for making last-minute Christmas preparations. The Russian Orthodox Church, which still follows the Julian calendar, celebrates Christmas on Saturday, Jan. 7 -- 13 days after the traditional Western Christmas.

Not your "everyday Joe" ...

Quote of the Day: Randy Sharp of the American Family Association

"They take our savior Jesus Christ and reflect him as an everyday Joe. How disrespectful. Our savior is to be worshipped and adored and not treated as your buddy riding down the street with you in the passenger seat of the car."

-- Randy Sharp, director of special projects for the American Family Association, criticizing the portrayal of Jesus in "Book of Daniel," a new NBC drama about an Episcopal priest who talks with Jesus. The show premieres Friday (Jan. 6) at 9 p.m. EST.

Hajj Travel Tests Patience, Expectations

Muslim-Americans Create Niche Travel Market for Hajj

This week's RNS full-text article, linked above, looks at the Hajj, Islam's annual six-day pilgrimage to Mecca, and the niche travel market that rite has created.

It can be a trying time for travelers, especially American Muslims:

"The problem with customers is expectations. Customers, especially from America, have high expectations," Gaddoor said. "Customers come to me and say 'can you promise me a trouble-free Hajj?' And I say no, I would be lying. But that's part of Hajj -- sacrifice, patience."

Unbelievable

Quote of the Day: Rev. Craig McLaughlin of Bel Air, Md.

"I was just sitting there while it was going on, praying that everybody would stay still and not do anything that would get anybody hurt."

-- The Rev. Craig McLaughlin, pastor of Mount Zion United Methodist Church in Bel Air, Md., whose New Year's Day evening service was interrupted by a gunman who robbed some of the members. McLaughlin was quoted by The Washington Times.

Catholic School Tells Profs to Get Separate Rooms

Officials at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota have told co-habitating professors that they'll need separate rooms for a school-sponsored trip to Australia. A lesbian who directs the school's choir was also told her partner could not accompany her for a trip to France. Said one professor: "If sin and vice become disqualifying factors for university employees, then students might have to start teaching themselves." The St. Paul Pioneer Press has the story here.