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.