There's Something About Mary

Protestants Use Christmas Movie to Talk About Mary

Is the Virgin Mary exclusively a Catholic figure? Not according to Sarah Price Brown's full-text RNS article, linked above.

Quote:


The goal, as [Scot] McKnight sees it, amounts to nothing short of a coup by the Protestant church. "There are a few of us who are in a Trojan horse," said McKnight, 53. "It's as if we've been released in the Vatican, and we're swiping Mary and taking her back to the Protestant world."

Actor Comments on "Mary's" Pregnancy

Quote of the Day: `The Nativity Story' Actor Oscar Isaac

"My sense so far speaking to people is that they are understanding. They're taking the high road and being compassionate, not condemning her."

-- Actor Oscar Isaac, who plays Joseph in "The Nativity Story," which opens on Friday (Dec. 1), speaking about the recent revelation that actress Keisha Castle-Hughes, who plays Mary, is pregnant at age 16 and unwed. He was quoted by USA Today.

Double Whammy

Quote of the Day: Muslim American Society Executive Mahdi Bray

"It's a shame that as an African-American and a Muslim I have the double whammy of having to worry about driving while black and flying while Muslim."

-- Mahdi Bray, executive director of the Washington-based Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, reacting to the removal of six imams from a US Airways flight Nov. 20.

Quote of the Day: Gay-rights activist and author Wayne Besen

"With all he (Ted Haggard) had to lose -- a wife, children, a huge church -- he had to be who he was in the end. He couldn't pray away the gay."

-- Wayne Besen, a gay-rights activist and author of the book "Anything But Straight," speaking about Ted Haggard, the former president of the National Association of Evangelicals. Besen was quoted by The Associated Press.

Abstinence and AIDS in Africa

Africans Chafe Under U.S. Abstinence Provisions

RNS's Jason Kane examines the impact of American abstinence restrictions on HIV/AIDS funding in Africa, in this week's full-text article, linked above.

Quote:

A growing number of relief workers, activists and scholars agree, saying the abstinence approach that was pushed into law by U.S. religious conservatives has translated poorly to Africa. The Christian doctrine of abstinence, they say, is a concept that doesn't always resonate in traditional African cultures and is therefore stalling efforts to save lives.

Arriving at the Pearly Gates

Quote of the Day: The Late Ed Bradley, `60 Minutes' Reporter

"If I arrive at the pearly gates and St. Peter said what have I done to deserve entry, I'd ask, `Did you see my Lena Horne story?'"

-- The late Ed Bradley, Emmy-award-winning "60 Minutes" reporter, who died Thursday (Nov. 9) of leukemia. He was quoted by The Washington Post.

Deliver Us From a Bad and Biased Film

The Kansas City Star has Grant Gallicho's review of "Deliver Us From Evil" that we ran last week.

(Grant's Commonweal blog can be found here)

Grant (the associate editor over at Commonweal) says the film suffers from bias and misinformation, not to mention a few so-called "theologians" who are really paid consultants to victims' lawyers.

Nonetheless, the film is getting buzz, and so is Grant's review:

A sober movie that asks tough questions, offers incisive portraits of victims and perpetrators, and conveys the necessary context should be mandatory viewing for bishops. Regrettably, “Deliver Us From Evil” is not that film. Rather, its biases and arguments are mirror images of the ones deployed by those who defend the church’s behavior in the abuse scandal.

The centerpiece of the movie is Berg’s stomach-turning interviews with O’Grady, an admitted abuser. But when the film tries to tell the wider story of clergy abuse, it relies almost entirely on commentators with ties to victims’ advocacy groups — especially plaintiffs’ attorneys — who have a vested interest in some facts and conveniently ignore others.

Jesus Camp Shuts its Doors

The Seattle Times has our story by Dan Burke about the pending closure of the Christian kids camp featured in the movie "Jesus Camp."

Becky Fischer, the fiery Pentecostal pastor featured in the film, said nasty feedback from the film and vandalism at the campground in Devil's Lake, N.D. have forced her to either cancel the camp or move it. The Assemblies of God, which owns the campground, told Fischer she could not return because of the vandalism.

An interesting comment from the filmmaker, Rachel Grady, who said the negative reaction to the film has "weighed a little heavy on our hearts:"

Not that we had anything to do with it, but [the campground] wasn't getting vandalized before the film and it was after it, and we need to acknowledge that," Grady said.

Veiled Threat?

Across Europe, Veil Dispute Mirrors Unease Over Islam

RNS' Elizabeth Bryant examines controversies in a variety of European countries over whether Muslim women should be allowed to wear headscarves and veils in public, in this week's full-text article, linked above.

Quote:

Long and short, sober black and brightly hued, the Islamic veil is drawing growing skepticism if not downright hostility in parts of Europe. The tensions over the veils in many ways reflect the general unease among many Europeans about Islam and the proper place for Muslims in public life.

Wife of Evangelical Leader Speaks Out

Quote of the Day: Gayle Haggard, wife of evangelical leader Ted Haggard

"For those of you who have been concerned that my marriage was so perfect I could not possibly relate to the women who are facing great difficulties, know that this will never again be the case. My test has begun; watch me. I will try to prove myself faithful."

-- Gayle Haggard, in a letter to the women of New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colo., after her husband, Pastor Ted Haggard, was removed on charges of "sexual immorality" related to a relationship with a male escort and allegations of drug abuse. Ted Haggard also resigned as president of the National Association of Evangelicals.

Is Ted Haggard the New Poster Boy for the Ex-gay Movement?

Looks like he may well be ...

In his letter that was read to his church on Sunday, Haggard -- the disgraced former president of the National Association of Evangelicals who admitted to daliances and drug use with a male escort -- said he had struggled with "repulsive and dark" impulses "all of my adult life." As part of his treatment plan, he agreed to submit to the "oversight" of James Dobson and others for a "thorough analysis of my mental spiritual, emotional and physiucal life." The goal, he says, is "healing and restoration of my life, my marriage and my family."

But here's the money quote:

"Through the years I've sought assitsance in a variety of ways, with none of
them proving to be effective in me."

Is that a reference to the ex-gay movement? Exodus, the biggest name in the ex-gay movement, seems to think so:

"No individual is excluded from the love and mercy of Christ. No individual should struggle alone in silence," the group said in a statement.

On the other end of the spectrum, Soulforce -- founded by former evangelical ghostwriter Mel White -- says it is ready to "extend an olive branch of friendship and support when he is ready to fully come out as a gay man." They may be waiting a while for that one:

"Dobson and the others will counsel him to bury, deny, and repress his sexuality even deeper than before. They will wound his spirit, and he is going to need our prayers and our compassionate message that God loves him, affirms him, and calls him to live his life openly with honesty and integrity."

Letters to God found dumped off New Jersey coast - CNN.com

Like many a weary traveler, it seems some of our prayers got stuck in New Jersey. Suprisingly, it wasn't on I-95.

About 300 letters to God -- from the funny (let me win the lottery twice, please) to the scary (get this guy off my back, or else) to the downright plaintive -- were found bobbing in a plastic bag off the coast of Atlantic City.

Quote ...

"I guess rather than just throw them in the garbage, maybe they thought they'd set them out to sea to bless these people," he said. "So they made a trip to Atlantic City, maybe went to a casino, and put the letters in the water."

Bishops Say No to Voter Guides

Rocco Palmo over at Whispers has our story by Dan Burke about the Catholic bishops' new rule that voter guides produced by outside groups (i.e., anyone but the bishops) should be banned from Catholic parishes.

The edit, which Burke uncovered Thursday, is a pretty direct slap at conservatives who had argued that most candidates can and must be judged on five "non-negotiable" issues -- abortion, gay marriage, euthanasia, cloning and embryonic stem cell research. It was also a firm "no thank you" to more progressive groups who have argued in recent months that voters' concerns should be more comprehensive, including poverty, the war in Iraq and the death penalty.

Baltimore's Cardinal William Keeler said the guides are too partisan and could put the church in dicey legal terrain if it comes across as politicking:

``The Pro-Life Committee discussed this issue at length, and concluded that the wisest course in these situations _ from the standpoint of maintaining the integrity of our teaching, as well as that of avoiding legal entanglements _ is to urge parishes not to distribute voter educational materials that are not authorized and distributed by the diocese, the state Catholic conference or this Conference,'' Keeler wrote....

Whispers in the Loggia

The Restoration of the Baltimore Basilica

America's First Catholic Cathedral Restored to Original Glory

RNS' Daniel Burke covers the reopening of the first Catholic Cathedral in America, following a $32 million restoration, in this week's full-text article, linked above.

Quote:

"The whole direction of Catholic life flowed through Baltimore at one time," said the city's archbishop, Cardinal William Keeler.