Religion News Service staff
Christmas wrappings: Name is racially charged
The United Methodist Church will not hold its large 2012 General Conference in Richmond, Virginia, because the name of the city’s minor league baseball team is racially charged, according to denomi...
Christians, Muslims must 'put out fire' WCC's Kobia on cartoon controversy: WCC's Kobia on cartoon controversy
Interfaith relations—and tensions—quickly took center stage at the opening of the World Council of Churches’ ninth assembly in Porto Alegre, Brazil, as Christian leaders grappled with Muslim rage o...
Divestment advice not ready for Presbyterians: PCUSA panel needs more time
A church investments panel said it needs more time before it can recommend whether the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) should pull assets from five companies operating in the Middle East.
...Gay Episcopal bishop treated for alcoholism: Robinson plans to return after treatment
New Hampshire bishop V....
Hispanic evangelicals break ranks, advocate immigration reform: Legal status for undocumented immigrants
Breaking rank with leading evangelical groups that have chosen to stay out of current immigration debates, a new coalition has formed to represent more than 20 million Hispanic evangelicals and to ...
Papal encyclical expounds on love: Deus Caritas Est, or "God Is Love"
Pope Benedict XVI has issued the first encyclical of his papacy, dedicating Roman Catholicism’s highest form of writing to a reflection on love and charity that calls for a “purification” of erotic...
Pope retires liberal Bishop Gumbleton: Retiring bishop says he was abused as teen
Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the resignation of Detroit auxiliary bishop Thomas Gumbleton, just two weeks after the long-serving and outspoken bishop disclosed that he had been molested by a prie...
Suits filed on behalf of fired pharmacists: Druggists refused to dispense "morning-after" pill
A conservative advocacy group has filed a series of lawsuits against Walgreens after the drugstore chain fired four pharmacists for refusing to dispense the “morning-after” pill to patients.
...Poverty worries two of three Americans: 37 million below poverty line
Nearly two-thirds of Americans fear that poverty will increase, while almost the same proportion of the populace worry that they will find themselves among the lowest economic class, according to a...
Vatican newspaper rejects ID as science: Editorial lauds Dover decision
The Vatican has moved to clarify its position in the intelligent-design debate, publishing an article in its newspaper that dismisses ID on scientific grounds and embraces a recent court ruling in ...
Assisted-suicide law gets key victory: Court sidesteps constitutionality question
A recent Supreme Court decision that upholds Oregon’s landmark law permitting doctor-assisted suicides does not end the nationwide ethical and legal debate on such suicides.
...Senator's shift alters response to suicide law: Oregon's Gordon Smith changes course
Republicans control both chambers of Congress and likely could muster enough votes to block the Oregon law that allows physician-assisted suicide....
Catholic bishops urge U.S. troop departure from Iraq 'sooner' War draining funds from other pressing needs: War draining funds from other pressing needs
America’s Catholic bishops have called for the U.S....
Detroit bishop reveals he was abused: Gumbleton urges accountability
Catholic leaders in Detroit have offered counseling to a 75-year-old bishop who recently disclosed that he had been abused by a priest 60 years ago at a high school seminary.
...Mayor regrets 'God's will' remark: Nagin apologizes
Faced with howls of protest, Mayor Ray Nagin apologized January 17 for claiming that a vengeful God smote New Orleans with Hurricane Katrina because of heavenly disapproval of America’s involvement...
Requests for food, shelter up in 2005: Employed people seeking aid
More Americans requested emergency food and shelter in U.S. cities last year than the year before, according to a national survey by the U.S. Conference of Mayors....
Family fare proponents push à la carte cable: Advocacy groups say family-friendly packages are flawed.
Advocacy groups say plans of cable television companies to offer family-friendly programming packages are flawed and designed to thwart consumers from getting what they really want: à la carte sale...
ID ruling expected to impact other states: The reach of the Dover, Pennsylvania, decision
Only days after the high-profile intelligent-design trial ended in the fall, Federal Judge John E....
Pope selects new diplomat to U.S. Archbishop Pietro Sambi to succeed Montalvo: Archbishop Pietro Sambi to succeed Montalvo
The Vatican’s chief ambassador to Israel has been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI as the church’s top ambassador to Washington and the U.S. church.
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