Twittering Church

A Dallas church is experimenting with twitter. KDFW-TV reports.

"Convert the Atheist" Show

A new Turkish TV game show will feature attempts to convert a group of atheists. Four religious groups will have representatives (a Buddhist monk, Muslim imam, a Christian priest, and a rabbi) who pitch their faith to ten non-believers. Station Kanal T will give the winner a free trip to a holy site of their religion. The show has hit a speed bump. The Religious Affairs Directorate considers the concept disrespectful and doesn’t want to provide an imam to appear on the show.

Pink Menno Video

Here's video of the pink menno protest in Columbus, Ohio. Gay and lesbian Mennonites gathered outside the church's official convention to pray, sing and tell stories about how they've been ostracized in the denomination. Some 1400 members signed a letter calling on the church to allow homosexual members to participate in the church services. Inside the annual meeting, the subject was avoided because it had stirred up conflict at other meetings. Here is video of the protest.

Oldest Bible

Pages from the world's oldest Bible have been pieced together and can be viewed over the internet. The Codex Sinaiticus was written in Greek during the 4th-century on parchment leaves. Parts of it have been preserved in various locations around the world. The unification project has required the cooperation of experts from serveral countries including Russia, the UK, Germany and Egypt. The Codex may be the oldest large bound book known to exist and contains a complete New Testament and most of the Old Testament.

Theme Park Free Day

Trinity Broadcasting is hiding the date of their required free day at the Holy Land Experience near Orlando. The religion-based theme park must legally forego its annual $35 ticket price for a day in order to get their property-tax exemption. The last one was on February 5th. TBN officials say publicizing the event could overwhelm the park with visitors.

Lenny Kravitz

Singer Lenny Kravitz says he's been celibate for the past 4 years and had resolved to remain so until married. He tells the London Telegraph he believes it is was wrong to have sex without being married. "I think sex and intimacy and all that is very important. It’s just that I’m going to do it with my wife. And not everybody else." He went on to tell the paper, "I really do use Christ as my example and try to live this life and not just bullshit with it."

NY Megachurch Pastor Out

Warren Speaks to Muslims

Megachurch pastor Rick Warren addressed the annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America yesterday. During his 25-minute speech, he told the audience that "the two largest faiths on the planet" must work together to combat stereotypes and solve global problems of war, poverty, corruption, disease and illiteracy. He went on to say, "My deepest faith is in Jesus Christ. I am committed not only to the good news but the common good. Scripture says 'love your neighbor as yourself.' I am commanded to respect everybody." The annual convention pulls together more than 30,000 people each year.

LEGO Record

A Chicagoland church has set a world record using legos. More than 150 grade school-aged kids built a model of Noah's ark made of LEGOs at Harvest Bible Chapel. It's 12 feet long, 2 feet wide and stands 18 inches tall.

Baptists Turn Away Choir

Southern Baptists have disinvited a youth choir from taking part in a mission program. Broadway Baptist Church Chapel Choir has been told it can’t take part in the University of the Cumberlands' Mountain Outreach program because of the congregation’s stand on gay issues. The church was voted out of the Southern Baptist Convention last week. The church had decided to avoid offending gay couples by published a directory without family portraits. The choir will instead, is joining the First Baptist Church of Nashville for its mission trip.

A case before the Kentucky Supreme Court involves an $11 million grant coming from state funds for a new pharmacy school at the University of the Cumberlands. A gay rights group sued the school for expelling a gay student.

Okla Proclaimation

An Oklahoma lawmaker is offering a proclamation blaming our economic troubles on abortion, pornography, same-sex marriage, sex trafficking, divorce, illegitimate births, child abuse "and many other forms of debauchery." Sally Kern made headlines earlier this year when she said suggested homosexuality was a greater threat to the country than terrorism. Here's a report from Oklahoma City's KWTV.

Radio Ad Blitz

The religious left has launched an ad blitz on Christian and country music radio stations across the South. The ads call for support of a climate bill, that would cut greenhouse-gas emissions. The issue is framed as one of Biblical morality. The American Values Network spent nearly $200,000. The religious coalition will put $150,000 more to enlist support from pulpits in the West.

Michael Jackson Friend

" wanted me to study the Bible with him because he was raised as one of Jehovah's Witnesses early in life, [and] he would want his children to be raised the same way." family friend Firpo Carr t0 CNN

Pink Menno

A group of about 100 Mennonites dressed in bright pink are protesting the denomination’s views on gay issues. The church is holding its biannual convention in Columbus, Ohio. Those gathered outside to protest are calling it the pink Menno campaign. They have a petition with the names of 1400 Mennonites who say they support the effort.

Pastor Tasered

Houston-area Police tasered and arrested a pastor after a traffic stop involving one of his members. They used pepper spray to disperse a crowd of his parishioners. Here’s a video report from KPRC-TV.

CBN Evacuated

A white powder mailed to Pat Robertson's CBN Network in Virginia caused a stir today but it turned out to be a bodybuilding supplement. The company's Virginia Beach building was evacuated and closed as a precaution as a precaution until tests were run. The network is expected to open again tomorrow.

Joyce Meyer Court Dispute

The family of a woman allegedly killed by the former security chief at Joyce Meyer Ministries is asking a judge to force the organization to cooperate in their wrongful death lawsuit. Christopher Coleman is accused of murdering his wife, Sheri Coleman and their two children. Meyer’s says it will cooperate if the family agrees to a confidentiality agreement. The family wants travel records, flight plans, information about insurance policies, etc.

Mag Stands By Obama Church Story

TIME magazine is standing by its story that the 1st Family has picked Camp David's Evergreen Chapel as its primary place of worship. The White House denied the report on Monday but carefully worded its statement to leave room for the Obamas to attend the church while not declaring it home base. Here's what TIME has to say about the conflicting information.

Graham Has Cancer

A Texas megachurch pastor is battling prostate cancer. Jack Graham is taking two-months off from leading the 26,000 members of Preston Baptist Church in Plano. Graham has surgery last month. He twice served as president of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Did Jackson Become a Christian?

Rumors are circulating that Michael Jackson became a Christian in his last days. He is said to have prayed recently with Christian singer Andrae Crouch and his sister. But she says the story isn’t entirely accurate. They did met with the pop star – but only to talk about recording songs with their choir on his next album. Before leaving they prayed and Michael listened and held hands with them. Read more on Andrae’s Facebook page.

Jackson grew up in the Jehovah's Witnesses and later dabbled in Kaballah and spent time with New Age guru Deepak Chopra. In the last few years, he reportedly followed several of his brothers into Islam.

Bible Club Ruling

The Supreme Court won’t hear the case of two students who weren’t allowed to start a Bible club at school. Officials at Kentridge High School in Kent, Washington didn’t let them form the group because non-Christians would not have been allowed to become voting members. Lawyers for the student may re-file the case to reframe the question before the court, focusing on the fact that the school district allows groups to limit membership based on gender, such as in the case of honor clubs just for girls and just for boys. The ruling could be applied to all kinds of clubs, such as a Republican club that prohibits Democrat from joining.

Obama Still Church Hunting

The White House is now denying widespread reports that President Obama has decided to make the Camp David presidential retreat his church home. A spokesman said today his family is still looking for a worship center. The Camp David reports came from reputable publications such as TIME magazine. Here's what we had earlier in the day on the story at ChristianNewsReport.

Funeral Protests OK

Missouri will not be able to stop an anti-gay church group from protesting near funerals. The Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling that barred the state from enforcing a law that would create a buffer zone. Many other states have passed similar laws. The Missouri law was aimed at Kansas’ Westboro Baptist Church whose members believe US soldiers are dying because the country tolerates homosexuality.

President Pick's Church

TIME magazine's report on Barack Obama's new church. ChristianNewsReport offers some info here.

H1N1 Prompts Changes

WLFI in West Lafayette, Indiana reports on how swine flu is affecting services.

Obama's New Pastor

Barack Obama’s new pastor is a Southern Baptist. The President has picked Camp David’s Evergreen Chapel at as his primary place of worship. It’s the same place George W Bush attended. The nondenominational Evergreen Chapel seats only about 150 people. It’s only a third full on most Sundays and is open to the nearly 400 military personnel and staff at Camp David. The Navy rotates chaplains through pulpit duties every three years. The present chaplain is Lieutenant Carey Cash from Memphis. Cash is a Southern Baptist who got his degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth.

Bible Giveaway Arrests

Police arrested three people at the Minneapolis Pride Festival for handing out Bibles this weekend. Brian and Doris Johnson have passed out free Bibles at the festival for more than a decade. But organizers refused to allow the Hayward, Wisconsin couple to have booth. They were arrested for trespassing along with their son.

Jon & Kate Book

A Christian publisher still plans to release a book about Jon & Kate Plus Eight despite the couple’s pending divorce. Zondervan is set to put Kate Gosselin’s book on store shelves this fall. It’s titled Love is in the Mix: Making Meals into Memories and will offer recipes and "meaningful mealtime blessings”. Zondervan has already released two books about the couple who announced their separation on a recent episode of their popular TLC network show.

Church Softball Player Dies

A Cleveland man died following a collision on a softball field during a church league game. WJW has the story.

Bible Study Ban Removed

The Tulsa Housing Authority has reversed itself and told Child Evangelism Fellowship it can hold Bible studies again in public housing projects. The Youth at Heart organization, a non-profit that administers recreational programs for the Housing Authority had told the ministry there is a prohibition on religious instruction on public housing property. Young at Heart insisted teachers not mention God or Jesus The meetings had been a part of CEF's summer outreach for the past two decades.

Dollar Lawsuit

Creflo Dollar is being accused of stealing a business idea from a California businessman. Devone Lawson filed a lawsuit against the Atlanta TV preacher, saying he first came up with a spiritual text message business concept. He now wants $10 million. Dollar is one of several televangelists who’ve come under Congressional scrutiny in recent years over the financial setup of his ministry.

Library Loses in Court

A California library has been ordered to let a Christian group use its facility. The Contra Costa County Library had refused to let Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries meet at the Antioch branch. A federal judge says that's unconstitutional because the room is open for public use. It's been used by groups like Sierra Club and Narcotics Anonymous.

New Lobbyist

The National Association of Evangelicals has a new lobbyist in Washington. Richard Cizik is out after he endorsed gay civil unions. Galen Carey who has worked for World Relief (the NAE's humanitarian arm) will take over. He attended Trinity University in Chicago and earned his doctorate from McCormick Theological Seminary. Cizik is now helping to organize a Muslim-Christian dialogue and a nationwide Earth Day in 2010.

Warren to Islamic Meeting

Mega-church pastor Rick Warren will speak at the upcoming annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America over the Fourth of July weekend in Washington, D.C. The Saddleback Church pastor will take part in a panel discussion. Some 40,000 Muslims are expected to attend.

Baptists Cut Ties with Church

Southern Baptists have ended a 125-year old relationship with a Texas church over gay members. The annual Southern Baptist Convention, meeting in Kentucky, decided to dismiss Fort Worth’s Broadway Baptist Church. The church has a controversy arise two years ago about whether to include photos of same-sex couples in the membership directory. The congregation decided to compromise by including group photos rather than shots of single families. Here is more about the photo controversy. Staff members say the church has taken no stance on gay issues.

Church Losing Home

WAVY-TV has the story of a Newport News, Virginia church forced to leave its facility.

Jon and Kate

Kate of Jon and Kate Plus 8 was featured in a video series for a Chicago megachurch called Families at their Best. But now that the couple featured on the TLC reality show are divorcing, Willow Creek Community Church is trying to reach out to Kate Gosselin. The live interview between her earlier this year with the church’s teaching pastor draw a large crowd. They discussed her faith and family. However, TLC would not allow the program to be recorded.

Rock & Religion

The lead singer of the band Disturbed grew up as an Orthodox Jew and almost became a rabbi.

Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath got his start playing R&B in a church basement.

Born-again artist Alice Cooper was rumored to have ripped the head off a live chicken at one of his concerts.

Dee Snider and JJ French of Twisted Sister along with Scott Ian of Anthrax took part in VH1's televised seder Matzo and Metal: A Very Classic Passover.

In 1992 Sinead O' Connor ripped up a picture of Pope John Paul II on live TV in protest of the Catholic Church's policies.

As a child, Michael Jackson went door-to-door as a missionary, distributing the Jehovah’s Witnesses Watchtower magazine.

Phish performs a version of a High Holiday prayer in Hebrew.

The rap group Run DMC includes an ordained minister.

Prince was born a Seventh-day Adventist and later became a Jehovah's Witness.

When he converted to Islam, Cat Stevens assumed the name Yusuf Islam.

Norah Jones’ father is legendary sitar player Ravi Shankar.

Episcopal Alternative

KDFW-TV in Dallas-Ft Worth has a video report on a new alternative for Episcopalians.

Jon Stewart Called a Prophet

"The Hebrew prophets often use humor, satire, and truth-telling to get their message across, and I feel you do a combination of all three. I think you are a little like a Hebrew prophet after all." - Jim Wallis writing in the July issue of Sojourners magazine to the Daily Show's Jon Stewart

Video Game Murder

An Ohio pastor's son says he killed his mother for taking away his video game. A judge sentenced Daniel Petric to 23 years in prison for shooting her and his father. Petric says she tried to stop him from playing Halo 3. He had been playing it as much as 18 hours a day. The judge in the case said in his ruling, “I feel confident that if there weren't such things as violent video games, I wouldn't know Daniel Petric.” His father is pastor of New Life Assembly of God in Wellington, Ohio. He told the judge that the family had forgiven him and asked for leniency.

Motto Vote in Congress

The House will vote this Wednesday on whether In God We Trust should be engraved in stone at the new Capitol Visitor Center along with the Pledge of Allegiance. E Pluribus Unum had been put up by the directors of the Visitor Center as the nation’s motto but two lawmakers caught the mistake. If it passes the House, the bill will move to the Senate.

Top Book

WORLD Magazine has tapped the English Standard Version Study Bible as its Book of the Year. Coming in at 2750 pages, it was first published in 2001 and updated in 2008. This study Bible includes more than 20-thousand commentary notes from nearly 100 scholars.

Thomas Kinkade: Fraud Allegations

A judge has ordered Thomas Kinkade to pay more than two-million dollars to two gallery owners. They claim he left them financially ruined by using religion to get them to make large investments in a project that had no chance of success. Other investors sued Kinkade but were not successful in court. Kinkade is considering an appeal of this latest ruling.

Kinkade’s distinctive style has been panned by the critics but has sold well to Evangelicals. He often uses Christian themes in his work.

No Tracts at Arab Fest

A Christian group won't be handing out tracts at the Arab festival in Dearborn, Michigan that starts today. A judge sided with the city which decided the Arabic Christian Perspective had to be stopped from giving out religious literature as a matter of public safety. The organzation has been offered a table or booth instead.

Kurt Warner

KTVK-TV interviews Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner about Habitat for Humanity.

Focus Changes Policies

Focus on the Family is loosening up. No longer are women required to wear dresses or skirts with hosiery. Workers at the organization founded by James Dobson and based on Colorado can wear dress pants and pantsuits. And men can skip the business suits for an open-collar shirt.

Bomb Squad Finds Bible

The bomb squad was called to the post office in Leavenworth, Kansas today because a suspicious package was left on a counter. Officers used a disrupter gun to blast it. Inside they found a Bible. They speculate that the owner intended to mail the package but failed to do so during a visit to the Post Office.

Judge Sides with Ministry

A judge says a Messianic Jewish ministry may legally hand out tracts at a gay pride event in St. Louis. City officials had threatened to arrest members of Apple of His Eye when they tried to give away literature at the St. Louis' PrideFest last year. The next one is set for the last weekend of June. When a lawsuit was first threatened, the city reversed the ban . But the ministry wanted to make sure they were on firm legal ground and followed through on the suit. The literature handed out by Apple does not mention homosexuality.

Mormons Misunderstood?

TIME magazine will offer an article in its next issue on whether Mormons are misunderstood on the question of gay marriage. Here's a link to the online version of the article.

A Franklin, Virginia Church of God pastor who lost everything in a fire is counting his blessings. WAVY has this video report:

Protests at Seattle Churches

Places of worship were picketed around Seattle today. KOMO-TV has this video report.

Baptists Gather

Some 25,000 Missionary Baptists are gathering in Houston. KRIV-TV has this report.

Is Planet Aid a Cult?

WTTG-TV investigates a group that says it's a charity but many people call a cult.

Bank Sues Robertson

SunTrust Banks has filed a lawsuit against Pat Robertson for $3.6 million. Robertson tried to get a Los Angeles oil refinery going in the 1990s but the project failed because of environmental roadblocks. SunTrust claims Robertson should reimburse it for costs related to the deal. The Regent University president says the property was sold several years ago and he owes the bank nothing.

Sanitation Saga

Some Amish in Pennsylvania are refusing to go by local sewage laws. The New York Times has this report.

Bookstore Bankruptcy

Berean Christian Stores has filed for bankruptcy protection. The chain of Christian bookstores has debt of $10 to $50 million and owes the most to two publishers: Thomas Nelson and Zondervan. Sales are down some 20% this year. The company was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Cincinnati. It operates stores in Arizona, California, Georgia, Montana, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

College OKs Jesus

UCLA has reversed itself and will no longer try to stop a student from thanking Jesus in a statement planned for graduation ceremonies this weekend. Christina Popa has wanted to have read while she crossed the stage, "I want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." A student affairs advisor told her to change it to "I want to thank God" or make no religious reference at all. But after legal action was threatened, the California school decided not to challenge her request.

Underage Drinking at Church

Police have arrested nine youth on charges of underage drinking at a church in Bismarck, North Dakota. KXMC-TV has the story.

Dobson’s Successor

Here’s a rundown of Jim Daly’s background. He’s taking the place of James Dobson at Focus on the Family which has an audience of 230 million people on radio.

• Age: 47
  


• Childhood: Southern California
  


• Father: An alcoholic who abandoned him at age 5
  


• Mother: Died of Cancer when he was 9
  


• Stepfather: Took the family belongings while Daly and his siblings attended their mom’s funeral including the last present given to him by his mother (a new bike)
  


• High School: lived alone in a trailer by the time he was a senior
  


• College: Studied business at California State University and Waseda University in Tokyo, earned a master's in business from Regis University
  


• Sports: Played football in high school
  


• Career at Focus: Led five large Focus departments
  


• Writing: Penned his story in the 2007 book Finding Home
  


• Wife: Marriage at age 25
  


• Children: Two sons: Trent (8) and Troy (6)

Court Sides with Diocese

A California appeals court has upheld a lower court ruling that sided with the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles over a conservative congregation. St. Luke's Anglican Church in La Crescenta broke away to join with Anglicans overseas. The LA Diocese wants to hang on to the church’s property. St. Luke's leaders object to the denomination’s move toward accepting gay clergy.

Wright Backtracks

Jeremiah Wright is clarifying his remark that "them Jews'' are preventing him from talking with President Obama. WFLD-TV has the story in this video report.

Sabbath Ruling

Ultra-orthodox Jews will be permitted to use their mobile phones on the Sabbath – provided they use their teeth. The Scientific Technology Halacha Institute says the ruling allows emergency workers in Israel to use the GPS devices to shorten response times even on Sabbaths.

Million $ Lawsuit

A middle school teacher wants a million dollars from Ohio’s Mount Vernon school board for discrimination. John Freshwater was fired for allegedly promoting Christianity in his classroom and burning the image of a cross onto a student's arm as part of a science demonstration. But in his lawsuit, Freshwater says he was the one who was wronged and harassed, having to work in a environment hostile to his religion.

Schuller's Daughter Takes Over

Robert Schuller is turning the Crystal Cathedral over to his eldest daughter. Sheila Schuller Coleman has a doctorate in administration and leadership. She’ll take the place of interim senior pastor Juan Carlos Ortiz. Her brother, Robert Anthony Schuller, resigned and is now part of the leadership of AmericanLife TV. Sheila Coleman’s husband, Jim Coleman, is president of Crystal Cathedral Ministries. She wrote the book Mommy Grace: Erasing Your Mommy Guilt. She was the principal of a private Christian school on the Crystal Cathedral campus.

Miss Cali is Out

Carrie Prejean is losing her Miss California crown. She will reportedly be fired from her position for failing to fulfill her duties to the pageant. First runner-up Tami Farrell will assume the role. Prejean stirred controversy when she was asked whether she supports same-sex marriage.

Wright: Them Jews

"Them Jews aren't going to let him talk to me," explains Jeremiah Wright when asked why President Obama hasn't spoken to him since they parted ways. Wright made the remark in an interview with the Daily Press based out of Newport News, Virginia. Obama left Wright's Chicago church last year. The full interview is here.

Charitable Giving

2008 - $307 billion
2007 - $314 billion

This is only the second drop since the survey first came out 54 years ago.

Religious organizations saw a 5.5% increase in giving for 2008 to $106 billion.

Source: Giving USA Foundation

Megachurch Survey

Each week 5 million Americans attend some 1300 US megachurches. Here’s what a large recent survey found out about megachurch attenders:

• Average age is 40 years old (it’s 53 at smaller Protestant churches)
  
• two-thirds of are under 45
  
• The vast majority are between 18 and 44.
  
• A third are single (only 10% at smaller Protestant church)
  
• They make more money and are better educated than those who attend typical Protestant churches
  
• 45% never volunteer at the church
  
• 32% give little or no money to the congregation
  
  Source: Hartford Institute for Religion Research
  

Mel's Rant

Mel Gibson reportedly told parishioners at his Holy Family Chapel in Agoura Hills, California he would not stand by and be judged and scrutinised. Gibson ordered those in attendance to stop gossiping about him. There have been reports about the end of his marriage to the mother of his seven children, and Gibson's relationship with a Russian musician who is said to be pregnant with his child.

Eminem's Religion

Singer Eminem says, "I definately pray a lot more than I used to. I don't feel like I'm crazy wacky religious. But I do believe in God, and I do pray." The rapper tells Vibe magazine he's stopped taking drugs for the last year after he nearly died from an methadone overdose.

Tiller's Clinic Shutting Down

George Tiller’s family says it will permanently close his Wichita abortion clinic. Tiller was shot dead at his church 9 days ago. Tiller was shot in both arms 16 years ago by a woman who was later convicted of attempted murder. The closing of Women's Health Care Services means Wichita will have no clinic in the area performing late-term abortions.

Bible Study Banned

The Tulsa Housing Authority has told Child Evangelism Fellowship to stop holding Bible studies in public housing projects. The Youth at Heart organization, a non-profit that administers recreational programs for the Housing Authority says there is a prohibition on religious instruction on public housing property. The meetings have been a part of CEF's summer outreach for the past two decades.

The Bible in Idaho Schools

KBCI-TV has a video report on an Idaho group working to bring the Bible into Idaho public high school classrooms by getting the issue put on a ballot initiative.

Commandments Ruling

A Ten Commandments monument outside an Oklahoma courthouse is an endorsement of religion and must go. That’s the decision of a federal appeals court in Denver. Even though the Haskell County monument is part of a historical display, it still is an a religious expression, according to the appeals court. That overturns a judge’s decision that would have allowed the monument to stay.

Explosion at Home of Megachurch Pastor

An explosion rocked the 15,000-square-foot home of TD Jakes this weekend. The natural gas explosion in the Dallas suburb heavily damaged a sunroom but no one was injured. The gas line feeds a barbecue grill and pool heater. The megachurch pastor was in another part of the house at the time. His Potter’s House church has more than 28,000 members.

Racial Slurs Painted on Church

A Memphis church found racial slurs and profanity spray painted all over the sanctuary this weekend. WHBQ-TV has a video report.

Unholy Rampage

A naked man broke through a church window this weekend in Seattle, spattering HIV-positive blood inside the sanctuary. He left a trail of the tainted blood and destruction throughout the church. The Unity Church of God in Christ moved its services outside because health officials declared the church interior a bio-hazard. It turns out his brother killed himself on the church’s property on the same Sunday 29 years ago. KOMO-TV has this video report.

Abortion at Religious Schools

Women attending at private, religious schools are more likely to have an abortion than their counterparts at public schools. That’s according to a new study detailed in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior. The work is from an assistant professor at the City University of New York. Sociologist Amy Adamczyk suggests shame may be a motivation for not acting from personal religious values and insteadopting for an abortion during an unexpected pregnancy at a private school. She points out that simply attending a religious school is not necessarily an indication of a conservative religious view. Other findings:

• The type of religious school (Catholic or otherwise) was not a factor.
  
• Conservative Protestants were the least likely to report having an abortion (less likely than mainline Protestants, Catholics and women with non-Christian religious affiliations)
  
• The religious involvement of a woman's peers made no overall difference
  
• Woman attending schools with conservative Protestants were more likely to decide to keep their baby if the pregnancy occurred in their 20s than during their teen years.

A 1st for Rabbis

Alyssa Stanton became the African-American woman to be ordained as a rabbi by a mainstream Jewish seminary yesterday. The ceremony took place at the Cincinnati campus of Hebrew Union College. She will take leadership of an mostly synagogue in Greenville, North Carolina later this summer. Here's more on her background from a New York Times article.

Shot While Bible Reading

A Nashville man has pled guilty to shooting a convenience store clerk who was reading his Bible. Prosecutors say Joshua Bond killed Shop-N-Save Market clerk Gene Kim after they argued over whether Bond had shoplifted some items from the store. Bond left the store and returned with a gun, shooting Kim as he read his Bible.

The Pope on Facebook

You can now meet the Pope on Facebook. The Vatican has created a web page with an application called The pope meets you on Facebook. You can’t friend the Pope or poke him or write on his wall. But you can select from more than a dozen "virtual postcards" with pictures of the pope and messages from him.

Another app allows the faithful to see the Pope’s speeches and messages on their iPhones or iPods. The new applications are currently available in English, Spanish, French, Dutch and of course, Italian.

Here’s the site.

The pope already has his own YouTube channel.

Going Mainstream

ABC News has this article on the Christian film industry subtitled From 'Godlywood,' Latest Weapon in Cultural War Coming Soon to a Theater Near You.

College Leaving Church

Criswell College is parting ways with the First Baptist Church of Dallas. The agreement still needs approval from church deacons and the FCC since Christian radio station KCBI-FM is involved. The church started Criswell nearly 40 years ago and now some 300 students attend the school. Last year, Jerry Johnson resigned as president of the college after a confrontation with the church leadership.

Preacher Don’t Publish

Newsweek has this article titled Preacher Don’t Publish: Have the days of Christian media come and gone?

Michelle Pfeiffer's Cult

Michelle Pfeiffer admits she joined a cult in her early acting days. The actress tells the London Daily Telegraph that after she arrived in Hollywood she would up with a group dedicated to “vegetarianism and metaphysics.” For a while, the unnamed group controlled her life, taking most of her money.

Sotomayor on Abortion

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor hasn’t ruled on a case involving Roe v. Wade. Here’s the closest she’s come to showing her opinion on the legalization of abortion.

• In 2007, she went against a majority ruling that rejected giving asylum to men from China whose spouses had been pressured to have abortions. She thought the “harm is clearly directed at the couple. … The termination of a wanted pregnancy under a coercive population-control program can only be devastating to any couple, akin, no doubt, to the killing of a child."
  
• In 2004, Sotomayor supported letting a case go forward where abortion protesters claimed police used excessive force on them during arrests at a health clinic.
  
• In 2002, she rejected a challenge to the Bush administration's "policy preventing federal funding from going to foreign organizations that perform abortions.

Scientologist Moving In

The Church of Scientology has bought a church building in Northern Kentucky. The Florence Baptist Church owned the property in Florence until moving into a new $15 million facility. Scientologists paid $1.64 million for the building.

Abortion Doctor Service

An interfaith service is planned tomorrow in Wichita following the fatal shooting of a local abortion doctor. The service will take place at the Wichita First United Methodist Church and is aimed at comforting Tiller’s family and friends.

Obama's Islam Speech

Here are some exerpts from President Obama's speech today at Cairo University in Egypt:

The relationship between Islam and the West includes centuries of coexistence and cooperation, but also conflict and religious wars. More recently, tension has been fed by colonialism that denied rights and opportunities to many Muslims, and a Cold War in which Muslim-majority countries were too often treated as proxies without regard to their own aspirations.

I've come here to Cairo to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, one based on mutual interest and mutual respect, and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition.

As a student of history, I also know civilization's debt to Islam. It was Islam -- at places like Al-Azhar -- that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe's Renaissance and Enlightenment.

I have known Islam on three continents before coming to the region where it was first revealed. That experience guides my conviction that partnership between America and Islam must be based on what Islam is, not what it isn't. And I consider it part of my responsibility as President of the United States to fight against negative stereotypes of Islam wherever they appear.

But that same principle must apply to Muslim perceptions of America. Just as Muslims do not fit a crude stereotype, America is not the crude stereotype of a self-interested empire.

So let there be no doubt: Islam is a part of America. And I believe that America holds within her the truth that regardless of race, religion, or station in life, all of us share common aspirations -- to live in peace and security; to get an education and to work with dignity; to love our families, our communities, and our God. In Ankara, I made clear that America is not -- and never will be -- at war with Islam.

The Holy Koran teaches that whoever kills an innocent is as -- it is as if he has killed all mankind. And the Holy Koran also says whoever saves a person, it is as if he has saved all mankind. The enduring faith of over a billion people is so much bigger than the narrow hatred of a few. Islam is not part of the problem in combating violent extremism -- it is an important part of promoting peace.

Islam has a proud tradition of tolerance. We see it in the history of Andalusia and Cordoba during the Inquisition. I saw it firsthand as a child in Indonesia, where devout Christians worshiped freely in an overwhelmingly Muslim country. That is the spirit we need today. People in every country should be free to choose and live their faith based upon the persuasion of the mind and the heart and the soul. This tolerance is essential for religion to thrive, but it's being challenged in many different ways.

The full transcript can be read here.

Witnesses to Murder

KWCH-TV interviews witnesses who saw the killing of a Kansas abortion doctor this past weekend.

Shrinking Membership

Here's an article taking a look at what churches are doing to combat falling membership from US News & World Report.

Bible Studies at Pastor's Home

San Diego County officials have apologized to a pastor for telling him to stop holding a Bible studies at his home. A letter rescinding a cease and desist order was sent to David Jones this week. The county had first ordered to get an official permit which would have cost thousands of dollars.

ORU Debt Down

Oral Roberts University has cut its debt from more than $50 million to just over $700,000. The school announced today that its Renewing the Vision matching gift campaign has brought in more than $22 million from some 16,000 donors. A financial scandal two years ago led to the resignation of Richard Roberts as president.

Graduation Punishment Upheld

A Colorado student disciplined for talking about her religious beliefs during her high school graduation speech filed a lawsuit against the school. Lewis-Palmer High School in Monument, Colorado disciplined Erica Corder for asking the audience to consider the Christian faith. The principal refused to give Corder her diploma until she wrote a letter explaning her actions. Last year, a judge threw out her lawsuit and now a panel of the 10th Circuit has upheld that decision.

Fired For Pregnancy

A guidance counselor says she was fired from her church job after getting pregnant out of wedlock. Tracy McGinnis, who’s in her 40s, filed a lawsuit earlier this year. Now, Omaha’s Christ the King Church says the suit has been settled but details of the agreement are not being released.

Court Ruling on Bible

An appeals court says a Philadelphia mother cannot use a Bible at show and tell. Donna Kay Busch wanted to read some passages to her son’s kindergarten class because it was a his favorite book. The school allowed Wesley Busch to talk about a poster that included references to his church. The 2-1 split decision uphelds a lower court decision.

Abortion Murder Called Answer to Prayer

A one-time Southern Baptist leader says, "I am glad George Tiller is dead.” Wiley Drake made the remark during his Crusade Radio program yesterday. Drake once served as the Southern Baptist Convention’s second vice president in 2006-2007,. He described Tiller as a “brutal, murdering monster". Drake went on to say the killing is an “answer to prayer”. He serves as pastor of First Southern Baptist Church in Buena Park, California. The current head of the SBC's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Richard Land, condemned the shooting

Both Sides Condemn Violence

WTVT-TV in Tampa reports on the fallout over the Tiller Murder.

Court Appearance for Accused

The man suspected of gunning down a Wichita abortion doctor George Tiller is expected to make his first court appearance this afternoon. Tiller was shot to death in the foyer of the Reformation Lutheran Church while serving an a usher shortly after the morning service began. He was one of a handful of doctors in the country performing late term abortions. He

The accused, Scott Roeder, describes himself a citizen of the Republic of Kansas who refused to recognized the US Government, failing to pay income or Social Security taxes. Roeder also belonged to a group called One Supreme Court that declared federal and state laws did not apply to him. Police found bomb-making materials during a search of his car in 1996. An appeals court overturned his conviction. The search was declared illegal. Roeder's brother has a history of mental illness.