Spiritual but not Religious

CNN looks at "Are there dangers in being spiritual but not religious?" here.

Suit: Pages of Bible Stolen

An Armenian church in California is suing the J. Paul Getty Museum over pages from an ancient Bible in the museum's collection since 1994. The Western Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America filed a $105-million civil lawsuit saying that the institution illegally bought the seven pages. The church wants the pages back because, the suit say, they were torn out of the Armenian Orthodox Church's Zeyt'un Gospels more than 100 years ago. But Getty says it obtained the legally and will fight the lawsuit.

The Roman Catholic Hall of Fame: Sainthood

WHAT?
• A saint is anyone whose "soul is in heaven"
• When the church officially declares someone a saint it means the Catholic Church has no doubts the person is in heaven
• The process recognizes lives of "great charity and heroic virtue"

STEPS
• Venerable: title given to someone recognized as having lived heroic virtues
• Beatification: person is declared "blessed" (need one miracle proven after death to qualify)
• Canonization: person is officially declared a saint (need 2 miracles attributed to their intercession, unless the person is a martyr)

WAITING PERIOD
• The investigation into whether someone might be saint material does not start (traditionally) until 5 years after death and often took centuries
• The pope can put someone on a fast track for sainthood (ex: John Paul II put Mother Teresa on the fast track- the process started one year after her death)
• First canonization was in 993 St. Ulrich, bishop of Augsburg, Germany
• Local bishops canonized saints in the early church (such as St. Nicholas and St. Patrick)
• Formal investigations by the Vatican began in the 13th century

Haggard to Start Church

Former megachurch pastor Ted Haggard plans to start a new church in Colorado Springs, Colorado in defiance of his old church. His career was undone when his relationship with a male prostitute and alleged drug purchases were revealed in 2006. The nondenominational church will meet this Sunday for the first time at Haggard's home. KKTV offers this video of Haggard's announcement.

Texas Baptists Cut Ties with Church

The Baptist General Convention of Texas is taking membership in the group away from a Dallas church for accepting openly gay deacons. The state's largest Baptist group officially broke ties with Royal Lane Baptist Church by a vote of 63-4. Royal Lane had been a part of the Convention for decades. The church has not made an official comment yet. The church also has been cut off by the Dallas Baptist Association.

Social Justice on Campus

Time magazine takes a look at social justice on the campuses of Christian Colleges here.

Gay Music Artists On Tour

Ray Boltz kicks off a national tour at Covenant of the Cross in Nashville two weeks from Thursday (June 17), affirming his status as an openly gay Christian music artist. Boltz has three Dove Awards, two gold albums, one gold video, and a dozen number one singles to his name, having sold more than 4 million units. The singer-songwriter revealed he was gay two years ago. He will will tour with Azariah Southworth who "came out" about the same time. The revelation led to Southworth losing his position as host of a Christian music TV show called The ReMix which was seen by more than 200,000 each week.

Megachurch Pastor Undergoes Surgery

The pastor of one of the largest churches in the country is recovering from triple bypass surgery. 73 year old Ed Young pastors the Second Baptist Church in Houston. He was hospitalized Wednesday after complaining of tightness in his chest and underwent the 90-minute surgery Thursday. In 1988, a stent was placed in Young’s heart to open a clogged heart artery. The former Southern Baptist Convention president hasn't said whether he will return to the pulpit.

Odd Religious Sties in America

WHAT: Don Brown Rosary Collection, the world's largest rosary collection
WHERE: Stevenson, Washington

WHAT: Richard Greene's ark replica
WHERE: Frostburg, Maryland

WHAT: The Church of God of Prophecy's Fields of the Wood including the world's largest Ten Commandments display, largest altar and largest New Testament
WHERE: Murphy, North Carolina

WHAT: Bill Rice's Cross Garden
WHERE: Prattville, Alabama

WHAT: Howard Finster's Paradise Gardens outdoor gallery
WHERE: Summerville, Georgia