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The Town Council in in Gilbert, Ariz., a Phoenix suburb of about 217,000 residents (and currently one of the fastest growing municipalities in America) is moving quickly to change a zoning code that technically prohibits Bible study groups and other “religious-assembly uses” in single-family homes. Gilbert officials have received hundreds of critical emails in the past few…

The health care reform package nearing a vote in Congress has officially divided America’s Catholics: their hospitals endorse the plan, their bishops “regretfully” oppose it. The president of the Catholic Health Association, which represents more than 600 hospitals, calls the bill a “major first step” that will “make the lives of millions more secure, and…

America’s friendship with Israel is at risk, mainstream and Jewish media outlets are reporting, due to Israel’s announcement (made during Vice President Joe Biden’s visit, of all times) that it will build 1,600 more housing units for Jews in East Jerusalem — the proposed capital of the Palestinian state. Despite rebukes and warnings from some U.S.…

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has concluded that New York City’s Department of Education wrongly fired Debbie Almontaser, a Muslim American from Yemen, discriminating on the basis of her race, religion and national origin. Almontaser was the founding principal of the Arabic-themed Khalil Gibran International Academy, a dual-language public school that opened in 2007, but was pressured…

Coverage has snowballed in the week since conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck called on Christians to “run as fast as you can” if their churches preach about social or economic justice, which he defines as code words for Communism and Nazism. Summarized in Laurie Goodstein’s New York Times story today, angry backlash has come from a range of…

The Texas textbook wars are underway: the State Board of Education spent hours yesterday clashing over its public school social studies standards, including how to teach students about religious freedom and separation of church and state. Republicans rejected a Democrat-backed motion that the Bill of Rights curriculum include teaching students to “examine the reasons the Founding…

The growing Catholic sex abuse scandals in Germany – Pope Benedict’s homeland – and the Netherlands are making headlines all over the world, just as the Vatican had started to emerge from the furor over abuse of children in Ireland, Australia, America and elsewhere. The German story has a personal link to the pontiff: some of…

The concept of separation of church and state may polarize politicians, but when it comes to access to the White House, it seems a range of religious leaders have President Obama’s ear — whether it’s to help shape policy or just offer spiritual guidance. The President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, a diverse…

The Supreme Court has agreed to weigh in on whether the Westboro Baptist Church had the right to picket a military funeral with signs like “Thank God for Dead Soldiers” and “Fag Troops.” As Religion News Service reports, the justices will decide whether extreme speech that inflicts emotional pain — especially at sensitive venues such as memorials —…

If you can’t beat ’em, bless ’em? Not quite, but intermarriage rates have prompted more dialogue, less debate, among Jewish leaders lately. As I reported for Religion News Service yesterday, Reform Judaism’s clergy organization has formally adopted a more accepting attitude towards the “given” of interfaith marriage, though rabbis may still opt not to perform ceremonies between…
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