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GRAND JUNCTION, Colorado – A secularist group is observing the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin with billboards that urge people to “Evolve Beyond Belief.” The Freedom From Religion Foundation placed “Praise Darwin” billboards in Grand Junction; Dayton, Tennessee; Dover, Pennsylvania; and Whitehall, Ohio. They feature stained-glass designs and a picture of the evolutionary theorist born…

BATON ROUGE, La. (RNS) Officials at a Louisiana prison, already under fire for allegedly denying Catholic and Muslim inmates access to religious materials, have agreed to remove a biblical reference from a monument outside the prison gates. Cathy Fontenot, a spokeswoman at the maximum-security State Penitentiary at Angola, said officials submitted work orders to have…

VATICAN CITY (RNS) In the latest consequence of more than two weeks of international outcry, a Holocaust-denying bishop who was recently readmitted to the Catholic Church has been dismissed as head of an Argentinean seminary. “Statements by Monsignor (Richard) Williamson in no way reflect the position of our congregation,” said a statement announcing the dismissal,…

CARACAS, Venezuela – As President Hugo Chavez intensifies his anti-Israel campaign, some Venezuelans have taken action, threatening Jews in the street and vandalizing the largest synagogue in Caracas – where they stole a database of names and addresses. Now many in Venezuela’s Jewish community fear the worst is yet to come. Chavez has personally taken…

WASHINGTON (RNS) The U.S. Senate defeated an amendment to the economic stimulus bill Thursday (Feb. 5) that would have allowed federal funding for renovations at college buildings that are used for religious activity. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., proposed the amendment after voicing criticism of a stimulus provision that says funds for colleges and universities could…

VATICAN CITY — After two weeks of international outcry over the pope’s decision to readmit a Holocaust-denying bishop, the Vatican’s top leaders are engaged in an extraordinarily severe — and rare — round of public criticism. Jewish groups were outraged when Pope Benedict XVI lifted the 1988 excommunications of Bishop Richard Williamson and three other…

Vatican City/Berlin/Jerusalem – The Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem welcomed Thursday the pope’s decision to demand that Bishop Richard Williamson publicly and unambiguously recant his stance regarding the Holocaust. Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev said the pope’s decision sends an important message that there was no place within the church for those who deny…

Leaders of the Anglican Communion said Thursday (Feb. 5) that they, not dissident conservatives, will decide what role a newly formed traditionalist North American church will have in their worldwide fellowship. Concluding their weeklong meeting in Alexandria, Egypt, the Anglican leaders also said a new North American church should not “seek to recruit or expand…

Feb. 4–Nearly three years after U.S. agents first seized hundreds of documents from a Toledo-based Muslim charity and froze its financial assets, a federal judge issued an order that ultimately allows the organization to defend itself. U.S. District Court Judge James Carr signed an order Jan. 30 for the government to produce “forthwith” copies of…

CHICAGO – A fire burned for more than two hours Wednesday at Holy Name Cathedral, severely damaging the attic and leaving gaping holes in the roof of the 134-year-old landmark and seat of Cardinal Francis George. Firefighters battled the blaze in frigid temperatures at the iconic church, which had been destroyed in the Great Chicago…
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