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VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican on Friday (Dec. 19) called for the decriminalization of homosexuality, but said a proposed United Nations declaration on gay rights is vague and excessively far-reaching. The statement by the Holy See’s UN delegation was a response to the “Declaration on Human Rights, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity,” presented to the…

Washington – Paul Weyrich, a man who worked away from the limelight to galvanize conservative Christian political advocacy, died Thursday (Dec. 18). Weyrich, 66, co-founded the now-defunct Moral Majority with the late Jerry Falwell and served as the first president of the Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based conservative think tank. “He was key behind the scenes…

Chennai, India – The Dalai Lama said Wednesday (December 17) the movement he has led for nearly five decades should now be guided by the prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile. “I have grown old and already taken semi-retirement. It is better if I retire completely and get out of the way of the Tibetan…

Washington – A new federal regulation will allow healthcare workers to abstain from performing abortions or any service they object to on religious or moral grounds. The regulation, introduced Thursday (Dec. 18) by the Department of Health and Human Services, is directed primarily at shielding those with religious or moral objections to abortion or sterilization.…

(RNS) Megachurch pastor Rick Warren and civil rights leader Rev. Joseph Lowery will deliver the invocation and benediction, respectively, at President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration next month (Jan 20). The roles of Warren, a best-selling author and leader of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and Lowery, who co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with the…

ATLANTA – A judge ordered the arrest of a Muslim woman who refused to take off her head scarf at a court security checkpoint. The judge ordered Lisa Valentine, 40, to serve 10 days in jail for contempt of court, said police in Douglasville, a city of about 20,000 people on Atlanta’s west suburban outskirts.…

NEW YORK – Many of the investors allegedly swindled by Wall Street money manager Bernard Madoff are, like him, Jewish, and for many of them, contributing to Jewish causes is a crucial part of their culture. The effect of their losses on the Jewish philanthropic world is being seen as nothing less than catastrophic. “It’s…

(RNS) A longtime executive of evangelical organizations will become the new president of the American Bible Society on Jan. 1. The Rev. R. Lamar Vest, the current executive vice president of Global Scripture Ministries for the New York-based society, was chosen in November by the society’s trustees. Vest, 68, succeeds Paul Irwin, whose contract with…

WASHINGTON – President George W. Bush recognized Hanukkah on Monday while paying tribute to the nation of Israel’s 60th anniversary earlier this year. The story of Hanukkah recalls the miraculous victory of a small band of patriots against tyranny, and the oil that burned for eight nights, Bush said in welcoming about 70 guests to…

(RNS) The first Muslim elected to Congress has become the first sitting member of that body to travel to Mecca for the hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Islam’s holiest sites. “It was transformative. It was a wonderful experience,” Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., told the Associated Press. “I learned a lot about myself, about my faith.”…
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