Inspiration Faith & Prayer Health & Wellness Entertainment Love & Family
Newsletters Special Offers

Beliefnet News

NEW YORK (RNS) Struggling with a kosher meat industry labor scandal that won’t go away, Orthodox Jews have begun publicly debating what role– if any — ethical standards should have on their eating habits. At a panel discussion Tuesday (Dec. 9) at Yeshiva University, four scholars presented a range of responses to accusations of illegal…

(RNS) California’s top Catholic clerics are trying to sooth hard feelings over the recent passage of the state’s gay marriage ban, explaining the church’s support for the measure while attempting to assure gays and lesbians that they are “cherished members of the church.” “The passage of Proposition 8 in the state of California does not…

MINA, Saudi Arabia – After pelting a symbol of the devil with stones, the Iraqi pilgrim knelt and prayed that one day soon all sorts of devils will be removed from his homeland – among them, that American forces will soon leave. Hatim Mohammed al-Sakr said he hoped President-elect Barack Obama will carry out that…

VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Benedict XVI praised collaboration with other faiths in pursuit of common social goals but cautioned against dialogue that could lead to blurring of religious differences. Benedict’s statement, released on Tuesday (Dec. 9), was addressed to participants in a Vatican-sponsored academic event connected to the current European Year of Intercultural Dialogue. “Let…

(RNS) President Bush says he prays in the Oval Office and his faith has changed his life but he can’t say if God chose him to be president, ABC News reports. “I just, I can’t go there,” Bush said in an interview that aired Monday (Dec. 8) on “Nightline.” “I’m not that confident in knowing,…

(RNS) Metropolitan Kirill, the Russian Orthodox leader of the provinces of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, has been chosen as the interim leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, following the death Friday (Dec. 5) of Patriarch Alexy II. Kirill, 62, was chosen by secret ballot by the Holy Synod, a ruling group of 12 senior clergy who…

(RNS) Five Anglican archbishops have backed the introduction of a new Anglican province in North America, a significant, though unsurprising boost for the conservative-led initiative. “We fully support this development with our prayer and blessing,” said the archbishops, who are called primates because they lead regional branches of the worldwide Anglican Communion. “It demonstrates the…

MINA, Saudi Arabia – The young Iranian threw stones at symbols of the devil Monday and had his beloved black locks shorn – one of 3 million Muslims on the hajj pilgrimage performing rituals to symbolize rejection of temptation and a new, purified self. The Iranian, Mohammad Kheirkhah, later joined other pilgrims in a feast…

NEW YORK — Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II, who shepherded his church through the rubble of communism but was unable or unwilling to heal a longstanding breach with the Catholic Church, died Friday (Dec.5). He was 79. Alexy, the spiritual leader to more than 100 million Christians around the world, died at his Moscow residence…

MECCA, Saudi Arabia – Draped in white robes to symbolize purity and the equality of mankind under God, nearly 3 million Muslims from all over the world gathered Friday in Mecca, on the eve of the start of the annual hajj pilgrimage. Male pilgrims, wearing two-piece seamless white robes, and women, covered head to foot…
archives most recent
search this blog
More from Beliefnet and our partners