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McClatchy-Tribune Information Services An effort by some Methodists to block the George W. Bush Presidential Center from coming to Southern Methodist University failed Wednesday, though clergy and lay leaders wrestled with the issue for almost four hours at a regional conference in Dallas. The United Methodist Church’s South Central Jurisdiction, which owns SMU, has been…

Associated Press NAHARIYA, Israel – Thousands of mourners turned out Thursday for the burials of two Israeli soldiers returned in a prisoner exchange with Lebanese guerrillas, laying to rest the young men whose unknown fate had riveted the Jewish state for two years. Across the border in Lebanon, the five militants freed as part of…

By Dan Ring Religion News Service BOSTON – The Massachusetts Senate on Tuesday (July 15) voted to repeal a 1913 law used most recently to prevent gay couples from other states from marrying here. The Senate on a voice vote approved a bill to abolish the law, which forbids clerks from issuing marriage licenses to…

Associated Press MADRID, Spain – King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia exhorted followers of the world’s leading faiths to turn away from extremism and embrace a spirit of reconciliation, saying at the start of an interfaith conference Wednesday that history’s great conflicts were not caused by religion itself but by its misinterpretation. “My brothers, we must…

By Daniel Burke Religion News Service For centuries, Anglicans have prided themselves on finding the cherished via media–the middle way–through theological and political thickets. But the decades-long debate on homosexuality within the worldwide Anglican Communion seems stuck in a cul-de-sac, many say. As Anglican bishops from around the world converge on Canterbury, England, for the…

Associated Press SYDNEY, Australia – More than 100,000 Roman Catholic pilgrims from around the world swarmed Sydney Harbor on Tuesday, waving the flags of their countries and singing as they awaited a Mass opening the World Youth Day festival. The star of the show, Pope Benedict XVI, remained ensconced at a retreat on Sydney’s outskirts…

Associated Press MADRID, Spain – A Saudi-sponsored conference that will bring together Israeli and American rabbis with clerics from the strict Wahhabi sect of Islam – as well as global religious leaders of nearly every persuasion – is either a rare opportunity for dialogue or a cynical publicity stunt. It all depends on whom you…

By Ted Roelofs Religion News Service GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Heather Rosema is precisely the kind of Christian voter that Sen. Barack Obama covets. Rosema, 41, chose George W. Bush in 2000, when she put greater emphasis on issues like abortion and gay marriage. This year, she intends to vote Obama. Rosema, a member of…

By Tim Murphy Religion News Service The creator of a controversial calendar featuring shirtless Mormon missionaries has been excommunicated from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after meeting with a disciplinary committee on Sunday (July 13). Chad Hardy said the “Men on a Mission” calendar was intended to provoke discussion among Mormons, but…

Associated Press SYDNEY, Australia – Pilgrims bore a giant wooden cross through the streets of Australia’s largest city Monday, as thousands of faithful crowded around the procession, some lunging for a chance to touch the symbol of the Roman Catholic Church’s youth festival. At a secluded retreat on Sydney’s outskirts, Pope Benedict XVI worked on…
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