By Martin Surridge – The Indian subcontinent has a rich and religiously diverse history. In addition to Hinduism, often called the world’s oldest religion, India is also the ancestral home to Buddhism, Sikhism, home to millions of Muslims, and countless indigenous belief systems. With these and other introduced faiths, religious tension has often dominated the…
Month: April 2011
Chinese Authorities Block Easter Service in Beijing (CNN)
EXCERPT: The site of a planned outdoor Easter service at one of China’s largest independent “house” churches was eerily silent Sunday as police blocked more than 500 worshippers from leaving their homes and detained more than 36 for attempting to attend religious services in Beijing, church officials said. The gathering place for worshippers was empty…
San Francisco Mulls Circumcision Ban (CBS News)
EXCERPT: Has the time come to cut out circumcision? Pro-foreskin forces say so, and some in San Francisco say they’ve collected enough signatures to put a proposal to ban circumcision before voters. The proposal would make it a misdemeanor to perform circumcision on a male under the age of 18 within the city. Anyone who…
Article18: Afghanistan — Quran Burning Protest Leaves Dozens Dead; Freed Christian Convert Flees Country
By Martin Surridge – Few countries around the globe can outdo Afghanistan when it comes to suffering and misery. Just in the last ten years alone, Afghanistan has been the permanent home for the Taliban, the temporary home for Al-Qaeda, the central battlefield for the Global War on Terror and graveyard for thousands of soldiers…
Rev. Leo A. Walsh “Lost In Translation: Divergent Notions of Religious Liberty in Post Soviet Russia”
Rev. Leo A. Walsh, S.T.D.
“Something Very Distinctive About Religious Freedom”: Martha Minow
Protection of religious liberty plays a unique role in our democracy, Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow suggests, because it requires people to respect one another even when they sharply disagree.
Charity: How Our Tax Laws Affect Charitable Activities, Religious Institutions, and Free Speech
The architects of our nation took great care to constitute a limited government founded on personal responsibility and individual liberty. The institution of the church has an absolute freedom from the state. But when it comes to the financial side of the case, government has an economic lever over religious institutions. Do our internal revenue…
Virginia Board Votes Against Proposed Same-Sex Adoption Rules (Washington Post)
EXCERPT: The Virgina State Board of Social Services has voted overwhelmingly against new adoption rules that some say would allow same-sex couples to adopt in the state for the first time. In a 7-2 vote Wednesday afternoon, the board opted against the new rules, first proposed by former governor Tim Kaine. In Virginia, only married…
Lifting The Veil: Muslim Women Explain Their Choice (NPR)
EXCERPT: For centuries, Islamic scholars have said that Muslim women must cover their hair. But many Muslim women don’t. There are about 1 million Muslim women in America; 43 percent of them wear headscarves all the time, according to the Pew Research Center. About 48 percent – or half a million women – don’t cover…
Article18: France — Controversial Veil Ban for Muslim Women Continues to Divide Nation
By Martin Surridge – France can’t seem to stay out of global headline news at the moment. In a two week period, Sarkozy’s government managed to team up with the U.N. to lead the charge against Gbagbo in the Ivory Coast, play an important military role in the ongoing efforts in Libya against Gaddafi’s forces,…