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A few days after praying with clergy sex abuse survivors in Malta, Pope Benedict has announced that the Catholic Church will take action to bring justice to abusive priests and protect children in the future. The Vatican has not yet elaborated on what kinds of measures are being considered, but the Associated Press story notes that the United…

Today marks the first day of Ridvan, the holiest period of the year for members of the Baha’i faith, a religion that began in modern-day Iran and has major temples in Israel, Illinois and India. (Photo below shows me at the Lotus Temple in New Delhi a few years ago — very impressive building.) The holiday runs April…

I’ve been following the case of Agriprocessors, a now-defunct kosher meat plant in Postville, Iowa, ever since an immigration raid found hundreds of undocumented workers (some underage, as well) there in May 2008. The plant was owned by the Rubashkin clan, which has been loyally supported by ultra-Orrthodox folks (the family belongs to the Chabad Lubavitch community), if…

(Experiencing some technical difficulties, so I’ll keep my next few posts short and sweet.) Pope Benedict celebrated his fifth year anniversary as pontiff, succeeding John Paul II, by having lunch with 46 cardinals at the Vatican yesterday. Links to some of the coverage: Pope Benedict XVI Marks 5 Years Since Election (Associated Press) Chronology of Five…

The U.S. Supreme Court has started hearing arguments in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, the case that concerns whether the University of California’s Hastings College of Law can deny formal recognition (including organizational funding) to the student religious group that denies membership based on religion and sexual orientation. Not surprisingly, the Associated Press reports that the…

During his visit to Malta over the weekend, Pope Benedict met with eight clergy sex abuse survivors, men who said they had been molested by priests in a Catholic orphanage on the European island nation. The Associated Press reports the pope prayed with them, expressed his shame and sorrow at the pain they had suffered in…

Pope Benedict turned 83 today, and members of the Philadephia-based Papal Foundation presented him with a large cake and cheerful rendition of “Happy Birthday.” The Associated Press reports that the Vatican doesn’t officially celebrate popes’ birthday, though a papal palace luncheon is planned Monday — after Benedict gets back from his trip to Malta — to mark the fifth…

I was working in the Bay Area when one of my competitors, the San Francisco Chronicle, began running “Alicia’s Story,” a first-person account from a young copy editor who had been diagnosed with a rare form of sarcoma cancer. The compelling 17-part series, which started on the front page in 2005 and transitioned into a blog and a book,…

This week’s most entertaining religion story came out of the Vatican — a nice surprise, considering the significantly less pleasant headlines from there lately. In short, the Holy See’s official newspaper published a glowing tribute to The Beatles, on the 40th anniversary of the iconic group’s schism, forgiving the band for its excesses, including John Lennon’s infamous…

Ah, so maybe this is what prompted today’s (false) rumor that President Obama was canceling National Day of Prayer 2010: a federal district judge in Wisconsin has ruled that the 1988 law creating the annual observance is unconstitutional. According to the Associated Press story, the order does not block any prayer day until after appeals in the case…
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