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…

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