(RNS) Domino’s Pizza magnate Tom Monaghan has stepped down from leading the conservative Catholic university he founded near Naples, Fla., and named the former director of the White House faith-based office as president. Monaghan’s Ave Maria University on the edge of the Everglades will be headed by Jim Towey, who once served as Mother Teresa’s…

By DICK STAUB c. 2011 Religion News Service (RNS) At the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, I saw 26 films in six days. If this festival is about storytelling, this year’s big story is about our universal spiritual quest. Here are a few snapshots. Higher Ground tells the true story of Carolyn Briggs, who became disillusioned…

JERUSALEM (RNS) Israeli officials have installed an $11 million pipe to ease a weekly water shortage on Fridays as observant Jews prepare for the Sabbath and Muslims ritually wash themselves before weekly prayers. Until now, water pressure has been low in some parts of Jerusalem during the hours leading up to Shabbat, which begins at…

TORONTO (RNS) Lawmakers in the province of Quebec voted unanimously on Wednesday (Feb. 9) to ban the kirpan, a Sikh ceremonial dagger, from the legislature building. The opposition Parti Quebecois said it was acting to underscore Quebec’s neutrality in dealing with religious groups, while the governing Liberal Party argued that the ban is needed for…

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