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Associated Press – May 7, 2008 VATICAN CITY – The China Philharmonic Orchestra performed for Pope Benedict XVI in a landmark concert Wednesday that could indicate warming relations between Beijing and the Vatican. Benedict called it a “truly unique event” and offered a “thank you” in Chinese at the end of the hour-long concert. He…

By Michele Chabin c. 2008 Religion News Service JERUSALEM — When Israel celebrates its 60th anniversary starting Wednesday (May 7) night, the event will touch people of different faiths in very different ways. Jews and Christian Zionists around the world will mark the milestone with celebratory prayer services in synagogues and churches — just one…

Associated Press Modin, Israel – Israel’s Reform Jews have dedicated the first non-Orthodox synagogue to receive state funding, after a long court battle that highlighted the rift among the country’s different streams of Judaism. The Reform Yozma congregation dedicated the synagogue on Monday after fighting for the better part of a decade for state funding…

By Francis X. Rocca Religion News Service Vatican City — Seeking to stop Mormons from posthumously baptizing Catholic ancestors, the Vatican has instructed bishops around the world not to share parish registers with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Vatican’s Congregation for the Clergy issued the directive in a letter to national…

By Daniel Burke Religion News Service Debates on homosexuality and church structure may have captured the bulk of attention, but that’s not all United Methodists did at their General Conference in Fort Worth, Texas. They also heard addresses from the famous (President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia) and a father of the famous (Bill Gates…

Associated Press – May 2, 2008 Conservative Christian leaders who believe the word “evangelical” has lost its religious meaning plan to release a starkly self-critical document saying the movement has become too political and has diminished the Gospel through its approach to the culture wars. The statement, called “An Evangelical Manifesto,” condemns Christians on the…

Associated Press – May 5, 2008 SHENZHEN, China – After a day of meetings, the Dalai Lama’s representatives left China on Monday with a solid offer from Beijing for more talks in an apparent sign of a gradual rapprochement after tensions flared following violent anti-government riots in Tibet. Prime Minister Samdhong Rinpoche of the India-based…

By Adelle M. Banks Religion News Service WASHINGTON (RNS) A federal watchdog panel said Friday (May 2) that 11 countries should be named “countries of particular concern” for their records on religious freedom, including three that are not currently on the State Department’s list. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom urged the inclusion of…

Associated Press – May 1, 2008 NEW YORK – Whatever impressions Pope Benedict XVI took away from his long weekend in New York may influence a big, upcoming decision – picking a successor to Cardinal Edward Egan as archbishop. Speculating on the next leader of the New York Archdiocese, one of the most important posts…

By Daniel Burke c. 2008 Religion News Service FORT WORTH, Texas — Efforts to remove a transgender pastor from ministry in the United Methodist Church died quietly here this week at the denomination’s General Conference. The failure to enact a ban most likely means the Rev. Drew Phoenix, a pastor in Baltimore who entered the…
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