By MICHELE CHABIN c. 2011 Religion News Service TEL AVIV, Israel (RNS) Though never short on spectacle, this year’s annual gay pride festival was even more colorful with a parade float, sponsored by Google, representing the country’s religious gay and lesbian communities. Dressed in shorts and T-shirts bearing the words “Religious Pride Community,” the 20-…

By PEGGY FLETCHER STACK c. 2011 Salt Lake Tribune SALT LAKE CITY (RNS) You see them on Temple Square nearly every day, pacing nervously or strolling aimlessly, staring down at the tulips or up at the spires. They are parents, siblings, cousins and friends of Mormon couples being wed inside the LDS sanctuary. But, for…

By FRANCIS X. ROCCA c. 2011 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY (RNS) Catholics forced to participate in ordinations of bishops without the pope’s approval may be exempt from the usual penalty of automatic excommunication, the Vatican said on Friday (June 10). Bishops who consecrate other bishops without a papal “mandate” incur automatic excommunication, as do…

By ADELLE M. BANKS c. 2011 Religion News Service WASHINGTON (RNS) Significant majorities of Americans say it is possible to disagree with their religion’s teachings on abortion and homosexuality and still remain in good standing with their faith. The findings, released Thursday (June 9) in a detailed survey by Public Religion Research Institute, held true…

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