Source: JTA News

On October 7, 2002 JTA News reported that "thousands of people will gather in Washington this week in support of Israel, but there won’t be many Jews there... The participants in Friday’s rally are evangelical Christians, gathering in the nation’s capital as part of a Christian Coalition of America conference... Nevertheless, many American Jews and Jewish organizations remain wary of the evangelicals, suspecting their motives and disagreeing with them on domestic policy... Rutgers University sociology professor Arlene...

Source: National Council of Churches News Service

http://www.ncccusa.org/news/02news86.html

On October 7, 2002 the National Council of Churches News Service reported that "the Executive Board of the (U.S.) National Council of Churches this afternoon (Oct. 7) voted unanimously to 'condemn and repudiate' the Rev. Jerry Falwell’s statements yesterday on CBS-TV’s '60 Minutes' about Islam and the Prophet Muhammed, Islam’s founder, saying Falwell’s statements...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On October 6, 2002 The Houston Chronicle reported that "more than 100 Muslims demonstrated outside a local CBS affiliate Saturday to protest a 60 Minutes interview in which the Rev. Jerry Falwell brands the prophet Muhammad a 'terrorist.' According to an article on the CBS Web site, the comments appear in a segment on Falwell and conservative Christians' support of Israel, and their belief that 'the turmoil in the Middle East is a harbinger of the second coming of Christ.'"

Source: The Boston Globe

On October 6, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "the Bush administration is giving $25 million to 21 groups, including several that are deeply religious in nature... The grants represent the first tangible result of President Bush's 'faith-biased initiative,' which stalled in Congress amid fierce debate over how religious programs can take government money without running afoul of the constitutional separation of church and state... Several religious groups were among the grant winners, including Virginia-based Operation Blessing...

Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer

On October 4, 2002 The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that "the Postal Service issues its holiday stamps in October to continue interest in collecting. Next Thursday, four holiday stamps, all 37 cents, will be issued commemorating Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and the Muslim Eid. Contemporary Christmas stamps, featuring snowmen, will be issued later."

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

On October 4, 2002 The Columbus Dispatch reported that " Mosaic, [a] 500-member congregation, is a mix of community residents and college students, many international, said the Rev. Darryl Phillips, pastor. The church, which previously met in elementary schools and buildings at Ohio State University, has held services at the movie house the past three years. [On the other hand], some worship places aren't visible to a high volume of traffic, such as that of the Jain Center of Central Ohio, which is nestled in an office...

Source: The Associated Press

On October 3, 2002 The Associated Press reported that "a charity founded by Pat Robertson is to receive $500,000 in the first wave of grants under President Bush's 'faith-based initiative,' which the religious broadcaster had criticized. In March, Robertson said on his '700 Club' television show that the program to give federal money to religious organizations that provide social services was a 'Pandora's box' that could make legitimate religious charities dependent on government and finance cults that 'brainwash' prospective...

Source: Religion News Service

On October 2, 2002 Religion News Service reported that "more people learned of [Carlton Pearson's] 'gospel of inclusion'... [which] says simply, 'I exclude nobody from the redemptive work of the cross.' Pearson says he thinks the focus of many of his evangelical brethren, who believe a personal confession that Jesus is savior gains one entrance to heaven, has been wrongly placed... 'I believe that Jesus redeemed the entire world,' not just particular brands of Christians. While Pearson's doctrine of inclusion has motivated the...

Source: Buffalo News

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20021002/1036867.asp

On October 2, 2002 Buffalo News reported that "religious leaders from a variety of faiths gathered outside the Lackawanna Mosque on Tuesday to pledge their support for the local Muslim community in response to the arrests of six Lackawanna men charged with supporting the al-Qaida terrorist network... religious leaders said they wanted to make a statement as a preventative measure...

Source: Asbury Park Press

http://www.app.com/app2001/story/0,21133,623888,00.html

On September 30, 2002 Asbury Park Press reported that "as the number of Muslim families in the Shore area increases, so have their efforts to reach out to the community and dispel misconceptions about their religion. 'We want to try to clarify the negative stereotypes,' said El Mansoury, who spoke at a church in Point Pleasant and at the Uni-tarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth...

Source: The Deseret News

On September 28, 2002 The Deseret News reported that "religious groups around the country are finding ecological issues hard to ignore. Clergy are speaking from the pulpit on global warming and Arctic drilling, and practicing what they preach in their own churches, synagogues, temples and mosques... Across faiths, the environmental movement has been evolving slowly over the past decade or more. Denominations have started looking into their traditions, examining how their beliefs could be applied to ecological issues and...

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

http://www.dispatch.com/news/religion/faith-story.php?story=dispatch/news/features02/sep02/1508151.html

On September 27, 2002 The Columbus Dispatch reported that "Sundown Thursday marks the beginning of a Muslim holiday commemorating the Prophet Muhammad's ascent to heaven and return to earth on the same night. Muslims believe the stone from which Muhammad rose is in the Dome of the Rock...

Source: Citizen-Times

http://cgi.citizen-times.com/cgi-bin/story/news/20730

On September 25, 2002 Citizen-Times reported that "Franklin Graham does not see himself picking up the mantle of his father's legacy. Nor does he consider himself a crusader against Islam, though Graham said he worries too few people realize the extent to which the country has been 'Islamized.' 'I do have experiences in my life that formulated why I believe what I believe but I am not on an...

Source: The Associated Press

On September 25, 2002 The Associated Press reported that "religious groups around the country are finding ecological issues hard to ignore. Clergy are speaking from the pulpit on global warming and Arctic drilling, and practicing what they preach in their own churches, synagogues, temples and mosques. Across faiths, the environmental movement has been evolving slowly over the last decade or more. Denominations have started looking into their traditions, examining how their beliefs could be applied to ecological issues and...

Author: Kevin Eckstrom

Source: Religion News Service

http://www.religionnews.com/index.php?/rnstext/muslims_to_pray_for_soul_of_america_at_capitol1/

Swapping prayer rugs for massive plastic rain tarps, an estimated 3,500 Muslims gathered at the foot of the U.S. Capitol on Friday (Sept. 25) to pray for “the soul of America” in a grassroots demonstration of religious and national pride.

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