Christianity

Religious Services in New York: One Year Later

September 12, 2002

Source: Newsday

On September 12, 2002 Newsday reported that "from Battery Park to Bayside to Brooklyn Heights, many New Yorkers who said they rarely attend religious services came together yesterday to remember and to reflect. They said they came to grieve for those who were lost. They came to affirm the resolve to go on living. Most of all, they said they came to try to understand what had happened and to learn to cope with what they fear could happen again. Not all the gatherings around the city were organized. Interfaith pastor Eleni Marudis held...

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Muslims and Discrimination

September 11, 2002

Source: The Daily Telegraph

On September 11, 2002 The Daily Telegraph reported that "when it comes to everyday life, the state - from police to teachers and airport security guards - has often bent over backwards to avoid discrimination against Muslims. In fact, many conservative commentators have accused the authorities of excessive tact. Where there have been acts of clear discrimination, they have often been driven by the fears of private individuals. A number of foreign-looking passengers have been thrown off US flights since September 11 after...

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Vitriol Against, and Interest in, Islam Increased

September 11, 2002

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On September 11, 2002 The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "Cable television news shows and talk-radio programs have criticized the Quran. The Rev. Franklin Graham called Islam "wicked, violent and not of the same God" to which Christians pray. Jerry Vines, the former president of the Southern Baptists, said the Prophet Muhammad was a "demon-possessed pedophile." In some places, the vitriol spilled into violence, even though most Muslims condemned the actions of al-Qaida. But there was another...

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Court Upholds Ruling: No Sectarian Prayers at Government Agencies

September 10, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 10, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported "Government agencies in California can't open their public meetings with sectarian prayers, like those that invoke the name of Jesus Christ, a state appellate court ruled Monday. Such invocations used at the beginning of government meetings violate the constitutional separation of church and state, said the three-panel Court of Appeal in Los Angeles."

Interfaith Peacemakers in Minnesota Remember September 11

September 10, 2002

Source: Star Tribune

On September 10, 2002 the Star Tribune reported on the Minnesota Alliance of Peacemakers (MAP) which, "since 1995, has used nonviolence to promote peace... As the first anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks nears, MAP is finalizing plans for a peace observance at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday in Loring Park in downtown Minneapolis... Its member organizations range from the Minnesota Council of Churches and Minnesota Jews for a Just Peace to Veterans for Peace and Soka Gakkai International-USA/MN, a Buddhist organization."

Christian-Muslim Interfaith Service in Georgia

September 10, 2002

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On September 10, 2002 The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "with the one-year anniversary of Sept. 11 coming up Wednesday, the two groups [Fayette's Muslim community and Episcopal Church of the Nativity in Fayetteville] wanted people to come together instead of allowing perceptions to keep them apart. 'The demographics are changing, and we're an example of that,' said Soumaya Khalifa, head of the Islamic Speakers Bureau and one of the service's organizers. 'It's the changing face of America, but...

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9/11 Memorials and Interfaith Services in Southern California

September 9, 2002

Source: Los Angeles Times

On September 9, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "hundreds [of 9/11 memorials] will be held in places of worship and in public places across Southern California in the next few days to mark the Sept. 11 anniversary. The largest inter-religious gathering in Orange County will be A Prayer Service for Peace at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at St. Columban Church in Garden Grove. Jewish, Islamic and Buddhist leaders will join bishops and other local heads of major Christian denominations for an interfaith service.

Jewish Buddhists Reinterpret Psalms

September 8, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 8, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "studying the violent passages in the Psalms, Norman Fischer saw something none of us can deny. Judaism and Christianity -- just like the Muslim faith -- can be used to justify the killing of innocents in the name of God. Fischer tries to reconcile all this in Opening to You: Zen-Inspired Translations of the Psalms. Meanwhile, another popular Buddhist teacher with Jewish roots and a Bay Area address is out with his own book of interfaith inspiration...

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Religion and Education Post-9/11: Advocates Switch Sides

September 8, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 8, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "the Thomas More Law Center, a Michigan-based Christian rights foundation, filed a federal suit this summer on behalf of two families. It charges Contra Costa County's Byron Union School District with violating students' constitutional rights after a seventh-grade class used the workbook Islam: a Simulation of Islamic History and Culture. Religion in the schools has long been a thorny issue. This time, however, some advocates have switched sides....

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Long History of Islam in America

September 8, 2002

Source: In These Times

On September 8, 2002 In These Times, a publication of the Institute for Public Affairs, featured an article entitled "The Forgotten History of Islam in America." The article begins with concerns that "Christian fundamentalists... have seized upon 9/11 to fire a fusillade of invective at the religion of Islam... Far too little media coverage since 9/11 has focused on the country's broader indigenous Islamic constituency. Yet the appeal of Islam in America is undeniable - indeed, it is the country's fastest-growing religion... The...

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Reverend Criticized for Inclusive View

September 7, 2002

Source: Los Angeles Times

On September 7, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "the Rev. Carlton Pearson, Grammy-nominated singer and high-profile pastor of Higher Dimensions Family Church in Tulsa, Okla., is under fire from fellow evangelicals for teaching that most everyone will be saved, even those who do not accept Jesus Christ."

Archdiocese of Boston's Brighton Headquarters to House Menorah

September 7, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 7, 2002 The Boston Herald reported that "a newcomer... on the grounds of the Archdiocese of Boston's Brighton headquarters - a menorah honoring victims of the Holocaust - is scheduled to be placed in a grassy corner between the main chancery office building and a library next week. The project is the brainchild of Gunther Lawrence, a New Yorker active in Reform Judaism and interreligious affairs."

Church Attendance Returns to Pre-9/11 Figures

September 7, 2002

Source: Deseret News

On September 7, 2002 Deseret News reported that "last year... Church attendance soared in weeks [subsequent to 9/11 attacks]... But time has left many churches with much the same attendance they had pre-Sept. 11, according to national surveys."

Interfaith Understanding Goal of Many 9/11 Memorial Events

September 6, 2002

Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune

On September 6, 2002 The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that on September 11, 2002, "bells will toll, prayers will be uttered and the names of some of the more than 3,000 killed will be recited at houses of worship and interfaith community gatherings across the country. It will be a time for those across and beyond the religious realm to remember, each in his or her own way... A number of religious groups, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the National Council of Churches, have laid out very...

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