Source: The Denver Post

On July 18, 2001, The Denver Post reported that "a Denver federal jury...awarded $2.25 million to a former Pueblo air traffic controller who was fired for refusing to work on the Sabbath. The jury concluded that employers may not force religious worshipers to work on the Sabbath if it is their 'sincerely held religious belief.'...Reed, who said he believes 'in the word of God' rather than a formal religion, said his belief in resting on the Sabbath comes from the book of Genesis."

Source: Newsday

On July 17, 2001, Newsday reported that the "Montauk Community Presbyterian Church, which is hosting a series of sunrise and sunset worship services this month in the Montauk [New York] area...on local beaches and in parks," which bring together members of different churches and cultures. The hosts include Protestant ministers, a Catholic priest and a rabbi... Montauk's religious leaders are trying to break down the walls between churches."

Source: Los Angeles Times

On July 17, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "Southern California Edison has enlisted the help of an unlikely ally--churches--to sign up thousands of low-income customers for hefty discounts on rising utility bills...Pastors, priests and church volunteers have become Edison's most effective tool in telling the poor about a state-mandated program that offers 20% off electric bills."

Source: The New York Times

On July 16, 2001, The New York Times reported on the construction of a Mormon temple in Nauvoo, Illinois. "In the early 1840's...it was Illinois's largest city after Chicago... Had non-Mormons...not driven church members out, forcing them to make the trek west to Utah, Nauvoo might have evolved into something like Salt Lake City, a metropolis with a distinct religious character...In the 11-million-member church, expectation surrounds this project," which will be completed some time in September.

Source: The Washington Post

On July 15, 2001, The Washington Post reported on the Salvation Army's appeal to the White House for protection from state and local laws prohibiting discrimination against gay employees. "As a church, the Army is intolerant of sin, but at the same time, it chooses to engage with the secular world through its charitable and social work...Last week's controversy stemmed from disclosure of...a 'firm commitment' from the White House to shield government-funded religious groups from state laws barring discrimination against gay...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On July 14, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that "a study of more than 6,000 randomly sampled adults by the Barna Research Group reports a drop in the overall number of mainline American Christians who are considered to be 'evangelical' Christians... The study also showed that during the past five years there has been substantial growth in the percentage of 'born-again' adults in four of the 12 groups examined...Barna classifies about four out of every 10 U.S. adults as 'born-again Christians,' based on the stated belief...

Source: The Washington Post

On July 14, 2001, The Washington Post reported that "at the annual meeting of the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church...the finance chairman of [the] congregation...called on the area's 200,000 United Methodists to donate" to their churches the "advance payment'" check they will receive as part of the $ 1.35 trillion tax cut President Bush has just signed into law. "The Union of American Hebrew Congregations, which represents 1.5 million Reform Jews, also sees the potential of pooling rebates for...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On July 14, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that "Wal-Mart is suing a Riverside, Calif., church that set up tables to seek donations in front of its stores, saying the church has failed to abide by the [store's] policies... Since January, Wal-Mart has filed 10 suits in several counties against the 1,000-member Missionary Church of the Disciples of Jesus Christ, seeking to keep church members away from its doors."

Source: Los Angeles Times

On July 14, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported on the Antiochian Orthodox faith, which "came to the U.S. in 1895 as a small Syrian mission. Now it is poised to seek autonomy [from its mother church in Damascus, Syria], and other Orthodox groups may follow suit...The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church has grown to 500,000 members in the U.S. and Canada...The vote asking for autonomy is scheduled during the church's national General Assembly, which will meet July 27-28 at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles."

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On July 14, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that "a federal judge said last week New Milford, Conn., officials violated a couple's religious freedoms by limiting the number of people who could attend prayer meetings at their home." The couple had violated zoning rules by inviting too many people, but asserted "their constitutional rights to freedom of religion and peaceful assembly."

Source: Los Angeles Times

On July 13, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "the new Mormon temple in Orange County will be a modest 17,500 square feet...next to the church's Newport Beach meeting house...Mormon leaders said they soon will meet with residents who live near the temple site...The plans need approval of the city of Newport Beach."

Source: The Boston Globe

On July 13, 2001, The Boston Globe published an opinion piece by Derrick Jackson, about Bush's faith-based initiative, in which he wrote, "It was fortunate for the debate on faith-based initiatives that the Salvation Army was the first major organization to trip and fall into the ravine between church and state. When an all-American charity splatters its political innards all over the valley, it cannot be ignored how the initiative of President Bush is a government subsidy for faith-based bigotry.

Source: The Washington Post

On July 13, 2001, The Washington Post published an editorial on Bush's faith-based initiative, which asserted that "President Bush's faith-based initiative is in deep trouble because it lacks a constituency committed to its success, and because every move the administration makes to appease the idea's opponents weakens support from likely allies...The administration needs to start over...And if religious congregations were required to set up separate tax-exempt organizations to receive government money...many of the...

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

On July 13, 2001, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. "is resuming its fight to have a monument displaying the Ten Commandments removed from a La Crosse [Wisconsin] park," which they originally began in 1988. "The Common Council will consider the request in August...The foundation believes it now has stronger legal footing...Public support is behind the monument."

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On July 12, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that "with his signature proposal for faith-based federal spending increasingly imperiled, President Bush...made rare overtures to lawmakers in an effort to get the issue back on track...Furor [that] erupted over a deal his administration allegedly cut with the Salvation Army [is]...the latest setback...The administration has been steadily scaling back various aspects of the once-ambitious program, amid criticism, opposition and a lack of interest in the newly Democratic...