Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On January 28, 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "the Rev. Larry Summerour knows that most people in [Chickamauga], where the South claimed its last important victory in the Civil War, want to stick with the current Georgia flag. They consider the plan for a new flag a slap in the face. 'But I feel the need to say it,' said the 56-year-old pastor of Elizabeth Lee United Methodist Church. 'It is a flag of divisiveness.'" Most preachers in the area have avoided talking about the flag debate...

Source: The Seattle Times

Source: The Boston Globe

On January 27, 2001, The Boston Globe reported that "Jesus was a popular figure at President Bush's inauguration." The invocation by the Rev. Franklin Graham was closed with a prayer "'in the name of the father, and of the son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Spirit.'" The benediction by the Rev. Kirbyjon H. Caldwell ended with the words, "'We respectfully submit this humble prayer in the name that's above all other names, Jesus the Christ.' Newspapers around the country have been publishing letters from readers offended...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On January 27, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that "U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman's bid for the Democratic vice presidency generated a flurry of discussion during the presidential campaign about the role of religion in public life. Lieberman, the first Jew nominated for the vice presidency by a major party, never shied away from speaking publicly about his faith." Melissa Rogers, executive director of the newly launched Pew Forum on Religion...

Source: USA TODAY

On January 24, 2001, USA Today reported that "when President George W. Bush called out to churches, synagogues and mosques in his inaugural address on Saturday, his speech came sandwiched between two prayers invoking Jesus by name, rather than the usual blessing for the new administration with overarching references to God. While many thrilled to hear clergy make the nation's greatest podium a pulpit for Jesus, others complained that such prayers leave out many Americans." Martin Marty, a leading scholar of American religious history,...

Source: U.S. News...

Source: Star Tribune

On January 15, 2001, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported on the "frequent fights and verbal conflicts" between African-American and Somali students at Minneapolis' Roosevelt High School. Student council member Matt Oxendale attributes the conflict to the Somali students' "trying too hard and too fast to fit in." Senior Fred Powell said the Somalis "think they're better than us." Another senior said that the fact that both groups are the most populous at the school sets up "a subconscious power struggle...Junior Nimco Ahmed said...

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

On January 15, 2001, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Americans United for the Separation of Church and State is demanding that a 50-by-80-inch bronze plaque inscribed with the Ten Commandments and a biblical passage be removed from the Allegheny County Courthouse wall. Representatives of the International Reform Bureau presented the plaque on April 8, 1918. The nonprofit organization says the plaque "violates the First Amendment's establishment clause -- 'Congress shall make no law...

Source: Star Tribune

On January 14, 2001, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that many members of Generation X, born between 1960 and 1980, "treat religion more as a matter of personal choice than a duty or responsibility handed down from past generations...In an August 2000 Gallup Poll, some 85 percent of Gen X respondents said religion was important to them personally and more than 60 percent said religion can solve all or most of today's problems...What some scholars and church leaders fear, however, is that this increasingly personal faith...

Source: The Times-Picayune

On January 13, 2001, The Times-Picayune reported on a "new study by Public Agenda, a secular, nonpartisan think tank that interviewed 1,507 Americans in the three weeks after the presidential election." According to the researchers, many Americans fault "a general loss of religious influence" for family instability and loss of civility. The study showed that a majority of these same Americans say it does not matter which religion becomes more influential in America. It also showed that less than half of respondents think that a...

Source: The Kansas City Star

On January 13, 2001, The Kansas City Star reported on religious leaders' hopes and fears for the new century. One area of concern is the direction of the economy. With Bush's "proposal of tax cuts that will benefit the wealthy," said the Rev. Loy C. Drew of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Kansas City, the poor will be coming to faith-based organizations more often for help with food, shelter, and the payment of bills. Another area of concern are the problems in the Middle East. Ahmed El-Sherif, president of the...

Source: The Tampa Tribune

On January 13, 2001, The Tampa Tribune reported that "the Unitarian Universalist Church of St. Petersburg put together a four-day conference, 'Religions in Dialogue: From Conflict to Trust,' featuring international religious leaders and local clergy." The goal of the conference was to foster communication among different religions and to help them live peacefully together. The conference included discussions about Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., as two examples of men who were committed to interfaith cooperation. It...

Source: The Boston Globe

On January 13, 2001, The Boston Globe reported on a national survey of 1,507 Americans on religion and public life. It found that "Americans have a deep belief in the power of religion to solve social ills but also have a deep suspicion of too much religion in political life...A majority of those surveyed said deeply religious politicians should be willing to compromise on issues such as abortion, gay rights, and the death penalty." When asked what would happen if Americans were to become deeply religious, majorities said it...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On January 13, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that Church Women United, a church women's group committed to interdenominational harmony, fired half its staff--a total of seven employees--before Christmas. "Now at least two of its member organizations are considering withdrawing funds....Church Women United leaders say it includes 500,000 Protestant, Roman Catholic and Orthodox women. Ongoing programs include World Day of Prayer and an anti-violence campaign."

Source: New York Daily News

On January 11, 2001, the New York Daily News reported that "Sophia Vackimes, curator of the photography exhibit "Botanica! Lotions, Potions, Orishas and Saints," will give a talk and present a slide show Saturday highlighting the cultural and religious phenomenon of the neighborhood botanica at the Flushing Library Auditorium. A botanica is a small retail shop that supplies religious practitioners, artisans and others of different religious beliefs with ceremonial goods. There you may find jars filled with ritual objects,...