Source: The Boston Herald

On December 9, 2000, The Boston Herald reported that "Norwood selectmen voted pro-creche this week, placing themselves on the opposite side of the Nativity scene issue that has entangled Lexington officials in court." Lori Novick requested that the creche, located in front of a public school, be removed. She is concerned that it might make non-Christian children feel marginalized and left out. An attorney for the ACLU is monitoring the situation, as is attorney and head of the Citizens for the Preservation of Constitutional...

Source: The Washington Post

On December 8, 2000, The Washington Post reported that "D'Estree, a Harvard Divinity School graduate who was recognized in 1981 as a lopon (master teacher) by the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, sits on the floor at the front of the room. He gently rings a ritual bell, and the evening's meditation session begins." D'Estree stresses that one does not necessarily need to be Buddhist in order to appreciate meditation as a stress-relieving technique, or as a form of prayer for theistic traditions. "'Meditation can be a stress reduction...

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 8, 2000, The Los Angeles Times reported that "an Islamic holiday display now shares a patch of grass in Mission Viejo with Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus, marking what Muslim leaders say is the first time in California that the holy month of Ramadan has received equal billing with Christmas on public space. The small billboard shows a photograph of the Kaaba--the central shrine of Islam in Mecca, Saudi Arabia--with a message: 'Season's Greetings.' A caption under the photo reads 'The First House of Worship on Earth.'...

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 7, 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported that "despite objections last year--and the state's power crisis--parents put up holiday lights at a Newport Beach public school but were compelled to take them down after a warning from the school board president. Many parents, who spent hours Saturday cleaning the grounds at Mariners Elementary School and stringing colored lights around the buildings and white lights in adjacent olive trees, said Wednesday that they were bitter over the thwarting of their show of holiday...

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

Source: The Plain Dealer

On December 6, 2000, The Plain Dealer reported that "to some people, she is known as Connie the Schlepper; to others, she is the Hospitality Queen. But these names don't begin to describe the lengths to which Connie Hanson goes in helping homeless families. As a volunteer for the Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cleveland, the high-spirited Hanson spends countless hours each week transporting furniture and other donated items to housing for the homeless. The Interfaith Hospitality Network, a national agency that opened a...

Source: The Plain Dealer

On December 6, 2000, The Plain Dealer reported that "as a volunteer for the Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cleveland, the high-spirited [Connie] Hanson spends countless hours each week transporting furniture and other donated items to housing for the homeless." Families are given shelter at night and counseled during the day on day care, employment, and housing, to help them achieve independence and stability. Hanson values being able to help people: "It's so concrete," she says. "It's so on the firing line, just like...

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 6, 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported that "whether they want it or not, most residents of San Juan Capistrano will receive an early Christmas gift in the mail next week--an 83-minute movie on the life of Jesus. San Juan Capistrano residents will be among the 1.1-million households in 10 cities across the U.S. who will get the 'Jesus' video this holiday season from local churches and Christian leaders. The campaign is run by the San Bernardino-based Jesus Video Project, a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. In...

Source: The Boston Globe

On December 6, 2000, The Boston Globe reported that "the Palestinian-Israeli battles that have convulsed the Middle East since late September have sparked the most intense wave of assaults on Jews and Jewish institutions worldwide since World War II, Jewish leaders say. In France, more than 50 synagogues have been attacked, some more than once, according to the Simon Wiesenthal Center, one of several organizations monitoring the events. Most assaults were fire bombings, but there also have been numerous stonings, targeting students...

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 4, 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported that "with its Moorish domes and bell towers, the splendid Mission San Carlos Borromeo in Carmel is the jewel of the California mission system. The small cell where Father Junipero Serra lived and worked has been meticulously preserved. When he died on Aug. 28, 1784, the remains of California's apostle were buried at the foot of the main altar. Now, however, a displaced tribe of Indians is trying to stake a claim in what Serra called the 'Garden of God,' south of San Francisco....

Source: The New York Times

On December 3, 2000, The New York Times reported that "Muslims, Catholics, Jews, Protestants, Buddhists and Bahais prayed together. An American Indian dance troupe shared the stage with a lesbian and gay men's gospel choir. And a former New York City police officer, Steven McDonald, a paraplegic since he was shot by a teenager in 1986, talked about learning to forgive. It was a lovefest at Convent Avenue Baptist Church, at 145th Street and Convent Avenue, last Monday night, as hundreds of people gathered for a service to help New...

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 3, 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported that "Biola University in La Mirada is set to hold the region's first major town hall meeting on the crisis Monday with Jews, Muslims and Christians. The Christian university's forum--expected to draw 3,000 people under the eyes of extra security guards--will attempt to move beyond finger-pointing to discuss concrete peacekeeping ideas. It reflects what organizers say is the small beginning of a return to dialogue, two months after the outbreak of violence that froze the peace...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On December 2, 2000, The Houson Chronicle reported that "six-year-old Alie Oshkoohi raced to a Santa Claus costume and quickly draped himself in the seasonal red cap and long white-trimmed coat. He gazed at his St. Nick-self in a mirror...It was Alie's first glimpse of the Children's Museum of Houston's Festivals of Light, an exhibit of seven seasonal religious and cultural holidays including Christmas, Hanukkah, Ramadan and Diwali. All seven holidays feature lights in some form, from the star marking Jesus' birthplace and the...

Source: St. Petersburg Times

On December 2, 2000, the St. Petersburg Times reported that "the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish group that advocates strict separation of church and state, has issued a 'December Dilemma' pamphlet warning public schools about observing Christmas and other religious holidays. Pamphlets are being sent to schools, and the league posted the text on its Web page. The U.S. Constitution, it says, prohibits 'school-sponsored endorsement or promotion of religious beliefs of any kind.' Because the U.S. Supreme Court has not ruled on...

Source: The New York Times

On December 2, 2000, The New York Times reported that "among Buddhist teachers well known in the West, the Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh holds a special prominence. Living in France as an exile from his native Vietnam, he is the author of many books and a regular visitor to the United States, where he lectures and holds retreats. His central mission is to encourage people to work toward 'mindfulness' -- that is, a process of personal and social transformation through the development of self-understanding and compassion. As he teaches...