Interfaith

Jewish Council Honors Muslim Leader in St. Louis, Missouri

May 10, 2000

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

On May 10, 2000, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that imam Waheed Rana was awarded the Norman A. Stack award by the Jewish Community Relations Council of St. Louis for his work building bridges between the Muslim and Jewish communities. Rana is a founder of the Islamic Center in St. Louis and serves as the imam at the Daar-ul-Islam Masjid in St. Louis. Rana, accepting the award, stated: "We need each other...We are all the children of Abraham."

Cardinal O'Connor's Efforts to Promote Ties with Jews

May 5, 2000

Source: The Boston Globe

On May 5, 2000, The Boston Globe published an article on the late Cardinal John O'Connor's efforts to promote more positive relations between Catholics and Jews. Edward Koch, former Mayor of New York City and good friend of Cardinal O'Connor, stated: "I heard him say many times - in his homilies, in public statements, privately - that you could not be a good Catholic and be anti-Semitic...He would say, 'Jesus was a Jew. Mary was a Jew.' By that repetition, he was saying you have be pretty stupid to be anti-Semitic. I think that has...

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National Day of Prayer

May 3, 2000

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

On May 3, 2000, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Christians, Jews, and Muslims in the St. Louis area will gather around flagpoles at more than 50 city halls in the region to pray for the nation on Thursday, May 4th, which is National Prayer Day. The tradition was started in 1952, when president Harry Truman signed a declaration calling for such a day. In 1988, President Reagan signed a declaration officially designating the first Thursday in May to be National Prayer Day. Jay Teutenberg of Webster Groves, Missouri,...

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Ohio Motto Declared Unconstitutional

April 27, 2000

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

On April 27, 2000, The Columbus Dispatch reported that "pinions were plentiful yesterday in the aftermath of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that Ohio's 41-year-old state motto -- 'With God, all things are possible' -- is unconstitutional." Some wonder why the US national motto "In God We Trust" has been allowed while this motto is considered unconstitutional; others argue that the national motto is more vague than Ohio's and thus shows less of a bias toward Christianity specifically. Americans United for...

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The Spiritual Life in America

April 22, 2000

Source: The Boston Globe

On April 22, 2000, The Boston Globe published an article on Roger Housden's recently released book entitled, "Sacred America: The Emerging Spirit of the People." Housden, who is British, writes: "America is still one of the most religious countries in the world, with over 90 percent believing in a god of some kind, and this religiosity has always colored the nation's own view of itself...This is why Americans, even if they do not articulate it in so many words, and in spite of everything that points to the whole experiment going...

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Area Religious Communities Pray for Burned Catholic Church

April 22, 2000

Source: The Arizona Republic

On April 22, 2000, The Arizona Republic reported that worshipers from Presbyterian, Buddhist, Jewish, Baha'i, and Catholic communities joined in a prayer service on Friday, April 21st for the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Arizona, which suffered $1.5 million of damage in a fire on Monday, April 17th. Rev. Paul Eppinger of the Arizona Ecumenical Council stated: "We have different religious points of view, but we are one family in God...And like a family, we must support one another in times of trouble." The cause of the...

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Interfaith Chapel in Kansas City, Missouri

April 19, 2000

Source: The Kansas City Star

On April 19, 2000, The Kansas City Star published an article on Pilgrim Chapel, an interfaith chapel in Kansas City, MO that has no weekly congregation and serves as a place of worship and meditation for people of all religions. An English Gothic structure that was formerly a Lutheran church for the deaf, the chapel was bought by ordained ministers Roger and Liz Coleman in 1997 and opened as Pilgrim Chapel in 1998. Roger Coleman stated: "We have some people who just pop in during the week for a few minutes of quiet time before...

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Difficulties in Quantifying America's Changing Religious Landscape

April 17, 2000

Source: Los Angeles Times

On April 17, 2000, the Los Angeles Times published an article on the difficulty of obtaining reliable statistics on America's religious demography. In 1976, the Census Bureau was barred by Congress from compelling people to reveal their religion. Private organizations have since carried the load, but the statistics have turned out to be disparate. Derek Lander, a staff member at the Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches, stated: "We made an attempt to see if anyone has good numbers, and basically what we are finding out is...

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Passover and Easter

April 16, 2000

Source: The Boston Herald

On April 16, 2000, The Boston Herald published an article entitled, "Interfaith Households Face Challenge at Holidays: Finding Common Ground Can Ease Celebration of Passover, Easter."

Religion and the Workplace

April 16, 2000

Source: The Times-Picayune

On April 16, 2000, The Times-Picayune published an article about the accommodation of religious practice in the workplace. According to the Society for Human Resource Management, "large companies - those with more than 250 employees - are more likely to allow flexible scheduling, give time for observances, and ease up on dress and appearance codes." Laila Jackson, an employee of PTT Telekom in Winter Park, Florida, is allowed to take the prayer breaks necessary to observe her Muslim faith. She goes to a darkened part of the...

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Building Boom for Religious Centers

April 16, 2000

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On April 16, 2000, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that in the metro Atlanta area, 335 projects worth more than $200 million in the last 14 months have been dedicated for various religious centers. Churches, mosques, synagogues, and a Jain temple are all part of the building boom. For many of the new or renovated facilities, the result will be state-of-the-art amenities, such as elaborate recreational, health, and entertainment facilities, modern classrooms, and the latest in worship furnishings...

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The Role of Religion in Health Care

April 13, 2000

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

On April 13, 2000, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that a two-day meeting of 400 St. Louis religious and health care leaders took place on April 12-13 at the Washington Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church. The meeting focused on the growing role that religion and religious groups are playing in health care. The conference is the first public event of the 2-year-old St. Louis Faith and Health Consortium. Rev. Dr. Gary R. Gunderson, director of the Interfaith Health Program of the Rollins School of Public Health at...

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