by Kevin Eckstrom | Mar 28, 2011 | News
WASHINGTON (RNS) U.S. officials praised a United Nations council for a new statement on religious freedom that sidestepped a divisive debate sponsored by Islamic countries over the “defamation of religions.” The U.N. Human Rights Council on Thursday (March 24)...
by John Tunison | Mar 25, 2011 | News
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (RNS) A Grand Rapids man who took a bride while still married to his estranged first wife—and who is now charged with polygamy—says he “made a mistake.” Richard Barton Jr., 34, who remains free from jail on personal recognizance after being...
by Francis Rocca | Mar 25, 2011 | News
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican’s official newspaper eulogized actress Elizabeth Taylor as the “last remaining star in the firmament of old Hollywood,” and praised her contributions on AIDS and other charitable causes. “The curtain falls on the violet eyes of...
by Nicole Neroulias | Mar 25, 2011 | News
(RNS) We may never know why bad things happen to good people, but most Americans—except evangelicals—reject the idea that natural disasters are divine punishment, a test of faith or some other sign from God. The poll released Thursday (March 24), by Public Religion...
by Adelle Banks | Mar 24, 2011 | News
(RNS) The U.S. ambassador to Pakistan called the burning of a Quran at a small Florida church “abhorrent” as Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the act as a “serious setback” to world harmony. U.S. Ambassador Cameron P. Munter tried to distance the United...
by Francis Rocca | Mar 24, 2011 | News
VATICAN CITY (RNS) A Vatican official told a United Nations body on Tuesday (March 22) that people who openly object to homosexual behavior are at risk of losing their human rights when they are prosecuted or stigmatized for their beliefs. “People are being attacked...
