Religion News Selection 15 (Apr 18

Religion News Selection 15 (Apr 18 - 26)

(25 April 10)
by Greg Spearritt

Religion News Selection

Apr 18 - 26, 2010

A selection of religion news stories from Australia.

Inclusion here does not endorse the veracity or quality of any particular item – it just means I found it worth reading and reflecting on (even if badly conceived or poorly written).

If you’re after the unexpurgated (and reasonably unbiased) version, see Religion News Australia which appears weekly on our website.

ABUSE

Abuse victim backs Pope's pledge (ABC News)

Apr 22 - A Hunter Valley victim of clergy abuse says he hopes the Roman Catholic Church's zero tolerance policy of sexual abuse is not just "lip-service".

300 abuse cases, one defrocking (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 22 - VICTORIA Police has called for sweeping changes to the way Melbourne's Catholic Church deals with sex crime allegations, as The Age reveals that only one priest has been defrocked for abuse in the past 14 years.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Church again opens its door to creativity (The Australian)

Apr 20 - THE relationship between art and Christianity began in the catacombs. The two have been intricately involved ever since.

EDUCATION

Ethics trial a Rees throwback: Catholics (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 20 - THE controversial secular ethics trial starting today in NSW schools is a policy of the previous premier and does not have full support from the Keneally government, says the NSW head of Catholic scripture teachers.

Hands up all those who want to explore ethics (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 21 - THE students of 6C were grappling with life's big issues.

Too-hot topics out of ethics (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 24 - THE state government made a last-minute decision to remove a hypothetical scenario involving designer babies from secular ethics classes being trialled in public schools as an alternative to scripture classes.

INTERNATIONAL STORIES

Abuse

Pope says he leads a 'wounded and sinner' church (ABC News)

Apr 20 - Pope Benedict XVI admitted to world cardinals that he led a "wounded and sinner" Church as he marked five tumultuous years in charge, most recently mired in paedophile priest scandals.

A crime is a crime, even for priests (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 23 – (Opinion: Editorial) THE Pope acknowledged this week, for the first time, the extent of sexual abuse by priests and promised victims the Catholic Church would do more to protect children.

Pope named in sex abuse lawsuit (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 24 - THE alleged victim of a notorious US priest has sued the Pope and the Vatican in an attempt to open the Catholic Church's secret files containing internal investigations into sex abuse.

Priests must protect kids: Pope (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 26 - Pope Benedict XVI told priests on Sunday to safeguard children in their charge from evil and win the "absolute" trust of their flock, even as his own papacy is clouded by accusations he and other top churchmen failed to protect minors adequately from pedophile clergy.

Atheism/Secularism

Lebanese march against sectarianism (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 26 - At least 2,000 Lebanese marched through central Beirut on Sunday in a show of support for secularism in their deeply divided country.

Catholic Church

Condom incident threatens papal visit (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 26 - LONDON: An embarrassed British government has apologised to the Pope over official documents which mocked his coming visit to Britain by suggesting he should bless a gay marriage and even launch papal-branded condoms.

Islam

Promiscuous women to blame for earthquakes, says cleric (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 20 - A senior Iranian cleric says women who wear revealing clothing and behave promiscuously are to blame for earthquakes.

Court upholds blasphemy law (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 21 - JAKARTA: Human rights groups pilloried Indonesia's Constitutional Court yesterday after it upheld a 1965 blasphemy law, ruling in favour of orthodox religions over basic freedoms.

French burka ban lifts veil of division (The Australian)

Apr 24 - A SAVIOUR of women, or rank Islamophobe and racist? By pushing for a total ban on the burka, or full Islamic veil, in all public places, French President Nicolas Sarkozy is provoking outrage in the political establishment while winning the backing of the electorate and the far-right.

Battle against the Burka is not based on bigotry (The Australian)

Apr 26 – (Opinion: Sally Neighbour) FRANCE'S move to extend its ban on the Islamic headscarf and outlaw the full-face veil appears to be catching on.

Judaism

No sexiness, we're Holy City cheerleaders (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 21 - A dozen dancing girls hit the hardwood floors of a Jerusalem basketball court on a recent spring night with an unusual goal -- show nothing sexy.

Israel's survival a huge achievement (The Age, Melbourne)

Apr 26 – (Opinion: Dvir Abramovich) This month, Jews around the world celebrated the establishment of the state of Israel 62 years ago.

Religious Violence

Threat to South Park over Mohammed in bear suit (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 22 - A radical Muslim group has warned the creators of South Park that they could face violent retribution for depicting the prophet Mohammed in a bear suit during last week's episode.

Also: South Park cuts Mohammed joke after threat (ABC News)

Apr 23 - The latest episode of South Park has been censored after a radical Muslim group threatened the show's creators over their depiction of the Prophet Mohammed.

Other

Russia bans books by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard (Adelaide Now)

Apr 22 - RUSSIA is set to ban dozens of texts and recordings by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.

ISLAM

Mosque plagued by age-old problem (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 24 - A young ambitious board is shaking things up in Lakemba…

Turkish mosque joins honour roll of Australian heritage buildings (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 24 - WITH its soaring minarets, soft Turkish carpet and words from the Koran inscribed in gold on its walls, the Auburn Gallipoli Mosque is unlike most iconic Australian buildings.

POLITICS

It's over: Mr Rudd gets it right on a bill of rights (The Australian)

Apr 26 – (Opinion: Editorial) KEVIN Rudd has acted decisively in closing the door on an Australian bill of rights for at least a generation.

RELIGION & SOCIETY

Robin Hood tax urged to aid good causes (The Australian)

Apr 20 - LEADING trade unions, charities, green groups and churches want Australian political parties to adopt a "Robin Hood" tax on all financial transactions, in their manifestos for this year's election.

Is God a conservative? (Sydney Morning Herald)

Apr 22 - (Opinion: Bella Counihan) [I]t seems many out there, even in the Year of Our Lord 2010, still believe that God reflects, Old Testament style, his will through nature.

Science sees a white light: near-death experience (The Australian)

Apr 24 - ADVERTISING executive Harry Joy has had a near-death experience three times