Religion News Australia - 22 (June 6

Religion News Australia - 22 (June 6 - 13)

(12 June 10)
by Greg Spearritt

Religion News Australia

June 6 - 13, 2010

Religion news stories from Australia

(Research: Greg Spearritt)

abuse / arts & entertainment / catholic church / education / international stories / islam / politics / religion & society / other

ABUSE

Bishop leaked woman's details (The Age, Melbourne)

June 9 - ONE of Victoria's most senior Catholic figures, Bendigo's Bishop Joseph Grech, broke church rules by leaking an abuse complainant's details, and allegedly described her as ''crazy''.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

A tale of two standards (The Australian)

June 9 – (Review) YOU just can't keep self-indulged, middle-class movie critics down.

Buddha's many faces (The Australian)

June 12 – (Opinion: Christopher Allen) THERE has been a lot of talk about Australian familiarity with Asia recently, and a special report in this newspaper last month was full of such expressions as Asia literacy and Asia readiness.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Councils scramble to change signs for Mackillop influx (ABC News)

June 9 - Road signs are looming as the biggest obstacle for pilgrims celebrating the canonisation of Mary Mackillop.

EDUCATION

NSW ethics blue (not State of Origin) (The Age, Melbourne)

June 7 – (Opinion: Dick Gross) In NSW, traditionally religion has been taught in state schools through an optional opportunity to attend an hour of tuition in various religions taught by volunteers.

Church accused of hijacking ethics classes debate (ABC News)

June 9 - The argument about ethics classes in New South Wales schools is getting dirty, with allegations that powerful church forces are effectively branch stacking in an effort to thwart the plans.

Also: Anglicans take ethics course battle to P&Cs (Sydney Morning Herald)

June 9 - THE Anglican Church is encouraging Christians to join school P&C committees in order to ''branch stack'' them with people who will speak up for religious education over the secular ethics classes being trialled in NSW primary schools.

INTERNATIONAL STORIES

Abuse

Pope defends priest celibacy (ABC News)

June 11 - Pope Benedict XVI says celibacy is central to the priesthood, despite concerns from some that the requirement has contributed to the wave of abuse scandals rocking the Church.

Pope begs forgiveness over abuse scandal (ABC News)

June 11 - Pope Benedict has begged forgiveness for the "abuse of the little ones" by paedophile priests and pledged to "do everything possible" to stop the scourge.

Thousands of priests rally for Pope (Herald-Sun, Melbourne)

June 11 - THOUSANDS of priests from around the world have massed in Rome in one of the largest such gatherings ever in a major show of support for Pope Benedict XVI amid the clerical abuse scandal.

Catholic Church

Solidarity priest beatified in Warsaw (ABC News)

June 8 - Thousands of worshippers have attended an open-air mass in Warsaw on Sunday for the beatification of a Polish priest and anti-communist activist murdered by the secret police in 1984.

Pope says Middle East conflict driving out Christians (ABC News)

June 8 - The Vatican has warned that conflict in the Middle East has driven thousands of Christians out of the region.

Nun on the run from Danish police over death of fellow sister (The Courier-Mail, Brisbane)

June 11 - DANISH police are hunting a Dutch nun suspected of involvement in the death of an elderly member of her convent.

Islam

Anti-Islam party set for Dutch poll gains (The Age, Melbourne)

June 8 - ''THE sluice gates are wide open,'' Dutch anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders says in a campaign video that shows planes landing in Holland as women in headscarves outnumber natives in shopping street scenes.

UK prisoners convert to Islam for jail perks

June 8 - INMATES in the UK are converting to Islam in order to gain perks and the protection of powerful Muslim gangs, Britain's Chief Inspector of Prisons warns today.

Belgian school sacks teacher over burqa (Sydney Morning Herald)

June 9 - A Belgian high school on Tuesday sacked a Muslim maths teacher after she insisted she would continue to wear the burqa while taking classes.

Court mulls rape victims' right to veil (The Courier-Mail, Brisbane)

June 10 - A CANADIAN court is weighing a rape victim's right to testify in court while wearing the Islamic veil, as defence lawyers argue two suspects had the right to face their accuser.

Saudi man convicted for kissing in mall (The Age, Melbourne)

June 11 - Saudi court has convicted a man and sentenced him to four months in prison and 90 lashes for kissing a woman in a mall.

Woman fined for erratic driving caused by veil (ABC News)

June 13 - French police have fined a woman driver for erratic driving caused by her Islamic headscarf, just weeks after a similar incident sparked a major political row.

Judaism

Sephardic leader who wanted Israel to be Jewish theocracy (The Age, Melbourne)

June 10 – (Obituary) ORDECHAI Eliyahu, a former Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel (Rishon Le'Zion) and a spiritual leader of the Religious Zionist movement that calls for a state for the Jewish people in the land of Israel with laws based on the teachings of Judaism, has died in Jerusalem.

DNA unites Jews with genetic kin (The Australian)

June 11 - PARIS: Jews share a genetic bond with Cypriots and Druze, and the Jewish diaspora has maintained a strong DNA continuity despite its long separation from the Middle East, new research has found.

Religious Violence

Taliban 'filming attacks for internet' (The Australian)

June 12 - THE Taliban are claiming to be able to film their attacks in Oruzgan - including one on a base where an Australian soldier was killed last year - and post them on the internet to ramp up their propaganda war.

Radical preacher grooming young for terror (The Age, Melbourne)

June 13 - Young British Muslims are being groomed to carry out terrorist attacks in the UK by a radical al-Qaeda preacher based in the Middle East.

Other

We must make faith a weapon (The Australian)

June 9 – (Opinion: Tony Blair) FAITH matters. Religion can be a powerful force for good or ill.

NY building won't honour Mother Teresa (The Age, Melbourne)

June 9 - New York City's Empire State Building said "yes" to Mariah Carey, dog shows, cancer charities - and even the 60th anniversary of communist China.

Coptic leader condemns second marraiges (The Courier-Mail, Brisbane)

June 9 - THE head of the Egyptian Coptic Church threatened overngiht to excommunicate priests who perform second marriages after a court ruled that divorced Copts could remarry.

US woman awarded $1 over 'demonic' police ID card (The Courier-Mail, Brisbane)

June 10 - A RELIGIOUS New York school safety officer who sued the city for making her wear "the mark of the beast" on her official ID has been awarded $1 in damages.

Charges against US polygamist dropped (Herald-Sun, Melbourne)

June 10 - A JUDGE today dismissed all Arizona charges against polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.

Prince Charles hits at soulless science (The Australian)

June 11 - LONDON: The Prince of Wales has blamed a lack of belief in the soul for the world's environmental problems, and says the planet cannot sustain a population expected to reach nine billion in 40 years.

Inter-faith marriage less likely to remain match made in heaven (The Age, Melbourne)

June 12 – (Opinion: NAOMI SCHAEFER RILEY) Love can't always overcome religion…

Katy Perry, Gaga feud with religious undertones (The Courier-Mail, Brisbane)

June 13 - A FEUD has broken out between Katy Perry and Lady Gaga over the latter's new video for Alejandro, The Wall Street Journal's Speakeasy blog reported Friday.

Witch doctor breaks Harry Kewell's curse (Herald-Sun, Melbourne)

June 13 - BISHOP Isaac Nonyane nods and looks up to the corrugated iron roof. "Uhm-hmm," he says, his eyes blinking. "Uh-huh."

ISLAM

Beware the words of a wolf dressed in sheikh's clothing (The Age, Melbourne)

June 7 – (Opinion: Paul Sheehan) On the steps of Sydney Town Hall in the wet dusk of last Tuesday, the former mufti of Australia, Sheikh Taj el-Din al Hilaly, raised his arms and asked for silence as the crowd chanted anti-Israel slogans and waved the flags of Turkey, Lebanon, Palestine and the Socialist Alliance.

Detained Aussie woman to be sent home from Yemen (The Australian)

June 8 - A SYDNEY woman detained in Yemen for three weeks, whose passport was cancelled on security grounds, could be deported soon.

POLITICS

Christians must boost immunity to Greens virus (The Australian)

June 12 – (Opinion: Angela Shanahan) Voters should think twice before being lured away from the two main political parties

RELIGION & SOCIETY

Student probes priest shortage impact (ABC News)

June 9 - A study has been launched to see how southern Queensland Catholics are coping with a shortage of priests.

A better understanding of religion (ABC News)

June 11 - As the modern world continues to become more globalised, the role of religion and culture in world affairs can no longer be ignored.

Light reading for night fevers (The Australian)

June 12 – (Opinion: Emma Tom) Pondering life and death in a late-night medical centre is not for the faint-hearted or toddlers.

OTHER

Agape Ministries Church not a doomsday cult, says lawyer (The Courier-Mail, Brisbane)

June 7 - THE controversial Agape Ministries Church is "not a doomsday cult" and any claims to the contrary are "a load of rubbish", a criminal lawyer says.

Council dispute could oust Salvos

June 9 - The Salvation Army says a dispute with Newcastle council over the construction of a new church at Hamilton could jeopardise the future of its worship services in the city.

Second man in court after Agape raids (ABC News)

June 10 - A second man has faced court after police raids in and near Adelaide involving the Agape Ministries religious group.

From the Archive…

Religion News Australia 2010 - 21 (May 30 – June 6)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 20 (May 23 - 30)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 19 (May 16 - 23)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 18 (May 9 - 16)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 17 (May 3 - 9)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 16 (Apr 26 – May 3)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 15 (Apr 18 - 26)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 14 (Apr 11 - 18)

Religion News Australia 2010 - 13 (Apr 4 - 11)