Headlines
July 2nd, 2009
Iran: Muslim Cleric Calls for Punishment of Protesters
In Iran, after weeks of protest, the country’s religious authority validated the disputed presidential election and widened efforts to quash dissent. The Guardian Council, a body of clerics and Islamic law experts, this week formally certified President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as the winner after a partial ballot recount. Meanwhile, a senior cleric, Ayatollah Ahmed Khatami, said the protesters were “at war with God” and should be “dealt with without mercy.” He said Iran’s supreme leader rules by God’s design and should not be defied.
July 2nd, 2009
Pastor at Riverside Church Resigns After Two Months
Riverside Church in New York City, one of the nation’s best known congregations, has accepted the resignation of senior minister Brad Braxton two months after his installation.
Braxton was controversial from the start. Some congregants complained that his compensation package was excessive. Others, that his evangelical preaching style made them uncomfortable:
Rev. Brad Braxton (from pulpit): “Fear not, fear not. I’m gonna preach it until the Holy Ghost tells me to stop.”
Some said he was moving Riverside away from its progressive tradition of social justice.
Diana Solomon-Glover (Riverside Church member): “The direction of the church with the new leadership is or has strayed, or is straying from the mission of the church, which is open, affirming, and inclusive, interracial, interdenominational, and international.”
Riverside Church is adjacent to Columbia University in Harlem, which is largely African-American. Over the years its congregation has gone from predominantly white to predominantly black.
Betty Davis (Riverside Church member) “One of the things that some people are afraid of is that the church will turn black, and you know, I really resent that.”
Braxton did not discount race as a factor in his resignation, but acknowledged that his preaching and leadership style had caused friction:
Rev. Brad Braxton: “Some serious conversation needs to occur about what it means to invite a leader, a pastoral leader, into this community. Is this congregation really ready for, and interested in, a pastoral leader who actually wants to lead?”
In accepting Braxton’s resignation, the church cited the need for some “deep soul-searching” that would allow it to move forward as a “stronger, more unified congregation.”
Click here to read more of Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly’s July 1, 2009 interview with Rev. Brad Braxton.
July 2nd, 2009
Obama Hosts Gay Rights Advocates at White House
President Barack Obama hosted gay rights activists at the White House to celebrate Gay Pride Month. During the gathering, the president said his administration is working hard to change what he called the “worn arguments and old attitudes” in the gay rights debate. He said he wants to end the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gays in the military. He also said Congress should repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as the legal union of a man and a woman.
July 2nd, 2009
Church Leaders Urge Stronger US-Cuba Relations
Mainline Protestant denominations and the Catholic Church have been pushing the Obama administration to lift the nearly 50-year-old trade embargo with Cuba. This week, a prominent Cuban ecumenical leader said he believes the time is now right to do that. Reverend Francisco Marrero Gutierrez, head of the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba, is on a rare visit to the US to meet with church leaders here. He said Cuban churches are playing a greater role in their society and need stronger ties with US Christians.
Reverend Francisco Marrero Gutierrez, Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba (through translator): “I do think that there’s a new generation here, a new political generation that opens the way to re-encounter.”
Click here to watch more of the Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly interview with Reverend Francisco Marrero Gutierrez.
July 2nd, 2009
CAIR Distributes 100,000 Qur’ans
The Council on American-Islamic Relations has kicked off a new project to distribute 100,000 free copies of the Qur’an to US legislators, educators, and others who help shape public policy and opinion. The group says it wants to follow up on President Obama’s recent speech to the Islamic world by helping Americans better understand Islam.
July 2nd, 2009
Bones are Saint Paul’s, Says Pope
Pope Benedict XVI says science may have helped to verify the final resting place of the Apostle Paul. The pope said carbon dating confirmed that bone fragments found in a sarcophagus near Rome date from the first or second century. According to tradition, that sarcophagus is the tomb of Paul. It is located under the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls of Rome.
July 2nd, 2009
Happy 500th Birthday, John Calvin
Many Protestants around the world are preparing to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the birth of John Calvin. The Reformation leader was born on July 10, 1509, in Geneva. Calvinist theology remains one of the most influential streams of Protestantism, and Calvin will be honored throughout the year with a series of lectures, conferences, and other events worldwide.
