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Religion & Culture (Religion)

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  • Knights of Columbus pledge $1.4 million for Special Olympics

    07/15/2014 3:59:40 AM PDT · by NYer · 5 replies
    cna ^ | July 15, 2014
    Supreme Knight Carl Anderson makes an announcement at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum July 14, 2014. Photo courtesy of the Knights of Columbus. Los Angeles, Calif., Jul 15, 2014 / 02:10 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Knights of Columbus have pledged $1.4 million for next year’s Special Olympics World Games, helping to cover participating athletes’ expenses for the Los Angeles event. “Our support exemplifies our commitment to the dignity of every person, our dedication to assisting with our neighbors’ needs whatever they may be, and our deep appreciation for the great work done by Special Olympics,” Supreme Knight Carl Anderson said in...
  • Bastille Day and the Catholic Book that Caused the French Revolution

    07/14/2014 8:34:10 PM PDT · by matthewrobertolson · 12 replies
    Catholic Analysis ^ | 14 July 2014 | Matthew Olson
    In recognition of Bastille Day, I, in this special Monday episode, discuss "the book that caused the French Revolution": Les Liaisons Dangereuses (The Dangerous Liaisons), written by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. The book -- perhaps somewhat unintentionally -- set off pious sentiment against the Ancien Regime, and its influence carries on today. WATCH ON YOUTUBE(Alternative link, via Vimeo.) Summary:I start off the show with a brief primer on Bastille Day and immediately begin a summary of the characters and events in this novel, breaking down its story of lust and love. I then cite some of its distinctively Catholic elements....
  • Church of England General Synod votes to allow women bishops

    07/14/2014 1:09:29 PM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 11 replies
    BBC News ^ | 07/14/2014
    The Church of England has voted to allow women to become bishops for first time in its history. Its ruling General Synod gave approval to legislation introducing the change by the required two-thirds majority. A previous vote in 2012 was backed by the Houses of Bishops and Clergy but blocked by traditionalist lay members. The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said he was "delighted" but some opponents said they were unconvinced by the concessions offered to them. The crucial vote in the House of Laity went 152 in favour, 45 against, and there were five abstentions. In November 2012 the...
  • Vietnam’s First Catholic University Could be Built Within a Year

    07/14/2014 12:05:11 PM PDT · by marshmallow · 4 replies
    UCA News ^ | 7/14/14 | Paola Affatato
    Vietnam’s first Catholic university is no longer a mirage. It is very soon going to become a reality, in fact according to Paul Bui Van Doc, Archbishop of Ho Chi Minh City, the structure could be ready within a year. It is going to mark a crucial turning point in the history of the Vietnamese Catholic Church, the sign of an eagerly awaited return to the freedom of education, which the communist government has denied the people for 60 years. The Archbishop of former Saigon, proudly explained to Vatican Insider that “the dialogic approach adopted with the government is producing...
  • Pope Francis: 'About 2%' of Catholic clergy paedophiles

    07/14/2014 10:37:45 AM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 44 replies
    BBC News ^ | 07/14/2014
    Pope Francis has been quoted as saying that reliable data indicates that "about 2%" of clergy in the Catholic Church are paedophiles. The Pope said that abuse of children was like "leprosy" infecting the Church, according to the Italian La Repubblica newspaper. He vowed to "confront it with the severity it demands". But a Vatican spokesman said the quotes in the newspaper did not correspond to Pope Francis's exact words. The BBC's David Willey in Rome says there is often a studied ambiguity in Pope Francis' off-the-cuff statements. He wants to show a more compassionate attitude towards Church teaching than...
  • Evangelical Organization to Support Hundreds of Immigrant Children

    07/14/2014 10:07:43 AM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 14 replies
    Christian Post ^ | 07/14/2014 | Morgan Lee
    The National Latino Evangelical Coalition will be working with faith-based organizations across the country to open up 600 beds to Central American children who have crossed into the country without their parents. President of the NaLEC Gabe Salguero explained that over a period of 18 months, starting in August, churches and camps will likely receive thousands of children — the majority of whom are from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador — while they are waiting to be placed with their parents who are already in the United States or family members in the countries they are from. "We have 15...
  • Massachusetts City Terminates Contract With Christian College Over Its Stance on Homosexuality

    07/14/2014 10:04:45 AM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 16 replies
    Christian Post ^ | 07/14/2014 | Michael Gryboski
    A city in Massachusetts has opted to end a contract with a Christian college over the academic institution's opposition to homosexuality. The mayor for Salem recently announced that the city's contract with Gordon College for usage of the Old Town Hall, set to expire later this year, will be immediately terminated. Rick Sweeney, vice president of marketing and communications at Gordon College, told The Christian Post about the contract to use the Old Town Hall. "Gordon College had been in a contractual relationship with the city of Salem since 2008 to manage Old Town Hall, one of the most historic...
  • Vote backs women bishops

    07/14/2014 9:02:19 AM PDT · by don-o · 8 replies
    Key Points The Church of England has voted in favour of allowing women to be appointed as bishops The vote took place at a meeting of the ruling general synod in York - 18 months after a previous attempt was blocked The Yes votes overturns centuries of tradition in a Church that has been deeply divided over the issue for decades Anglican leaders had warned of severe damage to the Church's reputation
  • Proverb A Day, Proverb 14 [Prayer and Meditation]

    07/14/2014 8:25:26 AM PDT · by OneVike · 2 replies
    Bible NKJV | 900 BC | Solomon
    Proverb 14 (NKJV) The Ways of Life and Death 01 The wise woman builds her house, 00 But the foolish pulls it down with her hands. 02 He who walks in his uprightness fears the LORD, 00 But he who is perverse in his ways despises Him. 03 In the mouth of a fool is a rod of pride, 00 But the lips of the wise will preserve them. 04 Where no oxen are, the trough is clean; 00 But much increase comes by the strength of an ox. 05 A faithful witness does not lie, 00 But a...
  • New healthcare resource links Catholic patients, providers

    07/14/2014 5:56:06 AM PDT · by NYer · 5 replies
    cna ^ | July 13, 2014 | Adelaide Mena
    New York City, N.Y., Jul 13, 2014 / 04:07 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A new healthcare website hopes to link together Catholic patients and healthcare providers in order to address the cultural challenges facing Catholics around the country. “There’s more to being Catholic … than simply, 'we don't use birth control,” Dr. Greg Bottaro, PsyD, said to CNA July 7, of how the faith affects participation in the healthcare industry. “There’s an integration between our faith and our professional life as a healthcare provider where we treat the person differently from the start.” Bottaro is the founder of WellCatholic, a...
  • Proverb A Day, Proverb 13 [Prayer and Meditation]

    07/13/2014 8:48:43 AM PDT · by OneVike · 4 replies
    Bible NKJV | 900 BC | Solomon
    Proverb 13 (NKJV) Wisdom Loves Righteousness 01 A wise son heeds his father's instruction, 00 But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke. 02 A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, 00 But the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence. 03 He who guards his mouth preserves his life, 00 But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction. 04 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; 00 But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. 05 A righteous man hates lying, 00 But a wicked man is...
  • Morality vs. Immigration: It's not un-Christian to deport illegal trespassers (Insight)

    07/12/2014 8:03:04 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 11 replies
    The Mobile Press-Register ^ | January 8, 2012 | The Editorial Board and Pastor Rusty Johnson
    There are pastors and bishops in Alabama who have attempted to turn immigration into a moral issue and have deemed it un-Christian to deal with illegal aliens and deport illegal trespassers. But they are mistaken. If we turn to the Holy Bible to learn what God says about this issue, we see that God himself established the nations after Noah’s flood, according to Genesis 10:32. And the Book of Deuteronomy tells us that not only did God separate the nations, but he also set the borders of the first nations. This truth is further attested in the New Testament in...
  • Pope Pelosi Protector of Children?

    07/12/2014 5:08:25 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 12 replies
    Patheos ^ | July 12, 2014 | Fr. Dwight Longenecker
    Nancy Pelosi, who was awarded the Margaret Sanger Eugenicist of the Year Award by Planned Genocide Parenthood (go here)has now proclaimed herself the protector of children. This article trumpets her new child protector status… House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) yesterday described herself as a “lioness” when it comes to protecting children. She also called not only for the U.S. government to process minors arriving illegally from Central America on a “case-by-case basis” but for the government to “treat the Mexican kids the way they treat the non-contiguous country kids.” “Quite frankly, I would rather they treat the Mexican kids...
  • The Ugliest Churches In The World

    07/12/2014 2:56:37 PM PDT · by NYer · 75 replies
    Catholic Vote ^ | July 11, 2014 | JOHN WHITE
    A little something for the weekend.Over at Real Clear Religion, Nicholas G. Hahn III has a slideshow of the ugliest churches in the world. They represent several denominations, but the vast majority are – you guessed it – Roman Catholic.Below are just a few of these architectural miscarriages, all of them Catholic. See the rest here.       
  • A pastor presides at his son’s gay wedding—and pays the price

    07/12/2014 2:07:09 PM PDT · by NYer · 52 replies
    The Deacon's Bench ^ | July 11, 2014 | Deacon Greg Kandra
    The story behind a case that made headlines a few months back, from The New York Times: Father and son had always been close, from the moment Tim Schaefer was born, six weeks premature, with blood poisoning, a weak heart and lungs, and a doctor who thought he would not make it through the night.His father, the Rev. Frank Schaefer, a United Methodist minister, thought of his eldest son as a miracle child, saved by some combination of medicine and prayer, saved for something special.“We couldn’t even touch him; he was in an incubator, and we had to reach in...
  • Do Evangelical Churches Have to Accept Gay Marriage to Attract Millennials?

    07/12/2014 10:29:45 AM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 54 replies
    Christian Post ^ | 07/12/2014 | Napp Nazworth
    Must Evangelical churches change or downplay their position on homosexuality to attract millennials? Millennials, generally defined as those ages 18 to mid-30s, are the most supportive of redefining marriage to include same-sex couples, many polls show. A recent Public Religion Research Institute poll had their support at 69 percent, the highest of any age group. Even among self-described Evangelicals, the millennials showed the highest level of support at 43 percent (though the poll only included white Evangelicals), compared to 33 percent for generation X, 22 percent for Baby Boomers and 19 percent for those 68 and older. The poll also...
  • Pray for our American Heroes

    07/12/2014 10:00:08 AM PDT · by Irish Rose · 10 replies
    July 12, 2014 | Irish Rose
    The path of the righteous is level; O upright One, you make the way of the righteous smooth. Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. (Isaiah 26:7-9)
  • FIRST-PERSON: Why sexual deviance is getting worse

    07/12/2014 8:08:31 AM PDT · by ReformationFan · 55 replies
    Baptist Press ^ | 7-11-14 | Kelly Boggs
    ALEXANDRIA, La. (BP) -- There are atheists and liberals, some who are both, who believe there is no need for God in order for morality to be maintained in a society. They argue that people can act morally apart from a supreme authority. I agree that people can act morally apart from God's standard. However, the real question is why should they? If there is no supreme authority -- no God -- then why behave morally? If there is no God, there are no objective standards for moral behavior. The logical progression leads to anarchy. Everyone does what is right...
  • Proverb A Day, Proverb 12 [Prayer and Meditation]

    07/12/2014 6:44:27 AM PDT · by OneVike · 2 replies
    Bible NKJV | 900 BC | Solomon
    Proverb 12 (NKJV) The House of the Righteous Shall Stand 01 Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, 00 But he who hates correction is stupid. 02 A good man obtains favor from the LORD, 00 But a man of wicked intentions He will condemn. 03 A man is not established by wickedness, 00 But the root of the righteous cannot be moved. 04 An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, 00 But she who causes shame is like rottenness in his bones. 05 The thoughts of the righteous are right, 00 But the counsels of the wicked are...
  • Dems vote for constitutional amendment to limit free speech and freedom of religion

    07/12/2014 3:26:45 AM PDT · by markomalley · 18 replies
    WDTPRS ^ | 7/11/2014 | Fr. John Zuhlsdorf
    This is by Zac Morgan, a staff attorney at the Center for Competitive Politics writing at NRO.  My emphases and comments. Does Religious Speech Threaten Democracy? It could be restricted or banned under a constitutional amendment Democrats have proposed.The Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday approved by a 10–8 vote a constitutional amendment that, if passed, would functionally eliminate the political rights of speech and association. While the committee made the language more succinct than in its original iteration, the law still poses a profound threat to fundamental liberties. [Mind you, a constitutional amendment doesn't happen over night, but... it has to start...