CLIMATE-RELIGIOUS SERVICE
Multi-faith service calls for action on climate change
NEW YORK (AP) β A multi-faith service at New York’s Cathedral of Saint John the Divine has appealed for action to combat climate change.
Former Vice President Al Gore joined Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and Native American leaders at a service that mixed preaching with solemn rituals and chants. Gore said the climate change march through Manhattan earlier Sunday was an example of “praying with your feet.”
Rabbi Ellen Bernstein (BURN’-steen) told worshippers that “the preservation of our beautiful world is our greatest religious imperative.”
Native American Chief Arvol Looking Horse said, “Spirit Mother is sick, and has a fever.”
On Tuesday, more than 120 world leaders will attend the United Nations Climate Summit aimed at galvanizing support for a new global climate treaty by the end of 2015.
Sound:
221-a-11-(The Reverend Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, in multi-faith service at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine)-“to fossil fuels”-The Reverend Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, says terrorism can be reduced by reducing dependence on oil. ((longer version of cut used in wrap)) (21 Sep 2014)
< 222-a-13-(Former Vice President Al Gore, in multi-faith service at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine)-“to environmental justice”-Former Vice President Al Gore says God wants people to care for the environment. (21 Sep 2014) < 220-a-11-(The Reverend Gerald Durley, pastor emeritus of Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, in multi-faith service at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine)-“protect my creation”-The Reverend Gerald Durley, pastor emeritus of Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, says there’s a commandment for all faiths. (21 Sep 2014) < 219-a-06-(Rabbi Ellen Bernstein (BURN’-steen), founder of Shomrei Adamah, Keepers of the Earth, in multi-faith service at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine)-“greatest religious imperative”-Rabbi Ellen Bernstein, founder of Shomrei Adamah, Keepers of the Earth, says people of faith must work together to protect the environment. ((cut used in wrap)) (21 Sep 2014) < 218-w-33-(Steve Coleman, AP religion editor, with Rabbi Ellen Bernstein and the Reverend Jim Wallis)–A multi-faith service at New York’s Cathedral of Saint John the Divine has appealed for action to combat climate change. AP Religion Editor Steve Coleman reports. (21 Sep 2014) < 223-r-33-(Sound of choir chanting, in multi-faith service at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine)–Sound of choir chanting in multi-faith service at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine. (21 Sep 2014) < CHURCH DROWNING Pastor ‘speechless’ after toddler drowns in church DECATUR, Ala. (AP) β A pastor says he was left speechless and a family was devastated after their toddler drowned in a church baptistry. Authorities said 22-month-old Brayden King died Friday after getting inside a water tank used for baptisms at a church in Decatur, Alabama. Church members found the boy unresponsive in the water. Bishop T.D. Strong of the Pentecostal House of Prayer told Al.com that the child’s mother had prayed for years to have a son. The boy’s 13-year-old sister was watching the child Friday evening while their mother prepared for a skit to be performed at a prayer meeting. The teenager lost track of the toddler for a short time. SCHOOL BIBLES Bibles handed out near school worry some parents LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) β Some parents in Lincoln, Nebraska, are concerned about a group distributing Bibles near a middle school, but school officials aren’t sure how much can be done about it. The Lincoln Journal Star reports that a group of people distributed Gideon Bibles outside Lux Middle School last week. Parent Mary Anne Andrei complained to the district and to the American Civil Liberties Union afterward because she was concerned no one screened the people distributing Bibles. And she says the practice blurs the separation of church and state. The district’s John Neal says school officials don’t have authority over the group handing out Bibles because they stand on public sidewalks. The group generally lets the school district know about their plans as a courtesy but doesn’t have to get permission. TEN COMMANDMENTS MONUMENT Oklahoma judge dismisses Ten Commandments lawsuit OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) β An Oklahoma County judge has dismissed a lawsuit that challenges a Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of the state Capitol. District Judge Thomas Prince granted the motion filed by the Oklahoma Capitol Preservation Commission. The lawsuit alleged the monument violates the state constitution’s ban against using public property to support “any sect, church, denomination or system of religion.” Attorneys for the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, which filed the lawsuit last year, say they will appeal to the state Supreme Court. The 6-foot-tall granite monument was authorized by the Legislature in 2009 and built in November 2012 after Republican state Rep. Mike Ritze and his family paid nearly $10,000 for it. The monument has led other groups to seek approval for monuments of their own, such as a statue of Satan. ALBANIA-POPE Pope in Albania urges Muslims to condemn extremism TIRANA, Albania (AP) β Pope Francis has called on moderate Muslims and all religious leaders to condemn Islamic extremists who “pervert” religion to justify violence, as he visited Albania and held it up as a model for interfaith harmony. One of the highlights of Francis’ visit was a meeting Sunday with representatives of Albania’s Muslim, Orthodox and Catholic communities, which all suffered persecution under communism but now live and work together peacefully. Francis said religious intolerance was an “insidious enemy” particularly alive in parts of the world today. He urged all believers to “firmly refute as false” any perversion of religion for the sake of violence. He said: “To kill in the name of God is a grave sacrilege. To discriminate in the name of God is inhuman.” Sound: 117-r-33-(Sound of Pope Francis, speaking in Italian, during address at Albania’s presidential palace)–Sound of the pope saying that Albania’s inter-religious harmony is an inspiring example for the world, one which shows that Christian-Muslim coexistence was not only possible, but beneficial for a country’s development. (21 Sep 2014) < 099-r-26-(Sound of an Albanian choir, at a papal mass)–Sound of an Albanian choir at a papal mass. (21 Sep 2014) < 093-c-22-(Trisha Thomas, AP correspondent)-“is being perverted”-AP correspondent Trisha Thomas reports Pope Francis has a strong message about religious extremism during a visit to Albania. (21 Sep 2014) < 095-c-16-(Trisha Thomas, AP correspondent)-“edge of Europe”-AP correspondent Trisha Thomas reports Pope Francis specifically chose Albania for his first visit to a majority Muslim nation since the Islamic State crackdown on Christians in Iraq,. (21 Sep 2014) < 096-c-19-(Trisha Thomas, AP correspondent)-“during this trip”-AP correspondent Trisha Thomas reports Pope Francis is visiting Albania, which has a history of religious oppression. (21 Sep 2014) < CHICAGO ARCHBISHOP Pope chooses a moderate for Chicago archbishop CHICAGO (AP) β Pope Francis named has named Blase Cupich (blayz SOO-pihch) to succeed Cardinal Francis George as archbishop of Chicago, sending a strong signal about the direction that the pontiff is taking the church. As the leader of two dioceses, Cupich has staked out a firm position in the middle of the road. He has spoken out against same-sex marriage, but also against conservative hostility toward gay rights advocates. He has opposed abortion, while urging parishioners and priests to have patience, not disdain, for those who disagree. And he has criticized fellow U.S. bishops who threatened to shut down religious charities instead of pursuing a compromise with the White House over health care policies that go against Catholic teaching. Cardinal George, at age 77, is two years past the church’s retirement age and is suffering from cancer. Sound: 013-w-35-(Ed Donahue, AP correspondent, with new Chicago Archbishop Blase Cupich (blayz SOO’-pihch))–Pope Francis has chosen a Washington state bishop, Blase Cupich, to serve as the archbishop of Chicago. The AP’s Ed Donahue reports. ((Blase Cupich is pronounced blayz SOO’-pihch)) (21 Sep 2014) < 240-q-10-(Bishop Blase Cupich (blayz SOO’-pihch), incoming Roman Catholic archbishop of Chicago, at news conference)-“I’m a moderate”-Bishop Blase Cupich, the incoming Roman Catholic archbishop of Chicago, is asked if he’ll promote a moderate agenda. (21 Sep 2014) < 241-a-12-(Cardinal Francis George, outgoing Roman Catholic archbishop of Chicago, at news conference)-“varied pastoral experience”-Cardinal Francis George, the outgoing Roman Catholic archbishop of Chicago praises his chosen successor. (21 Sep 2014) < 172-w-35-(Ed Donahue, AP correspondent, with new Chicago Archbishop Blase Cupich (blayz SOO’-pihch))–Pope Francis has chosen a Washington state bishop, Blase Cupich, to serve as the archbishop of Chicago. The AP’s Ed Donahue reports. ((Blase Cupich is pronounced blayz SOO’-pihch)) (20 Sep 2014) < GAY COUPLE-COMMUNION DENIED Montana gay couple denied Communion after marriage BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) β A gay couple has been told they can no longer receive Communion or participate in church ministry after the new priest at a Roman Catholic church in central Montana learned they had been married in a civil ceremony more than a year ago. The decision set off a split that has cut attendance at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church in Lewistown, population 5,900. It has prompted an upcoming visit from the bishop of the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings. Paul Huff and Tom Wojtowick (WOY’-tah-wick) say they were stunned by the priest’s decision. The men have been in a committed relationship for more than 30 years. Wojtowick says they married so they can make medical and financial decisions for each other. The bishop he says he must uphold church teachings. VATICAN-MARRIAGE Pope creates panel to safeguard marriage bond VATICAN CITY (AP) β Pope Francis has created a commission to study how to safeguard what the church calls the “everlasting” bonds of marriage while streamlining annulment procedures. Vatican teaching, while forbidding divorce, allows Catholics to have marriages annulled if church tribunals rule that the unions weren’t valid in the first place and thus are void. Francis decided last month to establish a special commission to draft proposals on reforming church marriage law, but the Vatican only announced it on Saturday. The timing appears linked to a major Vatican gathering of bishops next month on family issues and appeals to allow divorced Catholics who remarry to receive Communion. The Vatican said the new commission will explore how to simplify the church’s complex annulments while safeguarding the principle that marriage is “everlasting.” INDIA-DALAI LAMA Dalai Lama says India a model of religious harmony NEW DELHI (AP) β The Dalai Lama says the enduring harmony between India’s many religions is proof to the world that different communities can live peacefully and solve problems together. The Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader has lived for decades in exile in India’s Himalayan foothill city of Dharamsala, after fleeing China following a failed 1959 uprising. He said Saturday that “India is the only country where all major world religions live together, not only in modern time, but over 1,000 years.” The Dalai Lama was speaking to leaders from nine religious groups invited for two days of meetings to mull some of India’s biggest problems, including poverty, attacks on women, environmental degradation and communal violence. He stressed that there was no justification for fighting in the name of faith, calling it “unthinkable.’ INDONESIA-GAMBLERS CANED 8 gamblers caned in Indonesia’s Aceh province BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) β Indonesian authorities have publicly caned eight men who were convicted of gambling in conservative Aceh (AH’-cheh) province. About a thousand people watched as the eight men were caned inside a mosque compound after Friday prayers in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh. An official said police arrested nine people who were gambling in July and seized about $130 in cash from them, but one could not be caned because of his health condition. A state prosecutor read out their punishment, and a masked man wearing robes used a thin rattan cane to whip their backs five times each. Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, has a policy of secularism but allows Aceh on the island of Sumatra to follow a version of Islamic Shariah law, which forbids gambling.
