Faith-based Media Monitoring: Week 14-20 October, 2013

• Spiritual and Religious Care Awareness Week, October 14 – 20, 2013; Theme: Healing Journey : Spiritual Responses to People in Crisis, Ontario Multifaith Council on Spiritual and Religious Care

• Spiritual and Religious Care Awareness Week - City of Brantford Ontario

• Poll: How often does your family attend a religious service?  
• Permission to be Casual – Next Week is Spirit Week! | UW-Green ...
• Catholic priests furloughed by government shutdown (See alos: Priest employed by government claims shutdown violates religious freedom @ kdvr) The Examiner
• Refuting the myth that Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot were atheists The Examiner
• COMMENTARY: Does refusal to wear a skullcap signal disrespect? By Jeffrey Weiss| Religion News Service     
• Steve Strang: Spiritual Lessons I Learned From My 85-Year-Old ...
• J&K Hight Court: Ban Religious Nationalists From Polls Kashmir Observer 
• Muslim families push for Montgomery school holiday San Francisco Chronicle
• Ambassador for a religious middle - Pope's danger is making church too mushy, By Ross Douthat — kentucky.com   
• Reading the Pew Study on American Jews
• Spirit Week October 7-11 - Prairie South School Division   
• Inside the Beltway: Seeking enlightened conservatism
• SPIRITUAL AWARENESS WEEK | Facebook  
• Fact Check: Does the Bible Really Condone Stoning? This week's subject is stoning  

Film and Dialogue: "Cracking the Codes: The System of Racial Inequity"

Tuesday, September 24, 2013 Meetup

5:30 PM to 8:30 PM

Saint Joseph's University

5600 City Avenue, Philadelphia, PA (map)

Campion Student Center Presidents Lounge

Cracking the Codes: The System of Racial Inequity

Film Screening and Dialogue Event 

Much more :  http://crackingthecodes.org/

Media and religion in the news -- Faithwise Review of the Week

• Hindu community outraged by Selena Gomez's bindi during MTV ... TheCelebrityCafe.com
• Selena Gomez wearing a bindi doesn't bother Toronto area Hindus Toronto Star
• WATCH LIVE: President Obama Speaks At (Interfaith) Memorial Service For Boston Marathon Bombing Victims, April 18, 2013 Mediaite -- or live here: Boston interfaith service KCRA Sacramento
• Boston Attack a Test Case for Interfaith Relationship Building Tikkun Daily
• Fethullah Gulen, Rumi Forum Honorary President, named in 2013 TIME magazine's 100 list, NEW YORK, April 18, 2013 PRNewswire-USNewswire
• Does the Media Need to Be Schooled in Religion? by ELISE HILTON on THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 2013Acton Institute Blog
• 5 Films That Have Put Christianity in a Really Good Light  policymic.com
• Cambodians React to a Sex Tape Involving a Buddhist Monk policymic.com
• Well, Saw That Coming: Westboro Baptist Church Plans to Picket Funerals Of Marathon Bombing Victims policymic.com
• Women Pray At the Annual Mormon Conference For the First Time in 183 Years policymic.com
• Pope Francis Cracks Down On U.S. Nuns For Caring Too Much About Social Justice policymic.com
• Fox Yanks 'Family Guy' Boston Marathon Episode policymic.com
• Pioneer photographer Deen Dayal provides a portrait of India: Siddiqui Toronto Star
• No Room for Non-Theists at Boston Interfaith Service, “We were blown off.” By Becky Garrison Religion Dispatches
• 10 Essential points about the Boston Marathon bombers, Islam, and America
  Omid Safi, Religion News
• All Terrorists are Muslims…Except the 94% that Aren’t loonwatch.com

Being Just in the love of the Prophet ~ Innocence of Muslims / Desert Warrior

Note: This post is continuously updated, modified on 3 Oct., 2012

Western defenders of ‘free speech’ need to look in the mirror, October 03, 2012, Toronto Star Haroon Siddiqui

The Arbitrary Limits to Freedom of Expression, Abubakar Kasim, Huffington Post, 10/01/2012

Why ban Kate’s images, but not Muhammed’s? The record (Kitchener, Waterloo), Sep 21 2012

Blasphemy in Islam: The Quran does not prescribe punishment for abusing the Prophet, by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan | Oct 2, 2012, The Times of India

Dr. Hamid Slimi discusses how the Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم‎ - Peace be upon him) would have responded to any matter, in times of trials, tribulations, and massive misinformation-- based on a Chapter of the Quran, Kausar (i.e., Surah # 108).

See also the sequel to the above khutba, "What did this Imam just say about Slander?..."

Extract from Sound Vision, Chicago:

"Let not the hatred of a people swerve you away from justice. Be just, for this is closest to righteousness…” (Quran 5:8). While Muslims love and deeply respect Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, others regularly heap abuse on him. Around the world, and here in the U.S., blogs, television shows, some preachers, commentary, and talking heads regularly insult our beloved Prophet and attack his character in ways that are very painful for Muslims to bear. We need to understand this abuse for what it is: a form of psychological violence intended to hurt and harm. Our response when we encounter such attacks must be to seek God’s forgiveness and respond with what is better: prayers on the Prophet and Duas for him. ... It’s also important to remember to just move on. We cannot allow these attacks to hurt us, for that is their very purpose. It’s also vital to keep in mind that you are limited in your responsibility for what you can do to counter these insults. You don’t control the world, you don’t change hearts. Try your best and then put your trust in Allah. That is all you are required to do. continue reading: Being Just in the love of the Prophet, By Abdul Malik Mujahid

On the same shelf:

Free speech vs. reverence for Muhammad: Can they coexist? -- did you know this CS article? Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor

Offensive Propaganda: The Aesthetics of an Islamic Response, Khalid's Blog

Some Muslims Don't Get It: Freedom of Speech and the Legitimacy of Muslim Protests, Mike Ghouse, Huffington Post

Muslims Invited to View Film on Muslim-Christian Relations in USA, By Imam By Habeeb Ali, Toronto

Interfaith groups react to anti-Muslim film, condemn violence abroad, By Samer Hijazi, The Arab American News

Stop Dehumanizing Muslims! By Abubakar N. Kasim

Montreal Muslims react to violence, call for calm and dialogue CTV Montreal

Moderate And Hardline Muslims Struggle Within Popular Rage Against Anti-Islam Film And America Huffington Post

Here Is the Original Script for Innocence of Muslims (Desert Warrior), Adrian Chen

Moderates in West must raise their voices: Haroon Siddiqui, Toronto Star

Cyber Worship Revisited - Need to sort out your sins? There's an app for that

Herald Tribune, Thu 10 Feb 2011

Can your iPad or iPhone bring you closer to God? A new application for the devices aims to help Roman Catholics who haven't been to the confessional booth in a while keep track of their sins, one Commandment at a time. The $1.99 "Confession: A Roman Catholic App" can't grant forgiveness -- you still need to receive the sacrament from a real, live priest like always. The app's designers and some believers see it as a way to spur Catholics back into the habit of repenting. "There's a reason we designed it for these mobile devices: We want you to go to confession," said Patrick Leinen, one of the developers and a co-founder of the company Little... continue reading: Herald Tribune,

More Online Confessions, Resources here:

Here is a sample from inside the Book: Cyber Worship in Multifaith Perspectives--full of resources that will facilitate building bridges in a Multifaith society. Table of Contents / Reviews

Chapter 2. 'Cyber Worship as-is On the Web'

Resource of the Week is: Museums of World Religions (see description, reviews, etc., page 70). Order with Publisher:

My book Talk

My related posts:

Special Issue from Religious Studies Review on Religion & Internet

Cybersins and Digital Good Deeds

Christian Librarianship

Web Vastu or A Spiritual Worldview for Marketing Website

Online - Heidelberg Journal of Religions on the Internet

Cyber Worship in Multifaith Perspectives

Coalition Calls for Boycott of Comedy Central Over Cartoon Depicting Jesus

By DAVE ITZKOFF, NYTimes.com, June 3, 2010
" A coalition of organizations that seek to promote what they see as religious values and family-friendly programming said on Thursday that they were calling on prospective sponsors to boycott advertising on a planned Comedy Central animated series that would satirize Jesus Christ.
The group, which calls itself the Citizens Against Religious Bigotry and includes leaders from the Media Research Center, the Catholic League and the Parents Television Council, said the series represented a double standard in light of the network’s decision to censor an episode of “South Park” that mocked the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam." continue reading

On the same shelf: UKRANIANS PROTEST AGAINST FRENCH CARTOON OF JESUS CHRIST

Jihad jitters at Comedy Central

Margaret Wente,, The Globe and Mail, The Globe and Mail

Why do we allow ourselves to be spooked?

What’s the lowest point in the history of American TV? The censorship of South Park could be it.
South Park is a hilarious, profane and potty-mouthed cartoon show that has been airing on The Comedy Network for nearly 14 years. This week’s Wednesday episode, featuring an irreverent treatment of the Prophet Mohammed, was altered by a frightened network. The network cancelled replays of the show and took it off the website. Episode 201 of South Park has officially ceased to exist.
The network did this in reaction to a single threat from a tiny group of nut-bars calling themselves Revolution Muslim. Here’s where things get surreal. This group was reacting to the episode of the week before – which dealt in a satirical way with threats over depicting the figure of Mohammed. continue reading: Jihad jitters at Comedy Central

Proselytization, admittedly, is fraught with complications - Thought for the day

By Michael Gerson, Friday, January 8, 2010 Washington Post:
"Proselytization, admittedly, is fraught with complications. We object to the practice when an unequal power relationship is involved -- a boss pressuring an employee. We are offended by brainwashing. Coercion and trickery violate the whole idea of free religious choice based on open discussion.

But none of this was present in Hume's appeal to Woods. A semi-retired broadcaster holds no unfair advantage over a multimillionaire athlete. Hume was engaged in persuasion.

"Persuasion, by contrast," argues political and social ethics professor Jean Bethke Elshtain, "begins with the presupposition that you are a moral agent, a being whose dignity no one is permitted to deny or to strip from you, and, from that stance of mutual respect, one offers arguments, or invites your participation, your sharing, in a community." 

The root of the anger against Hume is his religious exclusivity -- the belief, in Shuster's words, that "my faith is the right one." For this reason, according to Shales, Hume has "dissed about half a billion Buddhists on the planet." Continue reading: Brit Hume's Tiger Woods remarks shine light on true intolerance

Miracle or hoax? Russians puzzled as phrases from the Koran start appearing 'spontaneously' on baby's skin

Amazing Video3 Child Verse Koran Coran Enfant Russe

Extract from: Mail Foreign Service

"A baby is sparking a wave of speculation in Russia after phrases from the Koran allegedly began appearing on his skin.

Sayings from the Muslim holy book are said to appear on nine-month-old Ali Yakubov's back, arms, legs and stomach - before apparently fading away and being replaced with new sayings.

Russian medics claimed they are puzzled over the cause of the marks on a baby's skin, which started when the word Allah apparently appeared on his chin within weeks of his birth."

view pictures:

• Human Koran: Sacred sayings from the Muslim holy book apparently appear spontaneously on nine-month-old Ali Yakubov's body
• One of the markings on the child's skin, which medics and his family say are genuine apparitions

Read complete article: By Mail Foreign Service
Last updated at 10:17 PM on 19th October 2009

U.S. Views on God and Life Are Turning Hindu ~ Newsweek

We Are All Hindus Now

By Lisa Miller NEWSWEEK
Published Aug 15, 2009
From the magazine issue dated Aug 31, 2009

"America is not a Christian nation. We are, it is true, a nation founded by Christians, and according to a 2008 survey, 76 percent of us continue to identify as Christian (still, that's the lowest percentage in American history). Of course, we are not a Hindu—or Muslim, or Jewish, or Wiccan—nation, either. A million-plus Hindus live in the United States, a fraction of the billion who live on Earth. But recent poll data show that conceptually, at least, we are slowly becoming more like Hindus and less like traditional Christians in the ways we think about God, our selves, each other, and eternity." continue reading

on the same shelf:

• Newsweek says “We Are All Hindus Now”August 18th, 2009 - 11:02 am ICT by sampurn
• We are all Hindus now, so let's say 'Om': Newsweek, ZOPAG.com

Whatever has happened to Hell?

Note: Visualization of spirituality / secularism with a different mindmap, as depicted by Susan White in the following. Read the note by Dr. Kumar, below on this mindmap.

by Dr. Sehdev Kumar Editorial. SouthAsianObserver.com

Extract: In the spirit of emerging Gaia consciousness - the earth consciousness - an Australian artist, Susan White portrays Seven Deadly Sins in a modern version: Indifference replaces Anger; Sucking Up Envy; Self-Effacement Pride; Celibacy Lust; Dieting Gluttony; Workcoholism Sloth, and Squandering Avarice, all watched by the all-seeing eye of Gaia rather than of God.

Yet despite all, on life’s slippery slopes, at some tortuous moments, hell does become an unbearable reality for all of us in one form or another. The Pursuit of Happiness seems so often an illusion; we are tormented by the meaninglessness of life, and by its frailty, and by its unexpected twists and turns. Sweet fragrance turns sour; youth slips away; innocence becomes icy; spring seems far, far away. One then looks towards the door on Dante’s Inferno, and reads a sign: “Abandon all hope ye who enter here”.

Life without Hope! Could this be the meaning of Hell? continue reading

On the same shelf:

The 7 Deadly Sins Sampler ~ Daniel Born

Pride • Envy • Anger • Sloth • Greed • Gluttony • Lust

Solar eclipse scares Indian mothers-to-be

By Harmeet Shah Singh, CNN
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- While many now recognize the scientific explanation for a solar eclipse, the phenomenon is still marked with tradition and sometimes suspicion in Hindu-majority India. continue reading

Burial Space in the News - Think Globally and Sync Locally

Extract:
"In Europe and Asia, where people have been living and dying for a hell of a lot longer, traditional burial practices have given way to practical considerations. Grave plots are now commonly "rented'' for a fixed term, the remains later disinterred and placed in an ossuary or crypt. It's posthumous recycling, intended to prolong in perpetuity the "life cycle'' of a graveyard, which strikes me as an oxymoron.

In truth, if mortal congestion doesn't get you tossed from your mummy chamber, erosion, acts of God and global warming just might. I've seen, from flooding in New Orleans to earthquakes in Managua, entire cemeteries on the move. In Alaska, I watched ancient Inuit graves – originally dug far from the coastline – drop into the encroaching sea, no ice floe left to restrain wind and currents.

Some cultures have done us all a great favour by putting corpses to the torch as religious ritual. It's tidy and environmentally friendly. It's also becoming increasingly popular as a cost-conscious alternative in the West.

About half of Canadians now opt for cremation." continue reading: Burial space on my list of worries, by Rosie DiManno @ Toronto Star

Hindu-Christian wedlock invalid & Avoid cow slaughter, Today's headlines in India

Avoid cow slaughter on Eid-ul-Azha: Deoband to Muslims

"Leading Islamic seminary Dar-ul-Uloom has suggested to Muslims in the country that they avoid slaughtering cows on Eid-ul-Azha as a mark of respect to the religious beliefs of Hindus." Continue reading

Marriage between a Hindu and non-Hindu under Hindu Marriage Act not valid: High Court, Dec 31, 2010

Hindu-Christian wedlock invalid under Hindu Marriage Act
"Marriage between a Hindu and a Christian is invalid under the Hindu Marriage Act, as the Act provides for only Hindu couples to enter into a wedlock, the Supreme Court has ruled." continue reading

See also books @ Amazon on Hindu Marriage Act:

Nonviolence as a Tactic for Change

By Dan Tow • Feb 5th, 2008 • Category: Pakistan Vote'08, Worth A Second Look • (9,853 views) • 22 Comments

I have recently finished reading the excellent biography Benjamin Franklin, by Edmund S. Morgan. Franklin is my personal favorite among the Founding Fathers of the United States of America, an inspirational example, and, by all accounts, a delightful and brilliant human being. I can’t presume to speak for what Franklin, dead more than 200 years, would say on current events, but I found profound inspiration from this fine book, nonetheless, and let it be to Franklin’s credit if anything I say here rings true, and to my own discredit if it does not. continue reading

Sharia law could have UK role, says lord chief justice

Patrick Wintour and Riazat Butt
The Guardian,
Friday July 4, 2008

Britain's most senior judge reopened one of the most highly charged debates in Britain last night when he said he was willing to see sharia law operate in the country, so long as it did not conflict with the laws of England and Wales, or lead to the imposition of severe physical punishments.

The remarks by the lord chief justice, Lord Phillips, in a speech to the London Muslim Council yesterday, had a conscious echo of the comments made by the archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, in February who argued that sharia law could sometimes be used in Britain. continue reading the full story

Good Friday! Happy Purim, Narouz & Eid Milad Mubarak, Magha Puja

"Half the world's population is going to be celebrating something," says Raymond Clothey, Professor Emeritus of Religious studies at the University of Pittsburgh. "My goodness," says Delton Krueger, owner of interfaith calendar, who follows "14 major religions and six others." He counts 20 holidays altogether (including some religious double-dips, like Maundy Thursday and Good Friday) between the 20th (which is also quite crowded) and the 21st. He marvels: "There is no other time in 2008 when there is this kind of concentration."

See on the same shelf and aisle: Definitions of Religious Holiday Terms @ MikeGhouse.com

By DAVID VAN BIEMA WITH SIMON ROBINSON/NEW DELHI Fri Mar 21,

On Friday more than a billion Christians around the world will mark the gravest observance on their Calendar, Good Friday, the day Jesus died on the cross. (To be followed in two days by Easter Sunday, to mark his Resurrection).

But unlike some holy days - say, Christmas, which some non-Christians in the U.S. observe informally by going to a movie and ordering Chinese food - on this particular Friday, March 21, it seems almost no believer of any sort will be left without his or her own holiday. In what is statistically, at least, a once-in-a-millennium combination, the following will all occur on the 21st:

Purim, a Jewish festival celebrating the biblical book of Esther

Narouz, the Persian New Year, which is observed with Islamic elaboration in Iran and all the "stan" countries, as well as by Zoroastrians and Baha'is.

Eid Milad an Nabi, the Birth of the Prophet, which is celebrated by some but not all Sunni Muslims and, though officially beginning on Thursday, is often marked on Friday.

Small Holi, Hindu, an Indian festival of bonfires, to be followed on Saturday by Holi, a kind of Mardi Gras.

Magha Puja, a celebration of the Buddha's first group of followers, marked primarily in Thailand. AKA Sangha Day.

[Info courtesy: Davendra Gupta]

Solomon had left the building by Jim Coyle

... All of which suggests the board should probably purchase The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Bible, which says that "most people admit that when it comes to knowing what's between those covers, their comprehension is, well, holey."

So, as a public service, we offer the following handy test.

A notorious tree in the Garden of Eden bore: a) pomegranates b) kiwis c) papaya d) forbidden fruit.

Christ cast the money-changers out of the: a) Wal-Mart b) casino c) payday loan outlet d) temple.

The Tower of Babel was: a) the original Question Period b) the ancient world's tallest free-standing structure c) the birthplace of Don Cherry d) a multilingual construction project gone bad.

Christ fed multitudes with: a) lox and bagels b) super-sized fries c) curry takeout d) loaves and fishes.

Which of the following do not belong: a) The Good Samaritan b) The Sermon on the Mount c) The Raising of Lazarus d) George Bush.

Who called the Bible the source of "practically every good title you ever heard"? a) ABBA b) Madonna c) Liberace d) Hemingway.

extract from: Solomon had left the building - Toronto Star Jan 24, 2008 Jim Coyle

Religion and Violence, a webcast coming up from the National Cathedral

Explore the deep roots of religious conflict as a panel of prominent interfaith theologians illuminates each faith’s vocation as a force for peace—in ourselves, our families, our communities, and the world.

Join James Carroll, James H. Cone, Susannah Heschel, and Tariq Ramadan via live webcast from Trinity Wall Street, New York, as they address the paradox of the faithful raising prayers for peace, and discuss stories of religiously fueled violence filling the news. Participate in on-site interfaith discussions guided by local Jewish, Christian, and Muslim facilitators. To learn more about this event visit Trinity Institute. Continue reading

See also an interesting resource: A handbook for Muslim teens

Being a young Muslim in the US got much tougher after 9/11, so a brother-sister
team came up with a book to help peers in their faith.
By Jane Lampman Staff writer of The Christian
Science Monitor

NB. Information courtesy: Al Reynolds

The calendar of commercialism does not reflect our spiritual rhythms

Geoffrey Rowell , Times Online

Extract: "...Christians have not always kept new year on January 1 -that was the Roman new year, and the Church was often very suspicious of it. Only in 1582 did Pope Gregory XIII's reform of the calendar mean that January 1 was generally adopted.

Jews kept the new year at the Feast of the New Moon at the end of September.

England began the new year with the Feast of the Annunciation on March 25, and adopted January 1 only in 1752. Germany began with Christmas, and France and the Low Countries with Easter. The Orthodox East keeps New Year's Day on September 1. " continue reading