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August 16th, 2010
04:26 PM ET
August 16th, 2010
04:18 PM ET
My Take: Bloomberg and Obama doing the right thing near near ground zero
By Stephen Prothero, Special to CNN After 9/11 there was a chance that the American public might call for a war on Islam, and that American politicians might heed that call. But President Bush demonstrated leadership. Although he would have gained political capital among his born-again Christian base by attacking Islam, he insisted that our fight was not against Islam but against evil. In rhetoric that would now be considered impolitic even among liberal Democrats, President Bush said that Islam is a peaceful religion—“a faith based upon love, not hate,” adding that “America rejects bigotry. We reject every act of hatred against people of Arab background or Muslim faith.”
August 16th, 2010
08:00 AM ET
The mosque already standing near ground zero
[cnn-video url= http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2010/08/15/candiotti.other.mosque.cnn%5D
While controversy engulfs a proposed Islamic center and mosque near ground zero, CNN's Susan Candiotti reports that another mosque has quietly stood nearby for decades.
August 16th, 2010
07:00 AM ET
My Take: President Obama's assault on Americans' first freedom
By Tony Perkins, Special to CNN President Obama has shifted centuries of U.S. diplomatic parlance. We no longer speak of freedom of religion; now, it is only freedom of worship that our government defends. This is a radical departure, one that threatens to make true religious liberty vulnerable, conditional and limited. As some have said, it is a freedom "only within four walls." That is, you are free to worship within the four walls of your home, church or synagogue, but when you enter the public square or go abroad, leave your religion at home. In international forums, President Obama and Secretary Clinton repeatedly have retreated to this "freedom of worship" formulation. This is no accident. |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Editor's Note: Stephen Prothero, a Boston University religion scholar and author of "God is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions that Run the World," is a regular CNN Belief Blog contributor.
Editor's Note: Tony Perkins is President of the 
