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Chick-fil-A controversy shines light on restaurant's Christian DNABy Dan Gilgoff, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor The ongoing Chick-fil-A flap - which has gay rights groups blasting the restaurant chain for donating food to an anti-gay marriage group - may be a fleeting controversy for a privately held company that is more accustomed to fiercely loyal patrons and generally positive press coverage. But Lake Lambert, author of the book Spirituality Inc., says the flap may be a sign of more turbulence ahead for Chick-fil-A as it attempts to hold onto its conservative Christian business culture while expanding its chain beyond the Bible Belt. “If you have a faith-based corporate identity and you want to function in the national marketplace, you’re going to continue to encounter resistance to those values because not everybody is going to share them,” says Lambert. “The only other option is some sort of secular identity and that’s not where Chick-fil-A is going.” New imam quits embattled Islamic community centerBy Allan Chernoff, CNN A Park51 imam announced his resignation Friday, just three weeks after being appointed to his post at the embattled Islamic community center in New York, according to a written statement Friday. "I wish the project leaders well," said Imam Adhami, saying he needed more time to complete a book meant to assist English readers in understanding the Quran. His resignation comes on the heels of a controversial post on his website, sakeenah.org, in which he claimed that "an enormously overwhelming percentage of people struggle with homosexual feeling because of some form of violent emotional or sexual abuse at some point in their life." Philadelphia archdiocese raising funds for burials in abortion caseBy Sarah Hoye, CNN Philadelphia (CNN) - The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is collecting donations in an effort to pay for the burial of fetal remains found in the clinic of a doctor who is accused of killing newborn babies during illegal abortions. Such a burial will have to wait, though, prosecutors say, because the remains are evidence in the case against Dr. Kermit Gosnell. "It's an extremely unusual case and unusual request," said Tasha Jamerson, spokeswoman for Philadelphia District Attorney's Office. Read the full story on the archdiocese raising funds for burialsFriday brings prayers amid protests in EgyptFriday's huge "Day of Departure" protests in Cairo, Egypt coincided with Friday afternoon prayers, the most important of the week for Muslims. It was the second Friday in a row that Egyptian protest organizers used Friday prayers as launch events for huge demonstrations. Taking questions for Tony BlairCNN is scheduled to sit down with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Monday at his faith foundation headquarters in London. Since leaving office in 2007, Blair has devoted much of his time to faith-based work, launching the Tony Blair Faith Foundation to promote interfaith efforts (it was his first big initiative after stepping down), leading a course in religion and globalization at Yale University and partnering with American faith leaders like the Rev. Rick Warren on issues like fighting poverty. Lunar New Year: year of the rabbitThe Lunar New Year begins, bringing in the Year of Rabbit. CNN's Pauline Chiou reports. |
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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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