By Arielle Hawkins, CNN
Here's the Belief Blog’s morning rundown of the top faith-angle stories from around the United States and around the world. Click the headlines for the full stories.
From the Blog:
First on CNN: Who’s delivering prayers at the DNC
President Barack Obama has a penchant for using high-profile prayer givers to send messages to the nation. The Obama campaign sent us a list of who will be delivering the opening and closing prayers each day at this week’s Democratic National Convention. Here’s a cheat sheet of who the prayer givers are – and why they matter:
CNN: Desmond Tutu says Blair, Bush should be 'made to answer' for Iraq
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu said Sunday that Tony Blair and George W. Bush should be "made to answer" at the International Criminal Court for their actions around the Iraq war.
Tweet of the Day:
[tweet https://twitter.com/theResurgence/status/242617961590960128%5D
Belief on TV:
Enlightening Reads:
Washington Post: Muslims look for mates in D.C. at annual speed-dating event
The swelling crowd of several hundred single Muslim men and women at the Renaissance Washington hotel meant the evening of speed dating and socializing known as the Matrimonial Banquet was about to begin. The banquet has been part of the annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) in some form or another for more than two decades, said the group’s matrimonial assistant, Tabasum Ahmad. But in recent years, the demand for such banquets has increased, and the society plans to hold them more frequently. More Muslims are embracing them as an acceptable alternative to arranged marriages and the vagaries of 21st-century, American-style dating.
Huffington Post: Russian Christians Overrun Museum Of Erotic Art In Moscow: 'We Couldn't Tolerate It'
Ever since punk rock provocateurs Pussy Riot protested President Vladimir Putin near a church altar in Moscow, a segment of Russia's conservative Christians have made it their mission to disrupt the country's contemporary art world. Now the aggression has turned - not surprisingly - to Moscow's naughtiest art house, the Museum of Erotic Art. The Moscow Times reports the museum received a late night visit this week from a group the museum director Alexander Donskoi called "Orthodox militants."
JTA: N.Y. rabbis decry upcoming vote on consent waiver for circumcision-related rite
Haredi Orthodox rabbis in New York are accusing the city's Department of Health of "spreading lies" in order to pass a law mandating that parents sign a consent waiver in order to use a controversial circumcision-related rite. The health department is scheduled to vote next week on the waiver for the use of direct oral-genital suction, known as metzitzah b'peh. The form would indicate that parents are aware of the risk of infection.
Haaretz: With help of popular taboo-breaking book, Haredim teach children about sexual abuse
The success of a new book aimed at helping ultra-Orthodox parents teach their children how to protect themselves from sexual abuse is a strong indication that a community once reluctant to acknowledge the crime is now beginning to face reality. The book, "Mutav Lehizaher K'dei lo Lehitzta'er" (which translates roughly as "Better Safe Than Sorry"), published privately by Ella Bargai and Nitai Melamed, appears to be making significant progress in making the issue less of a taboo topic within the Haredi world.
Opinion of the Day:
CNN: My Take: Moon’s death marks end of an era
Eileen Barker, professor emeritus of sociology of religion at the London School of Economics, explains the significance of Rev. Sun Myung Moon’s death. Rev. Moon, founder of the Unification Church, was “the last surviving charismatic leader of the wave of religious movements that spread throughout California and the rest of the West in the 1970s and ’80s.”
Join the conversation…
CNN: Can Mitt Romney’s evangelical ambassador seal the deal before Election Day?
The task of selling a Mormon presidential candidate to evangelical America has fallen to a public relations man who’s not even getting paid for what may be the toughest sales job of his career. For six years, Mark DeMoss has served as Mitt Romney’s unofficial evangelical ambassador, making the case that born-again Christians should help elect the first Mormon to the White House.
Bishop Tutu,
I salute you!
Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Condie Rice, John Ashcroft, Alberto Gonzales, John Bolton, Paul Wolfowitz,
Doug Feith, David Wurmser, are all guilty of crimes against humanity and should be tried at the World Court. Life in
prison without the possiblity of parole is a just sentence following conviction. The blood of the men, women and child victims
cries and wails for justice...let be so! Gather the witnesses and compile the evidence NOW!
Best,
Douglas
Prayer changes things
I'm sorry "Atheism is not healthy for children and other living things", but you assertions regarding atheism and prayer are unfounded. I see that you repeat these unfounded statements with high frequency. Perhaps the following book might help you overcome this problem:
I'm Told I Have Dementia: What You Can Do... Who You Can Turn to...
by the Alzheimer's Disease Society
Let your kids be all that they can be. Just teach them that there are:
1. Things we know that are unfounded and most likely political sales literature from the beginning of mankind (all religions); and
2. Things that we don't know a damn thing about (god/deities).
An agnostic approach regarding deities keeps us honest about what we don't know anything about, but also prevents unfounded junk from #2 above (religion) from dirtying up our rational thinking on the matter.
So instead of praying to make-believe characters and trying to get others to follow the political garbage from long ago, just sit down, put on some good jazz, and collect you damn thoughts. My goodness.
I am mama kindless and I approve this message.
http://www.cgg.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Library.sr/CT/ARTB/k/1186/Gnosticism-False-Knowledge.htm
@agnostic...
nope
God’s word said, “Robert, you are a sinner.” I said, “yes, I am. I am guilty.” God’s word said, “the penalty of sin is death. Jesus paid your penalty when he died on the cross.” I said, “thank you.”
@robert: "God’s word said, “Robert, you are a sinner.” I said, “yes, I am. I am guilty.” God’s word said, “the penalty of sin is death. " i said, damn i need to stop drinking before bed, that was one he11 of a nightmare.................crazy bum preacher down the street talking to me about imaginary people.
YICKS! ROFLMFAO
++
http://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Topical.show/RTD/CGG/ID/6116/Skepticism.htm
If the penalty for sinning against your fake god is death, then when we die we are all paid up and no longer sinners.
You say Jesus paid for all our sins, but we still die.
Jesus fail.
Objection>>>>>>>>Your presumption about Jesus fails. Experiences of death are the same for everyone? Could they be different? How would you know what death is like? Do all people experience death? Does suffering automatically accompany death? How many deaths have you witnessed exactly?
@Jesus Failed Because He was a LIAR
Your handle tells more about your understanding and beliefs than your post. The death penalty for sin is not only the death of the body but eternal separation from the creator. Faith allows you to live spiritually, now and forever.
I see Robert Brown speaks not truth but falsehoods.
Robert Brown, the Bible has been proven false over and over. Do you deny this truth?
You are not a Jew, and Jesus was a Jew. Jesus spoke only to other Jews. Do you deny this characterization of your "god"?
Paul is the one who introduced the idea that Jesus would be fine with non-Jews. Do you deny this as well?
The Council of Nicea was formed to rewrite and narrowly define the religious narrative you follow so blindly.
Do you deny it?
Facts stare you in the face every time you go to church. Facts you deny because they do not fit in with your imaginary "god" and your biased view of everything. You look through the filter of your bias, never questioning the fact that it does not work and is not true.
Deny what you will. You have no choice, do you? You can only respond as you have been programmed to respond.
Skepticism helps us avoid errors.
"It isn’t what people don’t know that hurts them. It’s what they do know that just ain’t so."
Will Rogers
That Will was one smart and witty dude.
http://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Topical.show/RTD/CGG/ID/6116/Skepticism.htm
The very small rock says it was here first. I am inclined to agree.
Better you than the usual "first-poster" on the daily speed-read.
The very small rock thanks you.
We can stay here, it says, but only as part of a natural process subject to all environmental effects, which are quite likely to result in our extinction if we do not contribute to our mutual protection.
Otherwise it says it will ask us to leave.
As there will not be any interstellar life boats for some time, I will put the light music back on once again.
Well, if and when we have to leave, then we thank you (in advance) for all the fish.
We were not aware you were a dolphin. The very small rock was speaking to humanity and I am human, so I used the words "we" and "our" in the previous post in a reference to me and all other humans.
We apologize for the misunderstanding. Neither I, nor the very small rock, expected to see a dolphin posting here.
The bartender says "We don't serve time travellers here".
Marduk and a very small rock walk into a bar.