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Pulled CIA ads undermine Muslim outreachBy Suzanne Kelly, CNN (CNN)– It's likely not the kind of public relations within the Muslim community that the CIA was aiming for, but when the Arab American News published a recent wire story that was critical of the agency and some of its believed operations in the community, something strange happened. "We received an email from the advertising agency which handles the CIA's account," publisher Osama Siblani said. "The agency sent an email saying that the CIA wanted to remove their ads immediately for undisclosed reasons. I said 'OK, capture the front page in a picture and let's make the request to the webmaster to remove it.' They would not even wait. They want the ads to be removed immediately without a delay." The ads seeking linguists interested in working for the agency were undoubtedly strategically placed in the Dearborn, Michigan, newspaper, which serves greater Detroit's Muslim community. Read the full story from CNN's Security ClearanceMore than 1,000 turn out for multifaith 9/11 eventBy Mary Grace Lucas, CNN Washington (CNN) - More than 1,000 people of various faiths gathered Sunday for a unique religious "open house" event as a way to commemorate 9/11 and to get to know each other's faiths. The 9/11 Unity Walk, now in its seventh year, drew diverse participants from across the United States to engage with each other at 13 different houses of worship along Washington's Embassy Row. The walk began with a symbolic Muslim call to prayer from the podium in the Washington Hebrew Congregation temple and included one of America's most prominent Muslims, Sheikh Hamza Yusuf Hanson, as a featured speaker. An American-born Muslim, Yusuf helped co-found the Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California, and is a leader in the Muslim intellectual community. Speaking to CNN before the event, Yusuf talked of lessons learned in the decade since September 11, 2001. Read the full story here.![]() Christian activist Shane Claiborne teamed up with Ben Cohen, of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream, for a presentation on militarism and ice cream. Jesus, bombs and ice creamBy Sarah Hoye, CNN Philadelphia (CNN) - An unlikely pairing took to the stage Saturday in front of a sold out audience at World Café Live to promote peace and ice cream. Multi-faith 9/11 prayer vigil calls for toleranceBy Mary Grace Lucas, CNN Washington (CNN) - Hundreds gathered in Washington Sunday to share an interfaith moment together in remembrance of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The morning vigil service, planned over months by staff at the Washington National Cathedral, integrated chants, prayers, music and traditions from across the religious spectrum. The event was one of several organized by the Washington National Cathedral over the weekend. "We feel like our events say to the world that faith is an element [of commemorating 9/11]," said Steven Schwab, spokesman for Washington National Cathedral. ![]() Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf said the 'Ground Zero Mosque' is moving forward at Interfaith event on Friday. 'Ground Zero Mosque' moving forwardBy Heather M. Higgins, CNN New York (CNN) - While all eyes are on lower Manhattan, nearly 200 people gathered more than 100 blocks north of Ground Zero on Friday night to honor 9/11 families and to recognize a decade of interfaith work at the Interchurch Center. "Tonight we want to commemorate the event and we are going to honor 10 families who lost victims on 9/11. Five are Muslim, five are not Muslim, to show that we share the pain, we share the hope, we share the prayer," said Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. He hosted the event, In Good Faith: Stories of Hope and Resilience, along with the American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA) and the Interchurch Center. September 11 raised the profile of Islam in the U.S. and, according to Rauf, it caused the Western world to pay attention in a way that made Muslims the subject of intense suspicion. His goal is to build an American Muslim identity and enhance multi-faith dialogue. Explaining the 9/11 ceremony controversyBy Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN) - The controversy continues in New York over how to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11. On Thursday, HLN's Joy Behar tackled the issue with a priest, a rabbi and an imam. Religious leaders from across the spectrum have criticized the city's decision not to include clergy or any formal prayer, saying faith played an important role in the recovery from the tragedy. Gay priest was 9/11's first recorded casualtyBy Dan Gilgoff, CNN.com Religion Editor You may not hear a lot about gay Roman Catholic priests. But one such clergyman is getting a lot of attention this week: Father Mychal Judge, a Franciscan friar who donned a brown robe and sandals and who was the first recorded casualty of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. Among the many hats Judge wore was as chaplain for the New York Fire Department. He was killed after going to the World Trade Center with some off-duty firefighters after the first plane hit. ![]() Clergy will be taking the pulipt looking to give answers to hard questions on the ten year anniversary of 9/11. With 9/11 anniversary on a Sunday, pastors prepare their sermonsBy Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN) - The details of the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the plane crash in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, will be remembered at length this week. What, when, how and who will dominate the headlines. As people across the country head to churches, temples and mosques this weekend, they will once again wonder why. They will look to the pulpit and listen for an answer. This week, clergy of all faiths are preparing answers as their congregants ask why 9/11 happened, how it should be remembered and what their response should be as they go out from their sacred space and back into the secular. Muslim outreach since 9/11 does little to improve U.S. imageBy Elise Labott and Jill Dougherty, CNN (CNN) - Support for Islamic extremism has seen a very significant decline since the terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. By the time Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. Navy Seals in May, he and his al Qaeda network had been largely discredited in the Arab and Muslim world. But with a few exceptions, the Muslim world's image of the United States is still pretty awful. How did we end up here – not much better than we were before 9/11? Read the full story about the United States' Muslim outreach on CNN's Security Clearance blog |
![]() ![]() 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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