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August 2008
- The Real Loser at the Pastor Rick-Quisition: America
  
  Washington Post | Aug 20, 08 1:35 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Discussion of whether John McCain or Barack Obama "won" Saturday’s Saddleback inquisition misses the point, Kathleen Parker writes in the Washington Post . When the presidential candidates are publicly interrogated on their beliefs by a minister, even one as exemplary as Rick Warren, the only winner is the minister—and the biggest loser is America. More »
- It's Obama's World, But McCain Has a Foothold
  
  Washington Post | Aug 18, 08 2:15 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - John McCain seemed personal, clear, and passionate. Barack Obama seemed nuanced, composed, and competent. So who won? Dueling Washington Post op-eds come down on either side. Consummate Washington insider Sally Quinn argues that Rick Warren's serial interviews weren't a debate, meaning there can't be a winner. But the candidates presented dueling visions of the world. More »
- Candidates Score in Pastor Rick-a-thon
  
  National Review | Aug 17, 08 12:43 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Pastor Rick stressed that last night's Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency wasn't a debate, but that won't stop the pundits from deciding who came out ahead: Byron York, of the National Review , sees the night as a big win for McCain, who's had a "much bigger life." More »
- Candidates Bound for Spiritual Showdown
  
  Christian Science Monitor | Aug 15, 08 4:36 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The presidential candidates will put their spiritual views on display tomorrow night, appearing with Rick Warren, the country's most popular pastor, at his megachurch in California. The back-to-back 1-hour interviews are clear signs of both the importance of religion in the campaign and the emergence of a new type of evangelical preacher, the Christian Science Monitor reports. More »
- Young Evangelical Vote Is Up For Grabs
  
  Washington Post | Aug 15, 08 12:29 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - When Barack Obama and John McCain meet with pastor Rick Warren tomorrow, they’ll be fighting for the future of an increasingly split evangelical voting block, the Washington Post reports. Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, is at the forefront of a movement rippling through young evangelicals and prompting them to focus on issues outside the normal Republican purview, like AIDS, poverty, and climate change. More »
July 2008
- Evangelicals Fall for Obama's Line
  
  American Spectator | Jul 29, 08 6:40 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Barack Obama talks such a good game that he may fool a sizable contingent of evangelicals into supporting him, David N. Bass writes in the right-wing American Spectator. "Unlike past Democratic presidential nominees, he's not schizoid when it comes to talking about his own faith (which, admittedly, is a clash between the bizarre and the watered-down)," Bass writes. More »
- Paper Runs Obama's Western Wall Prayer
  
  Associated Press | Jul 25, 08 3:10 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The prayer Barack Obama put in Jerusalem’s Western Wall yesterday was removed by a Jewish seminary student and published in a local newspaper, the AP reports. It read, “Lord—Protect my family and me. Forgive me my sins, and help me guard against pride and despair. Give me the wisdom to do what is right and just. And make me an instrument of your will.” More »
- Judaism's Black Converts Growing Part of US Mosaic
  
  Christian Science Monitor | Jul 17, 08 8:55 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The number of African-Americans converting to Judaism is growing, the Christian Science Monitor reports, at a time when Democrat Barack Obama is seeking to renew what was once a strong alliance between the groups. Politics, though, plays a small role; "Obama's candidacy, African-Americans choosing to be Jews ... is all part of the great American story of freedom and choice," one observer says. More »
- Dubai Cracks Down on Nude Tourists
  
  Associated Press | Jul 15, 08 6:38 AM CDT
  
  (AP) - It hasn't been all fun and games for Western vacationers on Dubai beaches, thanks to decency police who have detained 79 people in recent days for topless sunbathing and nudity, AP reports. The Muslim city-state is attracting hordes of foreign sun seekers, who are being scrutinized by cops on the ground and in beach watchtowers. Detained vacationers were "disturbing families," said a Dubai spokesman. More »
- Heckler Halts Gay Bishop's London Sermon
  
  Independent (UK) | Jul 14, 08 10:06 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - He was uninvited to the Anglican Church's big, once-a-decade Lambeth Conference next week, but New Hampshire’s gay Episcopal bishop decided cheerfully to go anyway, to be a “constant and friendly reminder” of gays in the sect. Not so cheerful was the heckler who interrupted his sermon in London last night, calling the Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson a heretic and blaming him for the church’s division over homosexuality, the Independent reports. More »
- The Gospel According to Jefferson
  
  Los Angeles Times | Jul 6, 08 4:55 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Thomas Jefferson cut and pasted together his own New Testament, removing everything he refused to believe—like miracles and the resurrection of Jesus, the Los Angeles Times reports. Dubbed the Jefferson Bible, it reflects his deist belief that God created the universe and let it run on its own. But Jefferson revered Jesus' teachings as a "sublime and benevolent code of morals." More »
- Bush Edits Jefferson on Religion
  
  Science Blogs | Jul 5, 08 11:00 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Thomas Jefferson may be a founding father, but that doesn’t stop President Bush’s speechwriters from editing his words as they see fit, Ed Brayton writes on his blog, Dispatches from the Culture Wars. In a July 4 speech, Bush recited a famous Jefferson quote on “the blessings and security of self-government,” but took a crucial “anti-religious statement” out of the sentence. More »
- Obama Calls for Faith-Based Aid Expansion
  
  Associated Press | Jul 1, 08 1:43 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Barack Obama today called for even more federal dollars for President Bush’s initiative funding faith-based social service groups, the AP reports. His plan will let the groups hire and fire based on religion, a controversial move that's part of an organized effort to court evangelical voters. The candidate says he wants to make the program a “moral center” of his presidency. More »
June 2008
- Candidates Exploit Muslim-Jewish Divide
  
  Los Angeles Times | Jun 26, 08 6:05 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The presidential candidates are ignoring—even insulting—American Muslims in the hope of grabbing the Jewish vote, write Salam Al-Marayati and Steven B. Jacobs in the Los Angles Times . McCain and Obama have on several occasions snubbed Muslims, who seem to be the victims of modern McCarthyism—just substitute terrorism for communism. It's a "disturbing trend" that must stop, write the co-members of an interfaith peace group. More »
- Evangelical Dobson Slams Obama
  
  Associated Press | Jun 24, 08 12:23 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - One of the country's most prominent evangelical leaders says Barack Obama is "distorting the traditional understanding of the Bible to fit his own world view," the AP reports. Focus on the Family head James Dobson recorded an 18-minute screed that was released ahead of his radio show today, accusing Obama of “dragging biblical understanding through the gutter.” More »
- Muslims Disappointed as Obama Keeps Distance
  
  New York Times | Jun 24, 08 8:06 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Barack Obama’s campaign, welcomed by Muslim Americans as a harbinger of religious tolerance and a more diplomatic foreign policy, has been reluctant to return their enthusiasm, the New York Times reports, leaving some leaders disappointed and angry. The candidate has appeared at churches and synagogues, but no mosques; aides asked the country's first Muslim congressman not to campaign for him; and campaign volunteers barred Muslim women wearing headscarves from standing behind Obama at a rally. More »
- Rumors From Vatican: Bush May Convert
  
  Daily Telegraph (UK) | Jun 14, 08 1:45 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - President Bush visited Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican yesterday, sparking rumors that the president may convert to Catholicism, the Telegraph reports. They spoke in a garden where the pontiff prays daily, not in the library where Benedict greets most world leaders. “What an honor!” said Bush, who has been called the most “Catholic-minded” president since JFK. More »
- Quietly, McCain Makes Overtures to Evangelicals
  
  New York Times | Jun 9, 08 7:32 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - John McCain faces a challenge uncommon among GOP presidential candidates: rallying evangelical Christians to vote for him. As the New York Times reports, the McCain campaign is holding meetings with evangelical leaders and blasting them with emails, but many are still taking a wait-and-see approach. And McCain's lack of rapport with religious conservatives was exacerbated by his recent rejection of endorsements of the Rev. John Hagee and the Rev. Rod Parsley. More »
- S. Carolina Raises a Fuss With Religious Vanity Plates
  
  New York Times | Jun 6, 08 9:25 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - South Carolinians will soon be able to put Jesus on their bumper. A new law went into effect yesterday requiring the state’s Motor Vehicles Department to produce cross-adorned “I Believe” license plates, the New York Times reports. But the plates aren’t kosher with the American Jewish Congress or the ACLU, which are contemplating suing the state. More »
May 2008
- Dumping Pastors Is Gamble For McCain
  
  Washington Post | May 29, 08 4:41 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - By rejecting endorsements from influential pastors John Hagee and Rod Parsley, John McCain might have alienated evangelical voters, a key Republican electoral bloc. If they “feel this is an attack on them,” one consultant told the Washingon Post, “even if they don't agree with Parsley and Hagee or follow them, it could galvanize them against McCain." More »