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I wrote yesterday about Pope Benedict XVI’s speech to the diplomatic corps, in which he called for a focus on religious liberty. That didn’t get much news coverage, but guess what is! That’s right, remarks that Pope Benedict XVI didn’t even make. And such is the state of affairs in reporting on the pontiff.
I have a bit of an embarrassing confession to make: Before she died Sunday, I’d never heard the name Debbie Friedman.
Christians are by no means the only ones targeted by Pakistan’s blasphemy laws. Agence France-Presse informs readers that an imam and his son were recently convicted under the law:
Earlier this week, my husband sent me a random YouTube video because it was from the Columbus Dispatch where I interned once upon a time. It only had a few thousand hits, but I bet at the time that the YouTube video would probably get the homeless man a job. Little did I know that the man with a “golden voice” would explode into the viral video of the week, leading to a film offer with Jack Nicholson, a job offer from the Cleveland Cavaliers and a reunion with his mother on the NBC’s Today show. Now Ted Williams is dealing with the “choking” publicity and says that he feels like Susan Boyle or Justin Bieber.
At the start of each Congress, the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate are sworn into office. Each member swears or affirms an oath to support the Constitution, per Article 6 of said Constitution (“The Senators and Representatives before mentioned … shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution.”) Since 1789, members have taken this oath. The current oath has been in use since the 1860s and goes like this:
Remember Father Alberto Cutie, a.k.a. “Father Oprah”? He was the, ahem, “hunky” and popular Miami priest and media personality who was caught in some rather compromising tabloid photos gallivanting on a beach with one of his parishioners. It was a big scandal at the time — it even made the New York Times. Well, guess what — he’s back!
I love visiting New York City. Riding the subway trains and maneuvering the bustling streets, I always am amazed at the diversity of people and languages. At the Manhattan Church of Christ, where I have worshiped a few times, the 43 birth nations of active members range from China to Cuba, Germany to Guyana, Japan to Jamaica.
