TheRepublic.com - Religious issues News

Egypt top court rules against religious slogans

Sat, 25 May 2013 14:58:56 -0400

CAIRO - Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court ruled on Saturday against parts of an election law approved by the Islamist-led legislature that had lifted a long-standing ban on the use of religious slogans during campaigning.

Newark Archdiocese leader resigns amid sex scandal

Sat, 25 May 2013 13:50:45 -0400

NEWARK, New Jersey - The second-highest official in the Archdiocese of Newark is stepping down in the wake of a sex scandal involving a former priest accused of violating an agreement with law enforcement barring him from working with children.

Female suicide bomber injures 18 in Russian region

Sat, 25 May 2013 12:09:23 -0400

MAKHACHKALA, Russia - A female suicide bomber blew herself up in the southern Russian region of Dagestan on Saturday, injuring at least 18, including two children and five police officers, authorities said. The attacker was later identified as a widow of two Islamic radicals killed by security forces.

Community outreach key to Obama counterterror plan

Sat, 25 May 2013 11:03:50 -0400

WASHINGTON - Within hours of the Boston Marathon blasts, government officials and Boston Muslims called each other to offer assistance, calls that were the fruits of years of cultivating such relationships in an effort to ultimately prevent the very type of attack Boston experienced April 15.

Russian police detain activists, foes at gay rally

Sat, 25 May 2013 10:43:05 -0400

MOSCOW - Gay-rights campaigners and their opponents clashed at an unsanctioned rally in the Russian capital on Saturday, but a heavy police presence in Ukraine kept the two sides apart at that country's first-ever gay pride march.

2-child limit for Muslims in parts of Myanmar

Sat, 25 May 2013 08:37:23 -0400

YANGON, Myanmar - Authorities in Myanmar's western Rakhine state have imposed a two-child limit for Muslim Rohingya families, a policy that does not apply to Buddhists in the area and comes amid accusations of ethnic cleansing in the aftermath of sectarian violence.

OH district ponders creationism for hot topic list

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:03:15 -0400

CINCINNATI - An Ohio school district proposal to add creationism to a hot-topics list deemed appropriate for classroom discussion is drawing opposition from some parents and a civil rights group.

Conservatives want to revive pro-religion bill

Fri, 24 May 2013 14:51:32 -0400

PHOENIX - GOP leaders want to revive a bill that would allow people to sue over infringements on religious freedom after it was vetoed by Republican Gov. Jan Brewer.

Tunisian feminist faces 6 months in prison

Fri, 24 May 2013 14:29:10 -0400

TUNIS, Tunisia - Amina Tyler, the 19-year-old Tunisian woman who scandalized many in the country by posting topless photos of herself online as a protest, could face six months in prison for her latest arrest, her lawyer said Friday.

Judge denies bid to delay Alamo property hearing

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:10:22 -0400

TEXARKANA, Arkansas - A federal magistrate has denied a bid by a follower of convicted evangelist Tony Alamo to delay the sale of six Fort Smith properties.

Q&A: On Turkey's proposed alcohol restrictions

Fri, 24 May 2013 11:15:19 -0400

ANKARA, Turkey - A look at legislation passed in Turkey's parliament early Friday that would ban all alcohol advertising and tighten restrictions on the sale of such beverages, and how such a law could affect tourists and liquor companies in the mainly Muslim but secular country.

Boy Scouts-Mormon bond remains intact

Fri, 24 May 2013 05:34:45 -0400

SALT LAKE CITY - When the Boy Scouts of America began a discussion earlier this year about lifting its ban on gays, some speculated it could lead to the severing of ties with the Mormon church that goes back 100 years.

Foreign preacher takes rare turn on Vietnam stage

Fri, 24 May 2013 05:16:31 -0400

HANOI, Vietnam - The 25,000 people at the soccer stadium and the millions more watching at home waited 90 minutes before the Australian evangelical preacher got to the message he had come to Communist-ruled Vietnam to deliver.

Turkey passes bill restricting alcohol sales, ads

Fri, 24 May 2013 03:22:50 -0400

ANKARA, Turkey - Turkey's parliament has passed legislation to ban all advertising of alcohol and tighten restrictions on sales in the mainly Muslim but secular country.

Hawaii woman sues Salvation Army, claims sex abuse

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:26:38 -0400

HONOLULU - A woman's lawsuit against the Salvation Army claims she was molested by a minister as a child in the late 1950s and that when the organization found out, he was simply moved from Oahu to Maui.

Brewer vetoes 5 bills in latest budget standoff

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:17:53 -0400

PHOENIX - Gov. Jan Brewer sent lawmakers a message Thursday: Don't mess with me.

US criticized over response to Indonesia attacks

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:33:55 -0400

WASHINGTON - The U.S. expressed concern Thursday over increased attacks on religious minorities in Indonesia, but human rights groups accused Washington of downplaying the problem as it looks to forge stronger relations with Jakarta.

New Minn. law allows more childhood abuse lawsuits

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:01:24 -0400

ST. PAUL, Minnesota - Adults who suffered childhood sexual abuse and want to file lawsuits against both abusers and the institutions that employed them will have greater access to Minnesota's court system under a bill awaiting Gov. Mark Dayton's signature.

Christian Brothers reach deal in US abuse claims

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:52:37 -0400

NEW YORK - The Christian Brothers have agreed to pay more than $16 million to people who were molested as children by members of the U.S. religious order.

Review clears Davenport priest accused of touching

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:53:56 -0400

IOWA CITY, Iowa - A suspended Catholic priest in Davenport has been reinstated after a diocese investigation did not substantiate an allegation that he inappropriately touched a minor in 1990, a bishop announced Thursday.

Imprisoned Ohio Amish may skip high school classes

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:55:11 -0400

CLEVELAND - Amish imprisoned in beard-cutting attacks on fellow Amish in Ohio have been granted a religious freedom exemption from a requirement to attend high school equivalency classes behind bars.

2011 jail breaks become political issue in Egypt

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:40:39 -0400

CAIRO - It was one of the most perplexing events of Egypt's revolution: orchestrated attacks on prisons around the country that broke out more than 20,000 inmates while police were tied down with the massive popular protests that swept autocrat Hosni Mubarak from power.

Afghan students protest women's rights decree

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:38:35 -0400

KABUL, Afghanistan - Hard-line Islamist students protested in the Afghan capital demanding the repeal of a presidential decree for women's rights that they say is un-Islamic. It was the latest sign of a backlash against the legal protections passed in the 12 years since the toppling of the Taliban regime known for its harsh treatment of women.

Kerry: US, allies ready to step up aid to rebels

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:04:42 -0400

AMMAN, Jordan - The U.S. and several key allies looked again Wednesday for a strategy to end Syria's civil war, their united efforts unable at the moment to stem the Assad regime's military gains and Washington still unwilling to join those providing the rebels with lethal military aid.

Arizona Senate advances bills for religious groups

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:43:19 -0400

PHOENIX - A little religion could soon go a long way in avoiding unpopular government mandates.