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On July 12, chaplain Rajan Zed of Reno, Nev., became the first Hindu to deliver an opening prayer in the U.S. Senate.
I imagine what he would have experienced had he volunteered to give the opening prayer at a local municipal meeting.

Would those wanting to pray in the name of Jesus, as local people are asking the High Point City Council, be more respectful as they are advocating that people be able to pray to whomever they want? Or would Christians here, out of respect, resist the temptation to disrupt what they see as another's "idol" worship?

"Cops face a tough dilemma. If they do too little, they risk letting something horrible happen to a child -- and enraging a community that will be hard-pressed to understand why someone on law-enforcement’s radar could get away with a crime. If the police act too quickly, they might violate the civil liberties of a law-abiding citizen, no matter how repugnant to community standards his predilections might be."

If we admit it, there are times when we want the police to just "do something," even if it is unethical.

A group called the Invincible America Assembly insist they have America's prosperity under control and their positive vibes will bring fewer hurricanes and better U.S.-North Korean relations.

Through group transcendental meditation the assembly — which has 1,800 people meditating daily in Iowa since it was formed in July 2006 — releases harmonious waves which benefit all aspects of U.S. life, spokesman Bob Roth told Reuters

"Doctors are becoming more assertive in refusing to treat patients for religious reasons, expanding the list of services they won't provide beyond abortion to include artificial insemination, use of fetal tissues and even prescribing Viagra."

Join this to the discussion of pharmacists, and should we -- the public -- be worried?

What about the case of the lesbian woman and the doctors who refuse to perform artificial insemination -- for some, that's akin to endorsing that lifestyle.

I just read about four good kids, three of whom were shot execution style behind an elementary school -- a botched robbery gone bad. Then I read about this prominent group of faith leaders, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, trying to find a way to honor Michael Vick, a multi-millionaire accused of backing a dog-fighting ring, where female dogs were allegedly put in 'rape' contraptions (I'm not even an animal lover and this sends chills down my spine).

Vick is innocent until proven guilty -- but it just seems weird that with so much going on, like the murders or even the gang-rape of a mother in Florida, who was forced at gunpoint to have sex with her son, that the group would spend its time looking for a way to honor Vick.

I saw a video excerpt this weekend from presidential candidate Mitt Romney's visit to a radio station, with the normally unflappable Romney admitting he's tired of interviews focusing on his Mormon faith. He wants to talk about what he would do as president.

Do you think Americans can get past his roots? Or are we obsessed with 'where do you worship?'

ATLANTA -- The Southern Christian Leadership Conference has backed off its vow to honor accused dog fight promoter Michael Vick at its convention this week.
"I said, 'Stay on point, the convention is bigger than a particular man,' " Brooks said. "There are a lot of young people who need our help. Michael Vick is not one of them."

Ken Kroohs is on sabbatical.

I guess I understand those people who say if your house of worship kicks out pedophiles, you lose the chance to minister to them. But I wonder how many houses of worship have a policy in place that even addresses it. These people have one in place to share with other congregations:

Eight years later, Greenfield and other Unitarian Universalists have created an online course with the Holyoke-based New England Adolescent Research Institute to help churches set guidelines for dealing with a member accused of a sex crime or a convicted sex offender who wants to join their congregation.

Officials at the Otisville prison recently removed hundreds of books from the chapel library there -- including works by the 12th-century rabbi and physician Maimonides as well as the Zohar, the ancient text upon which the mystical practice of Kabbalah is based. The books were removed, Bureau of Prisons officials explain, to comply with new rules set earlier this year. To reduce the risk that prisoners will find hateful or radicalizing (read: terrorist) materials in chapel libraries, the BOP has developed lists of 150 approved books per religion for 20 religions, including Bahai, Mormonism and Jehovah's Witnesses.

Could there be a better way? I mean, you can't feel sorry for every 'right' that an inmate loses, yet, isn't religion one way (I didn't say ONLY way) people develop values that make them a better person?

Some would find this clever -- targeting constituents by their faith. He did get their attention.

A teenager has been arrested in connection with the execution-style killings of three college students in a Newark schoolyard, a source close to the investigation told CNN.

The suspect is believed to be 14 or 15 years old, the source told CNN.

I bet I could write his profile, just from what I know. A 14-year-old playing gangsta in the 'hood? In a broader sense, is this what happens when we as a society think of the poor as 'them' -- as in, I'm working for mine, let them get theirs the best way possible?

He's reaching out to others for rescue, but he's really rescuing himself.

What do you think of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's new fall course offerings for women? Seminary President Paige Patterson says he's tired of people discriminating against women who want to strenghthen their families. Others say such classes are a waste of the seminary's resources.

What do you think of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's new fall course offerings for women? Seminary President Paige Patterson says he's tired of people discriminating against women who want to strenghthen their families. Others say such classes are a waste of the seminary's resources.

GENEVA -- Evangelical groups have joined efforts spearheaded by Roman Catholic, Orthodox and mainstream Protestant churches to create a common code of conduct for religious conversions that would preserve the right of Christians to spread their religion while avoiding conflict among different faiths.
"The code of conduct is not about 'whether' Christians evangelize, but 'how'' they do it, " said the Rev. Tony Richie of the Church of God, a Pentecostal U.S.-based denomination, according to a WCC review of the meeting.

But should she get these children back?

Whenever I read of people who are found to be former Nazi guards who are kicked out the country, I often wonder if we'll ever know if the person was actually a willing or unwilling participant in the Holocaust. To see people get away with participation in such an atrocity would be horrible, no matter what age justice finds them. But, again, how easy is it to weigh a person's willingness when such evil was all around them?
Is it "somebody" paying is better than "nobody" paying?

Is this the 'love' called for in the Scriptures, or is this insanity?

"The last virtue of a depraved nation is tolerance."

OR

"Intolerance is the primary virtue of those who would end the American dream."

When I was in middle school/high school I had an older cousin chastise me once for telling another younger cousin that man descended from apes. I'd learned that in school.

Somehow, that didn't clash with my belief in Adam and Eve and the rest of the Bible. The 'ape' part was just schooling. The Bible: the church and the truth.

Did you ever get an explanation? Even if you don't believe in creationism, what do you tell your children about the millions of people who do?

Three people have died in the effort to find the Utah miners, who are likely dead. The families say they were promised that the miners would be found, dead or alive. They are angry. But do they have the right to ask other people to risk their lives, when it's likely their loved ones are entombed in the mine?

He was awake during this last procedure.

Reported beating required treatment.

"ATLANTA -- When a new couple arrived at Southside Christian Fellowship Church in August 2005, members welcomed them with open arms. Soon, the new couple talked their way into private group support sessions in the Stockbridge home of church member Ken King.

During the private talks, church members confessed abortions, sexual orientation issues, drug addictions and other dark secrets. No one knew the couple wasn't actually interested in joining the church. Instead, they were private investigators hoping two church members, Bill and Leandra Pitts, would spill something they could use to discredit the pair in an ongoing lawsuit over a traffic accident."

The Pitts are suing. This might be morally wrong, but legally wrong? How would you call it?