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Man Kills Self in SoCal Televangelist's Cathedral

Fired gun while tour guide discussed anti-suicide program

(Newser) - A man shot and killed himself in front of a cross inside televangelist Robert H. Schuller's Crystal Cathedral yesterday as a nearby volunteer told a group of visitors about the church's suicide-prevention program, police and church officials said. The man handed a note and his driver's license to two ushers,...

Obamas Head to Church
 Obamas Head to Church 
UPDATED

Obamas Head to Church

Prez-elect follows presidential tradition

(Newser) - As massive crowds swarmed the National Mall to witness Barack Obama's inauguration as president, the man at the center of the maelstrom began the day with his wife at a private service at St. John’s Episcopal Church across the street from the White House, a tradition for those about...

Crowds Thrill to 'Obamastock'
 Crowds Thrill to 'Obamastock' 

Crowds Thrill to 'Obamastock'

Obamas attend services at historic church

(Newser) - A free inauguration concert that one attendee dubbed "Obamastock" kicked off today before tens of thousands of excited but chilly visitors in Washington, DC, the Washington Post reports. Fans sat patiently on blankets and waited in long security checkpoint lines as Denzel Washington took the stage to announce Bruce...

'Cowboy Church' Lassos New Followers

Baptists see success with services that feature rodeo riding

(Newser) - Rodeo competitions and baptisms in horse troughs are on offer at the Cowboy Church of Ellis County, Texas, part of a movement that uses an unconventional approach to draw worshippers to the flock, the AP reports. Cowboy churches have existed for 40 years but have grown in popularity in the...

Spiritually Sound, But Many Churches Literally Bankrupt

Donation lifeline dries up as recession bites, forcing many into Chapter 11

(Newser) - In trying times, many turn to the church to ease anxieties, but even houses of God haven’t been spared the wrath of recession, the Wall Street Journal reports. A church building boom begun in the 1990s has left many congregations overextended, and with the economic slowdown taking a sizable...

Recession Packs 'Em in the Pews

As the economy crumbles, churches witness burst of interest

(Newser) - Hard times are emptying company payrolls and government coffers, but they’re big business for churches, reports the New York Times in a look at America's renewed Sunday-morning religious fervor. Since September, evangelical pastors in particular have reported a burst of interest and standing-room-only congregations. “It’s a wonderful...

Arson Supected in Fire at Palin's Church

(Newser) - A suspected arsonist set fire to Sarah Palin's church in Wasilla, Alaska, causing about $1 million in damage, the Anchorage Daily News reports. Investigators say they don't know if Palin's connection to the Wasilla Bible Church is a factor, and they have no suspects. Palin stopped by the church today...

Head of Russian Orthodox Church Dead
Head of Russian Orthodox Church Dead
OBITUARY

Head of Russian Orthodox Church Dead

Patriarch Alexiy unified denomination, was suspected of KGB ties

(Newser) - The iconic leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, who healed an 80-year rift in the church and restored its prominence in Russian society, died today, the Times of London reports. No official cause of death was given for Patriarch Alexiy, but the Kremlin’s first post-Soviet Orthodox leader had been...

Boar Crashes Church Breakfast

2008 has seen a rash of boar attacks

(Newser) - Mothers and their children were eating breakfast in a Frankfurt church yesterday when a wild boar came crashing in through a glass door, Der Spiegel reports. The sow ran feverishly around the room and exited the same way it came in, leaving moms and kids standing on chairs and tables...

DC Churches Woo Obamas
 DC Churches Woo Obamas 
OPINION

DC Churches Woo Obamas

Picking the inclusive National Cathedral would send a powerful message

(Newser) - The new first family will be looking for a place of worship in Washington, DC, and area congregations are feverishly offering up their advantages: presidential tradition; diversity; proximity to the White House; community activism; connections to Trinity, the Obamas' former Chicago church; a pastor who hails from Hawaii. A historian...

Big Choices for Obamas: Chef, Church

Special interest groups want to pick Obamas' puppy, church, chef

(Newser) - With the incoming first family's private decisions being scrutinized as breathlessly as the president-elect's cabinet picks, you already know about the battle over the puppy, and the private-or-public-school competition. New York reports on three other hotly contested issues:
  • The French-trained chef hired by Laura Bush may be replaced to reflect
...

Cellist Runs Church of Beethoven

Albuquerque arts devotees start secular Church of Beethoven in old gas station

(Newser) - Congregants gather on Sundays at an old gas station in Albuquerque to greet friends, ponder the divine, and listen to classical music, NPR reports. Espresso-sipping members of the Church of Beethoven also listen to poetry readings and engage in group song, but don't need to have religious beliefs. Cellist Felix...

Pentecostal Questions Haunt Palin
Pentecostal Questions
Haunt Palin

Pentecostal Questions Haunt Palin

McCain may be avoiding pastor attacks to avoid focus on Palin's beliefs

(Newser) - John McCain has so far avoided attacking Barack Obama's controversial pastor in what may be a strategy to keep Sarah Palin's preachers out of the spotlight, Time reports. Palin officially left her Pentecostal church before campaigning for lieutenant governor but has made many return visits—including one in 2005 when...

Christianity in China Grows Quickly, Quietly

Government puts total enrollment at 21M; others say 130M

(Newser) - Despite government restrictions, Christianity in China is widespread and growing. Authorities typically look the other way, occasionally applying pressure that only seems to spread religion's influence, reports the Economist. Most of the Protestant "house churches" consist of 25 people—the largest legal gathering—where new Christians lead newer converts...

Bible Underpins Palin's Politics

Her church promotes gay 'cure,' she hoped Alaskan pipeline was 'God's will'

(Newser) - Sarah Palin's pastors say an abiding faith in the Bible is at the core of her personal and political life, the New York Times reports. She attends the nondenominational Wasilla Bible Church. Its links to groups which seek to convert Jews and "cure" gays have caused concern—but townspeople...

Letter: Tenn. Gunman Hated 'Liberals,' 'Gays'

Adkisson details deep disdain for groups, inability to find work

(Newser) - A letter found in the vehicle of a gunman who killed two people at a Tennessee church yesterday indicated a deep hatred of liberals and gays, and frustration over unemployment, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. The liberal Unitarian church claims involvement with social causes dating to the 1950s, and hosts...

Gunman Charged in Deadly Attack on Tenn. Church

Children were performing Annie when attack occurred

(Newser) - A gunman opened fire at a Knoxville, Tenn., Unitarian church today, killing two and wounding seven others before he was subdued, CNN reports. He was later charged with first-degree murder in the death of the first victim. The attack occurred about 10am while children were performing the musical Annie, church...

Fewer Men Are Going to Church
Fewer Men
Are Going
to Church

Fewer Men Are Going to Church

Religious groups recruit with 'guy decor' and 'beast feasts'

(Newser) - The number of men attending church services is plummeting, and now females outnumber males at places of worship in every major Christian denomination, reports USA Today. Religious groups across the US are launching campaigns to get men praying, trying everything from guy decor to "beast feasts," where male...

Dutch Fight Smoking Ban With God

Smokers' Church members claim immunity from ban

(Newser) - Worshipers are flocking to the One True Universal Smokers' Church of God—whose "masses" are held in bars—since the Netherlands instituted a smoking ban July 1. Adherents claim their right to light up is protected as a religious freedom, Radio Free Netherlands reports. "I genuinely believe in...

Man Trades Baby Name for $100 Gas Card

Free fuel on offer for everything from brothels to bloodbanks

(Newser) - An Orlando man agreed to name his baby after two local radio hosts in exchange for a gift card worth $100 of gasoline, Reuters reports. The listener will collect the card in December, when his son is born, after producing a birth certificate. He's not the only American susceptible to...

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