Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2001/05/23

On May 23, 2001, The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "Afghans in the [San Francisco] Bay Area blasted the Taliban's order yesterday that requires Hindus in Afghanistan to wear identifying marks on their clothes, calling the Islamic group's policy the latest act of intolerance to divide their homeland." The estimated population...

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On May 23, 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that 1,000 people came to hear Rabbi Steven Lebow deliver his baccalaureate address to Walton High School's graduating seniors inside the Cobb County Civic Center. "Lebow's speech has been the talk around the lockers and lunchrooms of Walton High for weeks, said...a graduating senior...'I thought it was wonderful,' she said. 'Very appropriate and very well thought out.'"

Source: Los Angeles Times

On May 23, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "congregants of the city's only Melkite Church welcomed Syria's new Catholic leader to Los Angeles, comparing the visit by black-robed Gregory III to an appearance by the Roman Catholic pope...The 67-year-old 'patriarch of Alexandria, Jerusalem and all the East,' stopped briefly in Los Angeles to greet parishioners and draw attention to unrest in the Middle East... One of the largest of the Eastern rite churches, the Melkite Church has been called a 'voice for the East within the...

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On May 22, 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "Walton High School's long-awaited and contentious baccalaureate ceremony will be at 7 tonight at the Cobb County Civic Center...The baccalaureate originally was slated to be held at Mount Bethel United Methodist Church in east Cobb. But...the Rev. Randy Mickler, pastor of Mount Bethel, vetoed [Rabbi Steven] Lebow making his speech from Mount Bethel's pulpit."

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On May 22, 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "Walton High School's long-awaited and contentious baccalaureate ceremony will be at 7 tonight at the Cobb County Civic Center...The baccalaureate originally was slated to be held at Mount Bethel United Methodist Church in east Cobb. But...the Rev. Randy Mickler, pastor of Mount Bethel, vetoed [Rabbi Steven] Lebow making his speech from Mount Bethel's pulpit."

Source: The New York Times

On May 20, 2001, The New York Times published an article about polygamy. "As the conviction of a Utah polygamist...reminds us, monogamy is not the only way to procreate. It's just a theme 'round which nature has designed many variations...Men are just 15 percent larger than women, suggesting [to some biologists] that 'mild polygyny' is the natural condition of the human species." Biologists also believe that a certain degree of polyandry may also be natural for the human species. "We have inherited our own version of the primate...

Source: The Times-Picayune

On May 19, 2001, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported on a panel of pastors and social workers that convened in New Orleans to hear about Bush's plans for his faith-based initiative. "They were notably cautious...Clergy panelists stressed the traps implicit in accepting federal money to do the social work of their ministries...They worried about limits on what they could preach, and to whom; the potential loss...of independence...; and a reluctance to become sophisticated accounting agencies."

Source: Star Tribune

On May 19, 2001, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported on an interfaith dialogue with seven local clergy and the Dalai Lama. The topic of the panel was "'How Can Diverse Religions Communities Create Peace in the World?' In their response, the Dalai Lama and this distinguished panel promoted the idea that religions can be diverse without being a lot different. 'All religions carry same teaching, same goal, same potential,' the Dalai Lama said."

Source: Los Angeles Times

On May 19, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "a daylong seminar on ways to bring peace to the Holy Land...held...at UCLA by a coalition of liberal Jewish peace activists, Muslim organizations and Christians." The seminar is called "The Israeli-Palestinian Crisis: New Conversations for a Pluralist Future."

Source: Newsday

On May 18, 2001, Newsday reported that "after an unusual effort to hold an interreligious dialogue about conflict in the Middle East, [New York City] clergy said that they hoped to meet again in hopes of finding ways to help ease tensions. But the Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders who met at Marble Collegiate Church in Manhattan said their intense, private discussion gave a sense of how deep the conflict runs."

Source: The Boston Globe

On May 18, 2001, The Boston Globe reported on a talk called "Peace Is the Way" given by Thich Nhat Hanh, a 74-year-old exiled Vietnamese monk and former anti-Vietnam War activist. The talk was given at the Hynes Auditorium in Boston and was expected to attract a crowd estimated at 3,000. "A vast array of Americans...have adopted Nhat Hanh's teachings of 'engaged Buddhism,' simple meditation practices that he says can help ordinary people experience the beauty of life."

Source: United Airlines

http://www.united.com/site/primaryPR/0,10026,1528_806,00.html

On May 18, 2001, United Airlines issued a press release reporting on recent changes to its uniform guidelines. "United’s customer service employees at the carrier’s hubs across the United States are allowed to wear a company-sanctioned hijab, turban or yarmulke as part of their uniform."

Source: The Seattle Times

http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis/web/vortex/display?s

On May 18, 2001, The Seattle Times published an opinion piece on the clash between the rights of religious groups to build houses of worship and the efforts of local governments to limit growth. "The Free Exercise Clause protects religious practice from governmental interference but is limited by laws that are passed for compelling government...

Source: The Boston Globe

On May 17, 2001, The Boston Globe reported that "the Supreme Judicial Court ruled unanimously yesterday that Mormons have a legal right to erect a giant steeple, topped by a golden angel, atop their new temple in Belmont [Massachusetts]. The decision...broadly affirms the right of religious groups to decide the scale and features of houses of worship...In the Belmont case, a handful of residents of Belmont Hill filed two suits to block the temple."

Source: The Arizona Republic

On May 16, 2001, The Arizona Republic published an article defending a task force that "told the Gilbert [Arizona] Town Council that problems of racism, homophobia and religion-based unease...can't be dealt with on an ad hoc basis. There needs to be a permanent body in place - a town Human Relations Commission - to help focus on the problems and deal with them." The task force's request is a response to the recent activities of terrorist groups like the Devil Dogs, a group of young men with an ugly history of violence, in an...