Author: Melissa Weaver

Source: The Buddhist Channel/San Jose Mercury

http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=65,6682,0,0,1,0

Tzu Chi disaster relief volunteers always bow in respect when handing blankets to disaster victims, who "teach us to appreciate what we have," said volunteer Sherry Shih.

The Buddhist nonprofit group has grown to more than 5 million supporters worldwide with chapters in 30 countries since its inception in...

Author: Tim Martain

Source: The Sunday Tasmanian

http://www.news.com.au/mercury/story/0,22884,23902992-921,00.html

The Baha'i faith may be something of a mystery to many Tasmanians but members of the religion are keen to help people understand more.

As Hobart's distinctive Baha'i Centre for Learning nears completion next to the ABC Centre, the local Baha'i community was more than happy to throw open the doors for the Sunday...

Author: Joseph Berger

Source: The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/22mainli.html?ex=1214884800&en=99f79dbb4c49cd35&ei=5070&emc=eta1

"Is Westhampton Beach an Orthodox Jewish Community?” the full-page newspaper advertisement asked in boldface type. Then it answered: “No it’s a secular, open Village with a proud history of...

Author: Salisu Na'inna Dambatta

Source: Daily Trust/AllAfrica

http://allafrica.com/stories/200806230739.html

The Nigeria Inter Religious Council (NIREC) came into being after the dawn of democracy in 1999 to serve as a platform for high-level dialogue between the leaders of Christians and Muslims in this country, thereby promoting public good.

It organises conferences designed to promote understanding, appreciation of one another and the...

Author: Sean D. Hamill

Source: The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/20/us/20license.html?ex=1214625600&en=4fc4c64216556a5d&ei=5070&emc=eta1

An organization that advocates for the separation of church and state filed a federal lawsuit Thursday asking that South Carolina not be allowed to produce license plates that feature a Christian cross with the phrase “I Believe.”
...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: The Boston Examiner

http://www.examiner.com/a-1451820~Ore__lawmakers_to_examine_parenting__faith_healing.html

A legislative leader says Oregon lawmakers will take another look at state laws in the light of the death of a 16-year-old boy who died of a treatable urinary tract disorder while family and church members prayed over him.

"We're going to have to look at it again,"...

Author: Rose B. Palacio

Source: Philippine News Agency

Author: Staff Reporter

Source: The Chicago Tribune

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-religbriefs131jun13,0,4748.story

Swiss nationalists say they have enough signatures to force a referendum on whether to ban the construction of Muslim call-to-prayer towers next to mosques.

Ulrich Schlueer, co-president of the Initiative Committee, said that 103,000 signatures have been verified, exceeding the...

Author: Omar Sacirbey

Source: Religion News Service/The Pew Forum on Religion...

Author: John Chadwick

Source: The South Bend Tribune/The Record

http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080618/Lives/278849862/1047/Lives

Like many houses of worship, the Sadhu Vaswani Center in Closter, N.J., has a sign that displays spiritual messages to passers-by.

But rather than trumpeting familiar injunctions like “Praise the Lord,” the Hindu congregation...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: NRIPulse

http://www.nripulse.com/CityNews_FL_SC.html

Less than a year after becoming the first Hindu American group to file an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief with the United States Supreme Court, the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) continued its legal campaign with another brief in support of a petition for writ of certiorari. The case, Simpson v. Chesterfield County, involves legislative prayer. While the HAF’s...

Author: Mike Thomas

Source: The Chicago Sun-Times

http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/religion/1007410,CST-NWS-servite16.article

In early May, a monster cyclone ripped apart the southeast Asian country of Myanmar (formerly Burma), killing tens of thousands and mangling the landscape.

International relief efforts were immediately stalled by the country's ruling military junta, and several factors stemmed the flow of...

Author: Kevin Crush

Source: Sun Media

http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2008/06/15/5882586-sun.html

A Sikh tradition was brought to the streets of the inner city yesterday.

Members of the University of Alberta Sikh Students' Society made vegetarian burritos and handed them out at the Boyle Street Co-op and Hope Mission.

"We're just trying to give back to the community and help feed some homeless people,"...

Author: Jamie Duffy

Source: The Star-Ledger

http://www.nj.com/helpinghands/jamieduffy/index.ssf/2008/06/interfaith_dialog_center_award.html

To strains of Middle Eastern melody and percussion, 200 guests sat down to yellow lentil soup and hummus at the Interfaith Dialog Center's first ever awards ceremony June 8 at the Hilton Hotel in Hasbrouck Heights.

The Center created in 2003 by Turkish-...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/13/AR2008061303284_pf.html

For the first time in five Sundays of gatherings, the small group of Washington area Muslims and Jews around the fireside table seemed like it was about to move from polite chat on religious history to something unavoidably combustible: Zionism.

An imam had taken out a...