Source: The Associated Press

Source: Palm Beach Post

http://www.gopbi.com/partners/pbpost/epaper/editions/today/news_e3d3af3f

On February 3, 2003 the Palm Beach Post reported that "as the pictures of the space shuttle, its crew and Indian-American astronaut Kalpana Chawla flashed on a screen at a [Palm Beach, FL] Hindu temple, 27-year-old Priti Patel had such mixed feelings... Although many Indians knew before the accident that Chawla was the first astronaut born in India,...

Source: St. Petersburg Times

http://www.sptimes.com/2003/02/03/Floridian/Muslims__growing_voic.shtml

On February 3, 2003 the St. Petersburg Times reported that "CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations), an 8-year-old grass roots organization that started out combating Muslim stereotypes in movies and discrimination in the workplace, has become the voice for Muslim rights... Since Sept. 11, 2001, discrimination complaints have poured into its 21...

Source: The Boston Globe

On February 3, 2003 The Boston Globe reported that "City officials report, and Somali residents confirm, that following an 18-month period when 1,100 Somalis moved to Lewiston, a drop-off began around Labor Day has been sustained in the months since the mayor's Oct. 1 letter. There have been a number of reasons for the decline, but Somalis both here and outside Maine say a perception has taken hold that the city is unwelcoming and unsafe to newcomers."

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On February 1, 2003 The Houston Chronicle reported that "[in Houston], as in other American cities, Jews are taking steps to thwart Christian missionaries targeting them. In Houston, they also are girding for an upcoming Jews for Jesus campaign aimed at the city's Jewish community... The Jews for Jesus campaign in 2004 or 2005 will be 'an all-out intensive effort to make the Messianicship of Jesus an unavoidable issue to the Jews of Houston,' said Susan Perlman, a San Francisco-based founder of Jews for Jesus... The group...

Source: The Associated Press

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2003/Feb/01/il/il11afaith.html

On February 1, 2003 The Associated Press reported that "Americans are proud of their freedom of religion, and the work of J. Gordon Melton shows they have a whole lot of religions to choose from...The Roman Catholic Church may be huge but it's only one among 116 Catholic denominations. Orthodox Christians have an even higher total, and Protestantism...

Source: The Star-Ledger

http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-3/104408343938

On February 1, 2003 The Star-Ledger reported that "in a decision hailed by the nation's Sikh community, Fleet Bank yesterday settled a discrimination suit filed by a New Jersey businessman, at the same time agreeing to explicitly recognize the religious group's rights... Sikh leaders, who previously had threatened a boycott of the bank over the New...

Source: The Hartford Courant

http://www.ctnow.com/news/local/hc-interfaith_coalition_.artfeb01,0,7658

On February 1, 2003 The Hartford Courant reported that "more than 30 churches, synagogues and mosques have joined together to create a faith-based coalition that aims to tackle problems related to poverty, race, economics and development in the Hartford [CT] area... The Greater Hartford Interfaith Coalition for Equity and Justice is the culmination...

Source: Arab News

http://www.arabnews.com/Article.asp?ID=22434

On February 1, 2003 the Arab News reported that "the number of pilgrims coming for this year’s Haj from the United States is estimated at just 7,000, according to the US Consulate in Jeddah... That figure is 3,000 lower than last year, according to official statistics... Some are questioning whether the reason for the decrease in the number of US pilgrims this year is that this may be a bad time for Muslims...

Source: Charisma News Service

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/120/story_12071_1.html

On January 31, 2003 the Charisma News Service reported that "calling it a move toward unprecedented unity in American Christendom, evangelical leaders are praising a plan to create the broadest-ever alliance of Christians. They say if it is successful, the association could help remove divisions in the body of Christ... Church leaders from 30 denominations agreed Wednesday on a...

Source: SMART

http://www.sikhmediawatch.org/press/pressdetail.asp?pressid=30

On January 30, 2003 SMART reported that "a leading national Sikh advocacy group and the nation’s seventh largest retail financial institution, reached a broad-reaching agreement to ensure nondiscrimination against Sikh American customers and employees and calls for the institution to closely monitor discriminatory practices and improve services to the Sikh community. Sikh...

Source: The Washington Post

On January 30, 2003 The Washington Post reported that "while some lawmakers have complained about ministers praying 'in Jesus's name,' some religious leaders are saying they don't see why they should eliminate Jesus from a prayer to accommodate other faiths... The matter arose when, in recent Senate sessions, some ministers didn't stick to the Senate policy of making the blessings ecumenical... The latest episode came last week when the Rev. Reginald Thomas of Greater Gethsemane Missionary Baptist Church in Baltimore ended...

Source: USA TODAY

On January 30, 2003 USA TODAY reported that "President Bush's State of the Union address underscored a striking element of his presidency: the extent to which he is influenced by his Christian faith. In policy proposals and word choices, he showed the public face of his private beliefs... Many Americans welcome Bush's spiritual approach and find it reassuring. But some civil libertarians are gearing up to halt what they see as the most threatening part of Bush's agenda: his drive to funnel federal money to religious groups. They see...

Source: The Boston Globe

On January 28, 2003 The Boston Globe reported that "at the Capitol in Washington, amid all the pomp and circumstance that Congress can muster, President Bush is expected to lay out his case tonight for a possible war... At the same time, at Boston's storied Trinity Church, leaders of many of the state's religious traditions will be gathering in their full liturgical finery to make their own case, for peace... Bishop M. Thomas Shaw, leader of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, [organized] tonight's religious event, at which...

Source: The Interfaith Alliance

http://www.interfaithalliance.org/press/index.htm

On January 28, 2003 The Interfaith Alliance reported that "tonight, during his third State of the Union address to the nation, President George W. Bush is expected to urge Congress to swiftly pass his beleaguered faith-based initiative and issue an appeal to the American people for support on a possible war with Iraq. Both items have caused much controversy within the religious liberty...