Source: Los Angeles Times

On July 2, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "now, with more Latino churches springing up within the Protestant evangelical movement, in which individual churches have substantial autonomy, more Latino church leaders are signing up for Economic Development 101," imitating the faith-based economic development promoted by many African-American churches.

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

On July 2, 2001, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that, "fueled by shifting populations, expanding or consolidating churches, a growing unease with public education, school choice vouchers and the wealth created by the recent economic expansion, churches and synagogues [across southeastern Wisconsin and the nation] are pouring millions" into construction of their own schools... According to the U.S. Census Bureau, faith-based primary and secondary school construction rose 234%, from $728 million in 1993 to $2.4...

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On July 2, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that "Bush's Texas record on faith-based programs has been mixed and in many cases not fully evaluated...In the most decisive setback yet, the Legislature this spring chose not to continue a Bush-backed plan passed in 1997 that allowed religious youth facilities to escape state inspections." One critic of faith-based programs said the evidence suggests that they are "'unmanageable, unregulated, prone to favoritism and co-mingling of funds.'...On the welfare reform front, however,...

Source: Lancaster Sunday News

On July 1, 2001, the Lancaster Sunday News reported that "the plan is to transform the Mennonite Church, based in Elkhart, Ind...and the General Conference Mennonite Church (GC), based in Newton, Kan., into one denomination called Mennonite Church USA...The transformation could heal a rift that began in the 1860s when the GCs wanted Sunday School, more mission work, and more English used in services and the MCs wanted to continue with German and more traditional and conservative ways."

Source: The Denver Post

On July 1, 2001, The Denver Post reported on "a new cycle of 18 teens enrolled in 'Our Youth, Our Future,' a two-month program run throughout the year at" the Four Corners Regional Adolescent Treatment Center. "The center treats troubled American Indian youths for drug and alcohol dependence with an emphasis on the students' learning their culture and who they are, whether it be Navajo, Sioux, Apache or another tribe." The sweat lodge they enter is an ancient part of Navajo tradition and beliefs.

Source: The Daily News of Los Angeles

On July 1, 2001, The Daily News of Los Angeles reported that "the City Council's denial last week of a day-care center and religious school at a long-established...synagogue" may have opened up a new battle. "Leaders of Temple Emanu El said they were considering taking legal action under a new federal law that protects religious institutions from some local land-use regulations."

Source: The Seattle Times

On July 1, 2001, The Seattle Times published an opinion piece on the ongoing battle between King County, Washington, Executive Ron Sims and churches in King County, led by the Catholic and Mormon hierarchies: "religious organizations, like everyone else seeking to build in rural communities, must conform to a size and scale that is compatible with the surrounding area and that respects the environment... Overriding principles of the growth-management idea should prevail."

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On June 30, 2001, The Houston Chronicle reported that Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church and St. John Vianney Catholic Church, who are neighbors, "for the first time...will embark on an adult foreign mission trip together [to Dublin, Ireland]...The two-week trip has three goals: to help at two cash-strapped camps that bring together Catholic and Protestant children; to offer a model of how Catholics and Protestants from Houston can work together; and to learn more about the believers who have been their neighbors for years."

Source: The New York Times

On June 30, 2001, The New York Times reported that "former President Jimmy Carter, who last year broke with his denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, over its increasingly conservative direction, has been host to two meetings of leaders of moderate Baptist groups to seek 'common ground' among them." Carter "said a common effort among moderate Baptists could cooperate with other groups, including African-American and European Baptists, and even, he said, the Southern Baptist Convention."

Source: The Fresno Bee

On June 30, 2001, The Fresno Bee reported that "several Fourth of July celebrations will be offered...by the Fresno faith community: The Interfaith Alliance of Central California's Celebration of Diversity picnic, a Sikh vegetarian brunch, will be held...at California State University, Fresno...The Fresno Rescue Mission will host a barbecue dinner and fireworks show for [the] homeless."

Source: The Arizona Republic

On June 30, 2001, The Arizona Republic published a piece on "the recent exhibit of Norman Rockwell paintings at the Phoenix Art Museum [that] featured a series called 'Four Freedoms.' My favorite is Freedom to Worship... This image is just as vital to our society today as it was when Rockwell painted it in 1943... We should give thanks for this precious right not only on the Fourth of July, but every day."

Source: The New York Times

On June 30, 2001, The New York Times reported that "the guardian of two children in the Bedford school district has asked the United States Supreme Court to overturn a ruling dismissing claims that the district promoted paganism, New Age thinking and the occult." The claims were made by "three Roman Catholic families in 1996 [who] asserted that a high school Earth Day ceremony with drum-playing and the offering of gifts crossed the line into worship of the planet."

Source: The Fort Worth Star-Telegram

On June 30, 2001, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that "some Tarrant County Jail prisoners" mourned the closing of the prison's Christian education program. They "shed tears...one day after the Texas Supreme Court struck down the...program...County officials reassured prisoners that...voluntary religious programs for prisoners will remain...The Texas Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the religious program violates the constitutional wall between church and state because it is supported with taxpayer money."...

Source: The Buffalo News

On June 30, 2001, The Buffalo News reported that "area religious leaders...launched a united opposition to casino proposals for the Buffalo Niagara region [from Gov. George E. Pataki and Seneca Nation President Cyurs M. Schindler]...Adding to the chorus was the [Methodist] Rev. Marvin Abrams, a Seneca Indian...He contended that casino gambling will only compound social ills that already exist on the reservations....While many leaders said they recognize the need for economic development ...on Indian reservations, the consensus...

Source: The Ledger

On June 30, 2001, The Ledger reported that Lakeland's Community and Faith Based Coalition in Florida "has been awarded a grant under a state program that promotes faith-based solutions to community problems." The grant is intended for a Family Unification Project, "which is intended to help families in crisis through personal contact with volunteers recruited from local churches. The grant is one of 10" that has been awarded since "Gov. Jeb Bush signed a law that created a state Community and Faith-Based Organizations Initiative."