In the News, February 23, 2015

February 23, 2015

Today's religion and world affairs news from the United States and around the globe: the World Bank reaches out to faith leaders, Israeli checkpoints, and a Coptic Christian bishop forgives ISIS.  
BERKLEY CENTER IN THE NEWS
The Two Shall Become One Flesh: Reclaiming Marriage
by Evangelicals and Catholics Together; signed by Tom Farr
First Things
http://www.firstthings.com/article/2015/03/the-two-shall-become-one-flesh-reclaiming-marriage-2
For centuries, Christians have proclaimed these words at weddings, for they express the gift of marriage long recognized by all humanity and acknowledged by men and women of faith: Marriage is the union of a man and a woman. This truth is being obscured, even denied, today. Because of that, the institution of marriage, which is essential to the well-being of society, is being undermined. 
 
How to Counter Religion Avoidance Syndrome
by Thomas Farr
Cardus Daily
http://www.cardus.ca/blog/2015/02/how-to-counter-religion-avoidance-syndrome
In the two months since I addressed the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Canadian House of Commons, the need for Canada to embrace a more active stance on religious freedom has become increasingly, and painfully, urgent. The almost daily news of savage violence by Islamist terrorists in the Middle East—and continued deep tensions in the West—is profoundly troubling. I remain convinced that Canada and the United States must redouble their respective efforts to advance religious freedom at home and abroad.

Improbable Allies: Faith and the World Bank
by Katherine Marshall
Huffington Post op-ed
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/katherine-marshall/improbable-allies-faith-a_b_6728540.html
Last Wednesday (February 18) the World Bank's president, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, spent the day with a pretty diverse group of religious actors. "I need you", he said, laying out his commitment to ending poverty by 2030 (thus setting a fixed date), and pursuing shared prosperity. This is a step in the right direction, but the issue is quite complicated. 

Removing Israeli Checkpoints in the West Bank Would End Humiliation, Increase Security
by Drew Christiansen and Ra’fat Aldajani
National Catholic Reporter op-ed
http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/removing-israeli-checkpoints-west-bank-would-end-humiliation-increase-security
The study measurably revealed that checkpoints actually perpetuated violence, exacerbating the very problem they were designed to solve. This finding is remarkable, as Israel considers the checkpoints to be a nonviolent form of repression in the West Bank, designed to regulate Palestinian movement within the West Bank while protecting Israeli settlements and permitting their growth. 

AROUND THE WORLD
Debating a Change of Faith Under Brutal Captivity
by Jim Yardley
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/22/world/europe/keeping-the-faith-in-brutal-captivity.html?ref=todayspaper
When it was found out that journalist Scott Foley was among several hostages in Syria who had converted to Islam in captivity, according to some freed captives, what had been among some Catholics a theological discussion of faith and heroic resistance quickly shifted to a different set of questions: Is any conversion under such duress a legitimate one? Why would a man who had spoken so openly about his Catholic faith turn to Islam? Given his circumstances, is it even surprising if he did? 

Coptic Christian Bishop: I Forgive ISIS
by Daniel Burke
CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/20/living/coptic-bishop-isis/index.html
Bishop Angaelos, head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom, discussed why ISIS targets Coptic Christians, and why he forgives them, even as he rejects their horrific acts. 

Paris’s Mayor: ‘These Are People Who Are Lawless and Faithless’
by Lally Weymouth
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/pariss-mayor-these-are-people-who-are-lawless-and-faithless/2015/02/22/ae3e1a18-b932-11e4-9423-f3d0a1ec335c_story.html
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo was interviewed on the Charlie Hebdo attack, anti-Semitism in France, and ISIS.  

Ukraine's Paschal Story
by Borys Gudziak
Real Clear Religion op-ed
http://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2015/02/23/ukraines_paschal_story.html
This is the story of Bohdan Solchanyk and the millions who stood with him. This is the explanation of what is happening in Ukraine today. There are many factors and many issues of a complex story but at its heart is a pilgrimage from fear to dignity, from authoritarianism to liberty, from corruption to justice -- ultimately from death to life. It is a paschal story. 

DOMESTIC
Muslim Scholar, Looking to ‘Speak the Truth,’ Teaches the Holocaust and Islam
by Samuel G. Freedman
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/21/us/muslim-scholar-looking-to-speak-the-truth-teaches-about-holocaust-and-islam.html?_r=1
Mehnaz M. Afridi is an assistant professor at Manhattan College specializing in the Holocaust and Islam. Although she is a valuable intermediary between Muslims and Jews, she has also been a target because of her work. 

Barack Obama Is Not a Muslim
by Reihan Salam
Slate op-ed
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2015/02/obama_and_isis_it_s_not_the_president_s_job_to_interpret_islam.html
Our president, however, would be wise to stay out of theological controversies. It’s not the place of Bush or Obama to engage in dialogue with Islamic extremists over the finer points of the Quran or the life and times of Muhammad—it’s to protect American lives. 

Is American Judaism Ready for Interfaith Rabbis?
by Adam Nathaniel Peck
New Republic
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/120853/interfaith-rabbi-debate-rocks-reconstructionist-judaism-america
Nearly all of the country’s rabbinical colleges have firm policies that prohibit the admission and ordination of students who are in committed relationships with non-Jewish partners. Even as interfaith couples are increasingly being welcomed into congregations of all denominations, they are effectively barred from pursuing the rabbinate. By the end of this year, that could all change.
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