Today's religion and world affairs news from the United States and around the globe: the Pope creates a tribunal for bishop negligence, Indonesia's new roadmap and regulations, and Obama's appeal to religious allies.
AROUND THE WORLD
Why Turkey Voted Against Authoritarianism
by David Ignatius
Washington Post op-ed
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/turkeys-resilient-democracy/2015/06/09/28fec564-0edc-11e5-a0dc-2b6f404ff5cf_story.html
Americans are too quick to define democracy in terms of elections. What produced Sunday’s genuinely democratic outcome in Turkey was something deeper than the fact that a large number of people went to the polls. Erdogan failed to get his mandate because he challenged a culture of checks and balances and the institutions that give Turkish democracy its resilience.
Pope Creates Tribunal for Bishop Negligence in Child Sexual Abuse Cases
by Elisabetta Povoledo and Laurie Goodstein
New York Times
https://thejesuitpost.org/2015/06/laudato-sii-pope-franciss-ecology-encyclical-is-almost-here/"
When the ecology encyclical is released, we need to frame the debate on common ground, and emphasize its positive elements. There are six ways to do that...
Indonesia Looks to New Roadmap to Boost Islamic Finance
by Reuters Staff
Reuters FaithWorld
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2015/06/10/indonesia-looks-to-new-roadmap-to-boost-islamic-finance
Indonesia’s capital market regulator has published a five-year strategy for the Islamic finance industry, which includes reducing fees on sharia-compliant products, developing new education and training programs, and creating industry certification for certain religious experts.
Clemency for Raif Badawi
New York Times editorial
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/11/opinion/clemency-for-raif-badawi.html
The decision on Sunday by Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court to uphold the depraved sentence imposed on the blogger Raif Badawi last May by the criminal court in Jeddah is tantamount to a death sentence for the “crime” of free expression. (...) The Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins on June 18. This is a good time for King Salman, crowned four months ago, to demonstrate his magnanimity, grant Mr. Badawi clemency.
DOMESTIC
‘I love nuns’: Obama Appeals to Religious Allies as his Landmark Health Care Law Awaits Supreme Court Decision
by Michelle Boorstein
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/06/09/i-love-nuns-obama-appeals-to-religious-allies-as-his-landmark-health-care-law-awaits-supreme-court-decision/"
Obama’s decision to give one of his biggest recent speeches about the Affordable Care Act at the Catholic Health Association, led by chief executive Sister Carol Keehan, is of course a way of showcasing prominent religious support for a law that has many faith-based critics. Keehan heads the nation’s largest group of nonprofit health care providers. On Tuesday, Obama said the ACA would not have happened “had it not been” for Keehan. “And it’s true, I just love nuns, generally,” he said, “I’m just saying.” Obama’s appearance also spotlights the sometimes complicated feelings faith-based activists have expressed about the law.
Judge Rules Hasidic Jews May Sue New York Towns They Say Discriminate
by Reuters Staff
Reuters FaithWorld
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2015/06/10/judge-rules-hasidic-jews-may-sue-new-york-towns-they-say-discriminate/
A federal judge ordered two New York municipalities in the Catskills foothills to face a lawsuit accusing them of discriminating against Hasidic Jews by trying to stop them from moving in.
Why Turkey Voted Against Authoritarianism
by David Ignatius
Washington Post op-ed
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/turkeys-resilient-democracy/2015/06/09/28fec564-0edc-11e5-a0dc-2b6f404ff5cf_story.html
Americans are too quick to define democracy in terms of elections. What produced Sunday’s genuinely democratic outcome in Turkey was something deeper than the fact that a large number of people went to the polls. Erdogan failed to get his mandate because he challenged a culture of checks and balances and the institutions that give Turkish democracy its resilience.
Pope Creates Tribunal for Bishop Negligence in Child Sexual Abuse Cases
by Elisabetta Povoledo and Laurie Goodstein
New York Times
https://thejesuitpost.org/2015/06/laudato-sii-pope-franciss-ecology-encyclical-is-almost-here/"
When the ecology encyclical is released, we need to frame the debate on common ground, and emphasize its positive elements. There are six ways to do that...
Indonesia Looks to New Roadmap to Boost Islamic Finance
by Reuters Staff
Reuters FaithWorld
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2015/06/10/indonesia-looks-to-new-roadmap-to-boost-islamic-finance
Indonesia’s capital market regulator has published a five-year strategy for the Islamic finance industry, which includes reducing fees on sharia-compliant products, developing new education and training programs, and creating industry certification for certain religious experts.
Clemency for Raif Badawi
New York Times editorial
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/11/opinion/clemency-for-raif-badawi.html
The decision on Sunday by Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court to uphold the depraved sentence imposed on the blogger Raif Badawi last May by the criminal court in Jeddah is tantamount to a death sentence for the “crime” of free expression. (...) The Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins on June 18. This is a good time for King Salman, crowned four months ago, to demonstrate his magnanimity, grant Mr. Badawi clemency.
DOMESTIC
‘I love nuns’: Obama Appeals to Religious Allies as his Landmark Health Care Law Awaits Supreme Court Decision
by Michelle Boorstein
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/06/09/i-love-nuns-obama-appeals-to-religious-allies-as-his-landmark-health-care-law-awaits-supreme-court-decision/"
Obama’s decision to give one of his biggest recent speeches about the Affordable Care Act at the Catholic Health Association, led by chief executive Sister Carol Keehan, is of course a way of showcasing prominent religious support for a law that has many faith-based critics. Keehan heads the nation’s largest group of nonprofit health care providers. On Tuesday, Obama said the ACA would not have happened “had it not been” for Keehan. “And it’s true, I just love nuns, generally,” he said, “I’m just saying.” Obama’s appearance also spotlights the sometimes complicated feelings faith-based activists have expressed about the law.
Judge Rules Hasidic Jews May Sue New York Towns They Say Discriminate
by Reuters Staff
Reuters FaithWorld
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2015/06/10/judge-rules-hasidic-jews-may-sue-new-york-towns-they-say-discriminate/
A federal judge ordered two New York municipalities in the Catskills foothills to face a lawsuit accusing them of discriminating against Hasidic Jews by trying to stop them from moving in.
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