Religion News ServiceOTTAWA, CANADA, May 14, 2003: May the force be with you. An astonishing 20,000 Canadians declared themselves followers of the religion of Jedi, the guardians of peace and justice in the “Star Wars” movies, Statistics Canada reported May 13 in its final installment of data culled from the 2001 census. Observers agree that declaring Jedi as a faith…
SourceNEW YORK, U.S.A.,May 13, 2003: A Lutheran pastor who was suspended by his church for praying publicly at Yankee Stadium with clergymen of other faiths, including a Hindu priest, after the September 2001 terrorist attacks has been reinstated by a church panel. In an order dated April 10 and released yesterday, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod’s dispute resolution panel cleared the…
SourceWASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., May 15, 2003: The image of the wealthy Non-Resident India (NRI) from America is poised to get a puffy boost following estimates from the investment firm Merrill Lynch that there are 200,000 millionaires of Indian origin in the United States alone. That may seem like a staggering count because out of their total population of 1.8 million,…
Blacktown Advocate (Australia)MARSDEN PARK, AUSTRALIA, May 7, 2003: The Australian Hindu Multicultural Association is planning to build a cultural center at Marsden Park for its 80 members. The plan includes an L-shaped building large enough for between 200 and 300 people and parking for up to 60 cars. It will be funded by donations from members and the community. “We…
SourceHYDERABAD, INDIA, May 8, 2003: In India, childless couples wanting to adopt are often left heartbroken after months and years of waiting. Prospective Indian parents are unlikely candidates as adoption agencies receive more money from foreign parents. Child rights activist Gita Ramaswamy says, “In March 2003, no objection certificate was given to over 100 children going abroad. Are there not…
Religion News ServiceWASHINGTON, D.C., May 8, 2003: The U.S. House of Representatives has approved a bill that allows church-run job training programs to use federal money to hire only people who share their faith. The provision, included in the US$6.6 billion Workforce Investment Act, reverses 20-year-old rules to allow religious groups to discriminate in hiring on the basis of religion.…
SourceLONDON, U.K., May 12, 2003: Compassion in World Farming (CIWF), a British group which accepts that farm animals will be killed for their meat but argues they should be treated humanely, is holding a conference in London on May 10. Understanding animals, animal awareness, emotions and intentions is the theme of this year’s conference. The concept that animals are sentient…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, May 13, 2003: Considering that India is historically credited with giving the world paisley, seersucker, calico, chintz, cashmere, crewel and the entire technique of printing on cloth, it is anybody’s guess why India barely registers on the global map of fashion. In the Western imagination India continues to represent fabric but not fashion, tradition but rarely innovation.…
SourceTHRISSUR, INDIA, May 10, 2003: Thousands of people witnessed the famous Thrissur Pooram, the festival of festivals comprising a day and night carnival of colorful pageantry, a parade of caparisoned tuskers and a profuse exhibition of Kerala’s traditional art forms. The Pooram started with the convergence of processions from eight temples in and around at the famous Vadakkumnathan Temple located…
SourceWASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A.., May 9, 2003: A broad coalition of religious groups is pushing a bill that would protect religious expression in the workplace, but civil liberties groups are concerned the bill could be used to increase on-the-job proselytizing. The Workplace Religious Freedom Act would force employers to “reasonably accommodate” employees who want to wear religious articles or take time…