GO TO SOURCE SAN FRANCISCO, USA July 18, 2002: Researchers — raising the hopes of clergy everywhere — say there are millions of young people like this from all religious backgrounds. “When my friends were kids, they went to church because they had to,” said the 17-year-old Gonzales “Now, most of my friends are involved because they want to be.”…
GO TO SOURCE USA, July 23, 2002: Physicians in the U.S. and abroad are conducting a variety of studies to determine whether yoga offers health benefits beyond general fitness and relieve symptoms associated with serious medical problems. Early results suggest that a regular yoga regimen can offer relief for patients suffering from asthma, chronic back pain, arthritis and obsessive compulsive…
GO TO SOURCE BHUJ, GUJARAT, INDIA, July 22, 2002: The world-famous Jain Temple of Bhadreshwar has been completely demolished because the structure was considered unsafe due to the extensive damage from last January’s earthquake. The main temple, which was nearly 2,500 years old, used to attract people from all over the country. “It is shocking not only for Jains but…
GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND, July 20, 2002: More than 2,000 years after they first claimed to have set foot in India, the mystery of the world’s most obscure Jewish community — the Marathi-speaking, Bene Israel — may finally have been solved with genetic carbon-dating revealing they carry the unusual “Moses” gene that would make them, literally, the original children…
GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND, JULY 21, 2002: As an indication of their intense and continuing interest in the aftermath of the Gujarat violence, eight MPs of Britain’s governing Labour Party have said they will visit the state to get “a clearer picture of the situation on the ground.” MPs, who include some from Muslim constituencies, such as Terry Rooney…
GO TO SOURCE DELHI, INDIA, July 28, 2002: Noted writer Sita Ram Goel’s important book, “In Defence of the Hindu Society,” is now available on-line at “source.” An excerpt: “But my heart bleeds when I see this great society being attacked by sheer barbarians whose only weapon is either a criminal theology masquerading as religion, or a materialist dogma sustained…
GO TO SOURCE NEW DELHI, July 24, 2002: In his farewell address to the nation as President, K. R. Narayanan made an appeal to Hindus to rekindle the tradition of tolerance. “It is up to our social and political leaders to present the people with the idiom of unity based on religious tolerance and communal and social amity that are…
GO TO SOURCE RAIPUR, INDIA, July 21, 2002: Christian bodies in Ambikapur, district headquarters of Sarguja, observed a general strike in missionary schools protesting against the conviction and jailing of a nun on charges of illegal conversion. The Shiv Sena and the BJP called the strike — organized to express solidarity with nun Vrishi Ekka — a provocative step. They…
GO TO SOURCE MUMBAI, INDIA, July 20, 2002: Indian television is launching a reality show which will arrange marriages for potential brides. “Kahin naa Kahin koi hai” takes viewers through the entire journey as the bride meets prospective grooms and their families, gets to know them and selects a spouse. Beginning July 29, the show will be hosted by veteran…
Source: Religion News Service DURHAM, USA, July 24 2002: The Journal of the American Medical Association published a major article illustrating the potent effect health professionals can have by addressing a patient’s spiritual needs. The study provides evidence that people with strong religious beliefs and practices cope better with illness, are able to decrease chronic pain intensity, speed recovery from…