A Baptist state newspaper editor says a Muslim flight attendant who sued ExpressJet airlines for suspending her because she refused to serve alcohol to passengers could be a test case on whether courts use a double standard in adjudicating religious…
Our political mantra: ‘Get out of here!’
On Saturday afternoon, walking through Harvard Square on the way to my church, I saw a Muslim woman in a long black garment and niqab. As I passed her, a man suddenly emerged from the crowd, aggressively shouting, “Get out of here! I said get out!”
Bluefield scholar seeks to take a bite out of interfaith tensions
Anti-Islamic sentiment is driving U.S. and European politics while religious hatred fuels world terrorism. Rob Merritt sees the roots of that animosity. “Most of the global conflict we see today has to do with religious controversy,” says Merritt, dean of the…
Pokémon is a no-go for leading Saudi clerics
Pokémon Go has become a no-go according to the leading religious organization of Saudi Arabia, the Reuters News Service has reported. Far from seeing the virtual reality game as a potential lure to houses of worship, the Saudi Muslim clerics…
These Muslims are praying in a basement while fighting to get their mosque built
Muslims in Bayonne, New Jersey, have wanted an Islamic center and prayer hall for nearly two decades — they currently pray in the cramped basement of an elementary school.
Conservative Christians grapple with whether religious freedom includes Muslims
In the current political climate, some conservative Christians are struggling with how to apply religious freedom to other faiths — like Islam.
Maligned editor says free speech slipping away
A Georgia Baptist newspaper editor widely criticized for questioning whether Islam qualifies as a religion protected under the First Amendment wondered in the days leading up to July 4 if America’s independence is about to slip away. Gerald Harris, editor…
Interfaith partnerships, service to those in poverty and an ATM define Louisiana church
Charlene Kelley says her faith is deeper and stronger than it has ever been thanks to her church in Shreveport, La. But it’s not just the usual things, like Bible studies and worship, that have transformed her Christian experience.
Muslim leaders: ‘We will not allow the extremists to define us’
More than 200 Muslims, including dozens of American imams and scholars, have issued a joint statement condemning the attacks on a gay night club in Orlando on Sunday that killed 49 people.
Louisville and Orlando, 2016
On Nov. 17, 1999, I met Muhammad Ali. It was at the Cathedral of the Assumption on 5th Street in Louisville, Ky., in a Cathedral Heritage Series of ecumenical gatherings. I was the preacher for an interfaith Thanksgiving service, and…
Editor rebuked for saying Muslims don’t deserve religious freedom
A Baptist expert on religious liberty rebutted a Baptist state newspaper editorial suggesting American Muslims do not qualify for the free exercise of religion guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Brent Walker, executive director of the Baptist…
Baptist editor says Muslims don’t deserve religious freedom
A Baptist state newspaper editor criticized a Southern Baptist Convention official for defending the building of a New Jersey mosque, suggesting that Islam should not be given First Amendment protection. Gerald Harris, editor of the Georgia Baptist newspaper Christian Index, wrote an…