Source: Religion News Service

http://pewforum.org/news/display.php?NewsID=1849

On December 24, 2002 the Religion News Service reported that "a coalition of progressive religious leaders has given the nation's political leaders poor grades for the war on terrorism, including a grade of 'D' for preserving civil liberties... The Progressive Religious Partnership's recent 'Spiritual and Ethical Report Card' was...

Source: Oroville Mercury Register

http ://w ww.orovillemr.com/archives/index.inn?loc=detail&doc=/2002/December/23-2054-news8.txt

On December 22, 2002 the Oroville Mercury Register reported that "the Oroville Chinese Temple, located at 1500 Broderick St., houses one of the largest collections of Chinese artifacts in the country... Of the 10,000 immigrants that occupied the Oroville area, almost 4,000 resided on Broderick Street alone, labeling that section of town 'Chinatown' said temple volunteer Dorothy Kissel......

Source: Chicago Daily Herald

On December 21, 2002 the Chicago Daily Herald reported that "a group of students [at Lake Forest Academy] is seeking answers to life's dilemmas through Buddhism. The bright lights in the breakfast room offer an appropriate setting for the meetings of the Buddhist Exploration Club. The air in the room is refreshingly cool and rejuvenating after a long day at school. The conversation is filled with long pauses as speakers choose the words to express the truths that Buddhism has revealed to them."

Source: Voice of America

http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=E6619D30-BCC0-44A1-B4672A3B89B65E73

On December 15, 2002 the Voice of America reported that "officially, there are about a million Buddhists in America. But because questions about religious identity are voluntary on any U.S. census survey, most experts believe the actual number may be as high as five million. What isn't a subject of debate is the fact that the overwhelming...

Source: St. Petersburg Times

https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2002/12/14/and-let-it-begin-with-me/

On December 14, 2002 St. Petersburg Times reported that "meditations on themes such as cherishing are taught at the Parbawatiya Center [FL] almost every day. The center is in a converted...

Source: Wisconsin State Journal

On December 11, 2002 Wisconsin State Journal reported that "Buddhists set up [a] display alongside those of other religious groups at the fifth annual Interfaith Awareness Week program Tuesday at the state Capitol. Other faiths participating in the noon program were Orthodox Christian, Mennonite, Unitarian Universalist, Jewish, Hindu and Muslim. The Interfaith Awareness Week program was organized by the Rev. John-Brian Paprock... a priest at Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Mission in Madison.

Source: Suburban Chicago News

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/newssun/city/w07religs.htm

On December 7, 2002 the Suburban Chicago News questioned "why would a loving God permit human suffering? What is the surest path to spiritual enlightenment? How can both doubt and belief spring from the same insurmountable questions?" Then suggested that "these and other weighty matters will be broached during some thought-provoking discussions being offered by faith...

Source: The Boston Globe

On December 5, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "growing up in Philadelphia in the mid-1970s, Rona Gugliemino had the day off from school on Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashana. Now she is raising her family in Berlin [MA], where the regional school district closes on Good Friday but not on the two holiest days in the Jewish faith. Along with another mother in the district, she is asking school officials to reconsider their policy, citing many other towns in the area that have moved in that direction. The School Committee has agreed...

Source: The Boston Globe

On December 4, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "seven Buddhists from Leverett, Mass., have been beating drums and chanting this week in a demonstration across from the White House to promote peace between the United States and Iraq."

Source: The Associated Press

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On December 2, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "a recently released survey by San Francisco's Institute of Jewish and Community Research shows that a far higher percentage of people in Marin County [CA] than in the rest of the country embrace alternative religions or no religion at all. The findings, gathered from random telephone interviews of 604 people in April and May of 2000, do not mean the famously wealthy and liberal suburban county is full of barefoot pagans wearing robes and worshiping in the...

Source: The Gazette

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Source: Rocky Mountain News

On November 29, 2002 Rocky Mountain News reported that "held in a different worship center every year, Denver's oldest Thanksgiving interfaith service was begun in the 1880s by two churches and a synagogue. The event has expanded to include three more Christian and Jewish groups and the Buddhist Temple, which has participated for almost 30 years. The one-hour service was capped by a bread-sharing ritual and closed with America the Beautiful. The service will be held next year at Central Christian Church in Denver."

Source: The Fresno Bee

On November 29, 2002 The Fresno Bee reported that "there isn't much built yet at Wat Phouthapathan Lao, the Lao Buddhist temple complex on Walnut, north of Jensen in southwest Fresno [in CA]. But what's there is a start on an ambitious plan to preserve the centuries-old Lao culture and religion in the central San Joaquin Valley. And Thursday, as many Americans gorged on turkey and trimmings, Fresno's Lao community began a four-day celebration of music, dancing, food, handiworks and religion. The Pra Thatlouang Festival is the...

Source: Austin American Statesman

On November 28, 2002 Austin American Statesman reported that "at Barsana Dham [in Texas], a Hindu temple, there were gathered a Roman Catholic bishop, an Episcopalian priest, Protestant ministers of various stripes (Presbyterian, Methodist, Lutheran, Unitarian and Baptist), a Jewish rabbi, Buddhist monks, a Muslim imam -- and more. That's not all. There were about 1,000 black people, brown people, yellow people and white people, men, women and children, and everybody took off their shoes in respect for Hindu ways."