“The usual notion is that Christianity would have a special problem dealing with intelligence out there, because it would take us away from being the center of the universe. For some people that’s very threatening, because somehow we won’t be as special as we have been,” says astronomer and former NASA historian Steven Dick. More →

Source: Extraterrestrial Intelligent Life | April 29, 2016 | Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly | PBS

Father Berrigan, a Jesuit priest and poet, defiantly protested the Vietnam War and served time for his acts of civil disobedience.

Source: Daniel J. Berrigan, Defiant Priest Who Preached Pacifism, Dies at 94 - The New York Times

Paschal ceremonies brings passions to the surface

Source: Paschal: An ancient Orthodox Easter rite engenders new and old passions | The Economist

“Stereotypes lose their power because they’re replaced by true, authentic relationships,” says Rev. Josh Graves, pastor of the Nashville megachurch Otter Creek Church of Christ, describing his project of engagement between Christians and Muslims. “It’s very hard for people to care about people they don’t know. That’s just true of humans wherever you are on planet earth.” More →

Source: Christians Countering Anti-Muslim Rhetoric | April 29, 2016 |...

Jehovah’s Witnesses, who make up just less than 1% of U.S. adults, are known for their door-to-door proselytism. But members of this denomination, which has its origins in 19th-century America, are also unique in many other ways.

Source: A closer look at Jehovah’s Witnesses living in the U.S.

A prayer that asks that voters be imbued with “discernment” was seen by some as a sign that the church sides with those who want Britain to stay in the European Union.

Source: Church of England Calls on God to Help ‘Brexit’ Voters - The New York Times

Accounts of punishment for those alleging rape have raised a furor over how the university treats sexual assault as it also seeks to uphold a moral code at the heart of its Mormon identity.

Source: At Brigham Young, a Cost in Reporting a Rape - The New York Times

The revival of “Abduction From the Seraglio” offers a disturbing model for exploring reconciliation of cultural differences.

Source: Muslims, Christians and Mozart: Seeking Harmony at the Met Opera - The New York Times

The business community, including solidly GOP-leaning groups, oppose the bill, after seeing the effect of similar measures elsewhere. The blowback has surprised Christian conservatives in Missouri.

Source: Missouri's Proposed Religious Freedom Amendment Sets Old Allies At Odds : NPR

Guru Nanak Interfaith Prize For Serve2Unite, Harvard Pluralism Project

Source: Guru Nanak Interfaith Prize For Serve2Unite, Harvard Pluralism Project

Rachel Martin speaks with Fahim Rahim, a doctor in the largely Mormon town of Pocatello.

Source: In Time Of Backlash, What It's Like To Be A Muslim In Idaho : NPR

Residents of Montecristi say the survival of the centuries-old Our Mother of Monserrate, even as the basilica cracked and crumbled around it, is a miracle.

Source: Virgin Mary Statue, Intact Among Ecuador’s Quake Ruins, Becomes a Beacon of Hope - The New York Times

This may have been the plainest room Prince spent time in as an adult.

Source: At a Jehovah's Witness hall, congregants remember Prince as 'Brother Nelson' - LA Times

Onaje X.O. Woodbine walked away from Yale to Ghana, feeling valued only for his court skills. Now he sees urban basketball as a powerful healing rite.

Source: A Philosophical Journey Leads Back to Basketball - The New York Times

“People need to talk about this issue,” says Diane Rehm, author of On My Own. “Doctors need to be taught about this issue. The whole idea of doctors being taught about helping to keep people alive but not being taught how to listen to those who are ready to die—that seems to me sad and misguided.” More →

Source: Diane Rehm on Assisted Suicide | April 22, 2016 | Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly | PBS