Trayvon Martin's mother speaks at Baltimore church

2012-05-20T23:27:39Z

The mother of slain Florida teenager Trayvon Martin got a standing ovation before speaking to parishioners at a Baltimore church.

Football bridges religious divide in Thai south

2012-05-20T08:42:09Z

A shared passion for football is uniting Buddhists and Muslims in Thailand's restive south, where grassroots efforts to find elusive peace are gaining ground after years of bloodshed.

Vatican: New book of leaked documents 'criminal'

2012-05-19T21:35:15Z

The Vatican on Saturday denounced as "criminal" a new book of leaked internal documents that shed light on power struggles inside the Holy See and the thinking of its embattled top banker, and warned that it would take legal action against those responsible.

Cardinal's presence felt at Pa. church-abuse trial

2012-05-19T19:14:20Z

Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua died just weeks before his longtime aide went on trial in the alleged cover-up of sexual assaults by priests within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

NH church elects Mass. priest for Episcopal bishop

2012-05-19T18:26:52Z

A Massachusetts priest will succeed Bishop Gene Robinson as New Hampshire's next Episcopal bishop.

Filipino Christian conservatives denounce Lady Gaga concert

2012-05-19T14:37:07Z

Conservative Christian groups in the Philippines on Saturday marched near a shopping mall to demand the cancellation of Lady Gaga's two concerts next week, saying her songs carried "demonic" undertones. The protests in the heavily Catholic Philippines followed a decision this week by authorities in Indonesia, a secular state but with the world's largest Muslim population, to refuse her a permit to perform in Jakarta next month. ...

Georgia gay activists rally after religious attacks

2012-05-18T17:58:07Z

Dozens of gay rights supporters rallied for a second day in the Georgian capital Friday after being attacked by Orthodox Christians during their initial march in the deeply religious Caucasus state.

Sebelius speech embraces church, state separation

2012-05-18T17:12:29Z

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius paid homage to religious freedom and the separation of church and state in a graduation speech Friday at Georgetown University that was briefly interrupted by an anti-abortion heckler.

After stinging report, Pope softens tone for U.S. nuns

2012-05-18T15:27:08Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict on Friday held out an olive branch to American Roman Catholic nuns, who are reeling from a stinging Vatican report that criticized them as being feminist and politicized. "I wish to reaffirm my deep gratitude for the example of fidelity and self-sacrifice given by many consecrated women (nuns) in your country," he said in an address to visiting U.S. bishops. ...

Rufus Wainwright vs. The Catholic Church

2012-05-18T14:00:43Z

Welcome to the Smart Set. Every morning we bring you the gossip coverage, filtered. Today: Rufus Wainwright has a few Catholics angry, Al Gore is steppin' out, and Elin Nordegren is looking for love.

Filipino Christian group protests Lady Gaga shows

2012-05-18T12:50:49Z

Scores of Christian youths in the Philippines chanted "Stop the Lady Gaga concerts" at a rally Friday calling for the pop diva's shows here to be canceled despite assurances from authorities that they won't allow nudity and lewd acts.

Filipino Christian group wants Lady Gaga concerts cancelled, saying she promotes immorality

2012-05-18T08:00:13Z

MANILA, Philippines - About 70 Christian youths in the Philippines have chanted "Stop the Lady Gaga concerts" at a rally calling for the singer's shows in Manila next week to be cancelled.

Treasures of Italy's Marche region on show at Vatican

2012-05-17T10:41:28Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - If you wanted to admire masterpieces of religious art by Titian, Raphael, Lorenzo Lotto, Guido Reni, Carlo Crivelli and other masters in museums around Italy's central Marche region, it could cost you a few weeks of time and a hefty hotel bill. Now, 50 paintings from 15 museums in the region rich in natural beauty and artistic heritage are on exhibition at the Vatican. Called "Meraviglie dalle Marche," or Marvels from the Marche, the one-stop viewing for paintings from the region opened recently in the Braccio Carlo Magno exhibition space in St Peter's Square. ...

Church pastor, gospel music legend Marvin Winans assaulted, carjacked at Detroit gas station

2012-05-16T23:28:19Z

DETROIT - Popular pastor and gospel singer Marvin Winans has been assaulted and carjacked at a Detroit gas station.

Vatican tosses out Canada ex-bishop over child porn

2012-05-16T20:09:56Z

A former Catholic bishop convicted of importing child pornography -- including some laced with religious imagery -- into Canada has been stripped of his religious duties, the church said Wednesday.

Exclusive: Order knew for months about priest scandal: Vatican official

2012-05-16T19:53:03Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Leaders of the scandal-plagued Legionaries of Christ religious order knew that their most famous priest had fathered a child for many months before they acknowledged it this week, a top Vatican official told Reuters on Wednesday. The once influential religious order, still in crisis following revelations that its founder was a sexual abuser with two secret families, suffered another major blow on Tuesday when American Father Thomas Williams admitted to having fathered a child with a woman in Rome. ...

Teacher fired over pregnancy can sue religious school

2012-05-16T18:59:48Z

(Reuters) - An appeals court on Wednesday revived a Florida teacher's lawsuit against a Christian school that fired her after she admitted to conceiving a child before her marriage. Overturning a lower court ruling in the school's favor, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit found that Jarretta Hamilton was entitled to a trial on her claims of pregnancy discrimination by the Southland Christian School in St. Cloud, Florida. The fourth-grade teacher informed administrators in April 2009 that she was pregnant and needed to take maternity leave. ...

Roman Catholic bishop convicted of child pornography stripped of clerical duties

2012-05-16T17:45:38Z

ANTIGONISH, N.S. - A Roman Catholic bishop who was convicted of importing child pornography into Canada has been stripped of his clerical duties.

Exclusive: Order knew for months about priest scandal: Vatican official

2012-05-16T17:23:20Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Leaders of the scandal-plagued Legionaries of Christ religious order knew that their most famous priest had fathered a child for many months before they acknowledged it this week, a top Vatican official told Reuters on Wednesday. The once influential religious order, still in crisis following revelations that its founder was a sexual abuser with two secret families, suffered another major blow on Tuesday when American Father Thomas Williams admitted to having fathered a child with a woman in Rome. ...

Presbyterian churches ignore SF minister's censure

2012-05-16T04:12:47Z

Representatives of dozens of West Coast Presbyterian churches are defying their denomination's highest court by refusing to censure a retired minister who married same-sex couples in 2008.

Catholic college drops health plan over contraception mandate

2012-05-15T21:21:39Z

DENVER (Reuters) - A small Catholic college in Ohio said Tuesday it was dropping health insurance coverage for students rather than comply with a federal mandate that the plan provide free birth control. The Franciscan University of Steubenville "will not participate in a plan that requires us to violate the consistent teachings of the Catholic Church on the sacredness of human life," according to a bulletin to students posted on the university's website. Not only will the university drop its own plan, but it will no longer require its undergraduates to carry insurance, the bulletin said. ...

Scandal-plagued Catholic order rocked by priest's affair

2012-05-15T20:45:32Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The scandal-plagued Legionaries of Christ Roman Catholic religious order suffered another major blow to its image on Tuesday when one of its most prominent members admitted to having fathered a child. Father Thomas Williams said in a statement he was "truly sorry to everyone who is hurt by this revelation". Williams, the American author of more than a dozen books on spirituality and dean of moral theology at a papal university in Rome, often appeared on American television to explain Vatican affairs and Catholic teachings. ...

Philly church mum on priest until donor complained

2012-05-15T18:39:26Z

Documents from a clergy-abuse trial show Catholic church officials ignored complaints a Philadelphia priest had molested two boys until they heard he was also running a travel business — and competing with a big donor.

Vatican, Benetton settle dispute over pope kiss ad

2012-05-15T16:25:03Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Italian fashion firm Benetton has agreed to make a donation to a Catholic charity to end a legal dispute with the Vatican over an advertisement that showed Pope Benedict kissing an imam on the lips, the Vatican said on Tuesday. Spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the Vatican had won a moral victory, achieving its aim of defending the pope's image through legal means. The company had promised not to circulate any of the photo-montages and to try to stop use of the image by third parties, Lombardi said. ...

Church lawyer: Philly cardinal, aides lied to me

2012-05-14T20:53:41Z

A Roman Catholic cardinal and his top aides lied to their lawyer about shredding a key piece of evidence in the Philadelphia clergy-abuse scandal, the lawyer testified Monday.

Reality TV, religion give birth to top baby names

2012-05-14T20:24:24Z

Reality TV is giving birth to some of the most popular baby names. No, not Snooki. But Mason, as in Kourtney Kardashian's son, jumped 10 spots to become the second most popular name for newborn boys in 2011.

Vatican mystery intensifies, bones found in grave

2012-05-14T19:17:52Z

Forensic police swarmed the crypt of a Roman basilica on Monday to exhume the body of a reputed mobster as part of an investigation into one of the Vatican's most enduring mysteries: the 1983 disappearance of the teenage daughter of one of its employees.

Roman Catholic bishops say religious voices should be heard in public debate

2012-05-14T18:28:06Z

OTTAWA - Canada's Roman Catholic bishops say religious voices have a right to be heard in public debates and shouldn't be shouldered aside in the name of separation of church and state.

Crypt opened for clues to missing Vatican schoolgirl

2012-05-14T17:19:27Z

ROME (Reuters) - Investigators attempting to resolve one of Italy's most enduring mysteries on Monday opened the tomb of a mobster in a Rome basilica for clues to the disappearance of a Vatican schoolgirl nearly 30 years ago. Enrico "Renatino" De Pedis, the feared head of Rome's Magliana gang which terrorized the capital in the 1980s, has been linked to the disappearance in 1983 of Emanuela Orlandi, the 15-year-old daughter of a Vatican employee. Forensic officials, lawyers and members of the Orlandi family witnessed the exhumation on Monday. ...

Vatican braced for removal of mobster's tomb over 1983 disappearance of employee's child

2012-05-14T14:00:21Z

ROME - Forensic police swarmed the crypt of a Roman basilica on Monday to exhume the body of a reputed mobster as part of an investigation into one of the Vatican's enduring mysteries: the 1983 disappearance of the teenage daughter of a Vatican employee.