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Obama implores minister to call off Quran burning

2010-09-09T04:45:14Z

Obama calls Florida minister's Quran-burning plan a 'stunt'; Tells him to call it off

President Barack Obama is exhorting a Florida minister to "listen to those better angels" and call off his plan to engage in a Quran-burning protest this weekend. Obama told ABC's "Tens of thousands of Hasidic celebrate Jewish New Year at spiritual leader's tomb in Ukraine

Tens of thousands of Hasidic Jews from around the world gathered in a small Ukrainian city Thursday to mark the Jewish New Year at the tomb of their spiritual leader — an apparent record for the annual all-male pilgrimage banned for decades by the Soviets. Uk...

New Muslim college welcomes freshmen in California

2010-09-09T03:00:04Z

New Muslim college opens in California amid furor over proposed mosque near ground zero

Amid the uproar over the proposed mosque near ground zero in New York, a new Islamic college recently opened its doors in California with plans to educate a new generation of Muslim-American leaders. Founded by three prominent Islamic scholars, Zaytuna College in Berkeley is a small schoo...

Muslims in Bahrain, Pakistan protest Quran burning

2010-09-09T02:15:11Z

Lawyers in Pakistan protest Florida church's Quran burning plan; Bahrain calls it 'shameful'

A small American church's plan to burn copies of the Quran is stirring outrage in Muslim nations, with lawyers protesting in Pakistan and Bahrain's government calling the burning a shameful attack on interfaith relations. About 200 law...

Bahrain calls Quran burning plans 'shameful'

2010-09-09T00:16:12Z

Bahrain calls plans for Quran burning in US 'shameful' act of intolerance

Bahrain says plans by a Florida church to burn copies of the Quran are a shameful attack on efforts for dialogue between faiths. The statement by Bahrain's Foreign Ministry on Thursday is among the first official denunciations in the Arab world against the planned torching of ...

Defiant Florida church says Koran burning to go ahead

2010-09-08T19:20:23Z

A small Florida church shrugged off global outrage and vowed to go ahead with a Koran burning ceremony amid growing fears it will ignite a wave of Islamic rage. Condemnation rained in from top US officials, the military, the Vatican and other religious leaders, but the church refused to halt plans to torch the Islamic holy book on Saturday's anniversary of the September 11, 2001 at...

Ore. abuse case lawyers want to question cardinals

2010-09-08T18:30:04Z

Lawyers in Oregon case seek to question top Vatican officials about priests, sexual abuse

Lawyers for a man who wants to hold the Vatican accountable for the priest who molested him in the 1960s want to question top cardinals. The lawyers filed papers Wednesday in Oregon outlining requests for depositions from Clinton, Gates denounce planned Quran burning, warn of risks to Americans

The top two national security advisers in President Barack Obama's Cabinet on Wednesday denounced plans by a small church in Florida to burn the Muslim holy book to commemorate the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, saying it would inflame tensions and put Americans abroad at risk. Sarah Palin on Wednesday condemned a small Florida church's planned Koran burning ceremony as an "insensitive and an unnecessary provocation." "Book burning is antithetical to American ideals," Palin, a possible Republican contender for the White House in 2012, said in a post on her Pakistan official says TV host Glenn Beck should renounce Quran burning, show US is tolerant

Pakistan's ambassador to the United States is calling on conservative radio and television host Glenn Beck to denounce the planned burning of the Quran to show that Americans are tolerant of other faiths....

US embassies brace for Quran burning protests

2010-09-08T15:51:14Z

State Department tells US embassies to brace for protests over Quran burnings

The State Department has ordered U.S. embassies around the world to assess their security ahead of a Florida church group's planned weekend burning of the Muslim holy book amid fears it could spark anti-American violence. Officials said We...

'Islamists' free hundreds of inmates in Nigerian jail attack

2010-09-08T15:50:31Z

Suspected members of an Islamist sect have freed hundreds of inmates in an attack on a prison in northern Nigeria that led to a fierce gun battle with authorities, officials said Wednesday. Authorities said more than 700 inmates escaped in the Tuesday night attack, including at least 150 alleged sect members. The sect blamed for the attack, known as Boko Haram, had launched an u...

Fla. pastor on fringe of US Christian life

2010-09-08T15:42:14Z

Pastor who plans to burn Quran is not in Christian mainstream, was thrown out of former church

The Florida pastor who plans to burn the Quran on the anniversary of 9/11 is rooted in Pentecostal tradition that believes Christians are engaged in a modern-day spiritual battle with evil. For Terry Jones and his

Florida church says Koran burning will go ahead

2010-09-08T15:40:52Z

A small Florida church Wednesday brushed aside global outrage and vowed to go ahead with burning some 200 Korans, as local officials drew up plans to try to tamp down the protest. Despite international condemnation led by US officials, military and religious leaders, the church said its event to torch the Islamic holy book on the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks would take place. "As of this time we have no intention of canceling...

Muslims see Quran burning as threat to God's word

2010-09-08T15:31:53Z

Muslims see Quran burning threat as targeting the direct word of God

The Quran is the most sacred object in the daily lives of Muslims and burning it would be considered an offense against God. Islam teaches that the holy book is the direct word of God, received by the Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel, and it defines the belief and conduct for followers of the religion. The Qura...

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Lebanon announce Eid al-Fitr on Friday

2010-09-08T15:30:46Z

Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Lebanon announced they would celebrate the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, on Friday. In Saudi Arabia, seen as the beacon of Sunni Islam, the supreme court ruled that Thursday woul...

Lebanon condemns US Koran burning

2010-09-08T15:21:08Z

Lebanese President Michel Sleiman on Wednesday denounced plans by a Florida pastor to burn copies of the Koran, saying it contradicted Christian teachings. "The president condemns the announcement of a religious group in the United States of its intention to openly burn copies of the Koran," said a statement released by the office ...

Seven Koranic teachers convicted for making pupils beg

2010-09-08T15:20:38Z

A Dakar court sentenced seven Koranic teachers to six months probation Wednesday for forcing pupils to beg, a first in the majority Muslim country which recently banned begging in public places. The accused, six Senegalese and one from Guinea-Bissau, were also fined 100,000 francs (150 euros) in what Sex workers in Muslim-dominated Senegal await end of Ramadan after month of slow business

Wearing white to symbolize purity, worshippers throughout this African capital gathered to pray on one of the final nights of Ramadan. To purify the soul and purge sin, they hadn't eaten all day and refrained from drinking, smoking and having sex — which during the holy month is ...

Muslim mason immortalized at French cathedral

2010-09-08T10:00:16Z

French Muslim mason immortalized as gargoyle at Catholic cathedral in message of tolerance

A Muslim stone mason who spent nearly four decades helping to restore an ancient Roman Catholic cathedral has been immortalized, as a winged gargoyle peering from the facade of the edifice with the inscription "God is Great" at his clawed feet. This sign of friendship that spans religions is rooted in the Medieval tradition and the city of Lyon's links to its la...

Pentagon chief endorses call to cancel Quran burn

2010-09-08T09:31:12Z

Gates adds voice to those condemning planned Quran burning as a risk to US troops

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is adding his voice to those of top U.S. generals and others who say that a Florida church's plan to burn the Quran could endanger U.S. forces in the field. A Pentagon spokesman says Gates told his staff Wednesday t...

Pessimistic about peace, Israelis greet new year

2010-09-08T09:30:39Z

Skepticism about peace mixes with festive atmosphere as Israelis usher in Jewish new year

Israelis usher in the Jewish new year, or Rosh Hashana, at sundown Wednesday with a widespread sense of pessimism that a new round of U.S.-sponsored Mideast talks can achieve peace. President Barack Obama...

Religion news in brief

2010-09-08T09:20:19Z

Religion news in brief

In a move that stunned parishioners, the Boston Archdiocese shut down a Quincy church last weekend, five years after it was allowed to remain open as a chapel. Star of the Sea Church was one of dozens of parishes closed in a broad and fiercely protested consolidation that the archdiocese announced in 2004. But the next year, the archdiocese sa...

Pope thanks UK for 'vast' efforts for trip

2010-09-08T06:00:07Z

Pope thanks Britain for 'vast' security, communications efforts in upcoming visit

Pope Benedict XVI thanked the British on Wednesday for the "vast amount of work" they have put into his upcoming visit and said he hoped their efforts would pay off. Benedict's Sept. 16-19 trip has been controversial from the start, in large part ...

Vatican: Burning Quran is outrageous, grave move

2010-09-08T05:20:42Z

Vatican: Burning Quran would be "outrageous and grave gesture" against Islam

The Vatican on Wednesday denounced as "outrageous and grave" plans by a Christian minister in Florida to burn copies of the Quran to mark the Sept. 11 anniversary. The Vatican office responsible for relations with Islam issued a stern statement saying every religion has the right to expect that ...

Gunmen free up to 800 inmates from Nigeria prison

2010-09-08T04:00:09Z

KADUNA, Nigeria (Reuters) - Heavily armed gunmen attacked a prison in the central Nigerian city of Bauchi late on Tuesday, freeing as many as 800 inmates including suspected members of a militant Islamic sect, police said Wednesday. State police commissioner Danlami Yar'Adua said the ...

Indonesia cities empty for Muslim holy month's end

2010-09-08T03:50:05Z

Indonesian cities empty as millions return to villages to celebrate end of Islamic holy month

Millions of Indonesians crammed into trains, ferries and in greater numbers than ever, motorcycles, as they poured out of major cities to return to their villages to celebrate the end of the Islamic holy month with families. The annual mass exodus, which always leaves the country's overburdened and poorly maintained transportation systems bursting at the seams, resulted i...

Among Egypt's Christians, few question Church rule

2010-09-08T00:20:32Z

Tightening divorce ban highlights how Egypt's Christians cleave closer to their Church

When Irini Ibrahim, a young Coptic Christian woman, floated the idea of divorce from a husband she said was abusing her, her parents immediately opposed it, reminding her of the Biblical vow, "What God has joined together let no man put asunder." So the 25-year-old Ibrahim entered "reconciliation sessions" with her husband R...

Abstinent Mormon farmers grow barley for beer

2010-09-08T00:10:16Z

Mormon farmers in Idaho abstain from alcohol but earn living by supplying barley to brewers

Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo might seem like an unlikely person to be pushing a bill to cut federal taxes on small beer-makers: A member of The Chur...

US appears powerless to stop Koran-burning ceremony

2010-09-07T20:20:27Z

The United States appeared powerless to stop a Florida church from burning hundreds of Korans on the anniversary of 9/11 despite fears of global repercussions. The White House added its voice to growing concern from military leaders that the incendiary move by a group of American evangelicals could trigger outrage around the Islami...

Clinton calls plan to burn Quran 'disgraceful act'

2010-09-07T18:10:11Z

Clinton condemns Fla. pastor's plan to burn Quran a 'disrespectful, disgraceful act'

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday called a Florida church's threat to burn copies of the Muslim holy book to mark the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks a "disrespectful, disgraceful act." Others in the

Major US veterans group condemns planned Koran burning

2010-09-07T16:20:08Z

A top US veterans group on Tuesday blasted a planned Koran burning to mark nine years since the September 11th strikes as the work of "religious extremists" whose gesture would endanger US forces. "There is nothing to be gained and everything to lose from this selfish act," said Richard Eubank, leader of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the largest US comba...

Holder: Quran burning idiotic and dangerous

2010-09-07T16:10:09Z

Attorney General Holder tells religious leaders burning Quran is 'idiotic and dangerous'

Attorney General Eric Holder is calling the planned burning of the Quran at a Florida church idiotic and dangerous. That's the word from religious leaders who met with Holder for nearly an hour Tuesday to discuss recent attacks on Muslims and mosques around the NYC mayor: Fla. minister's plan to burn Quran on 9/11 is 'distasteful' but a protected right

Mayor Michael Bloomberg says a minister's plan to burn the Muslim holy book on Sept. 11 is "distasteful" but says the minister has a right to do it. Bloomberg was asked Tuesday about Pas...

Peace in Middle East will not come 'quick' : Obama

2010-09-07T12:20:32Z

US President Barack Obama warned Tuesday that progress towards peace in the Middle East would not come easily, or quickly, despite the launch of direct Israeli-Palestinian talks. In a message marking the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah, Obama said, however, that d...

White House: Quran burning endangers troops

2010-09-07T11:40:19Z

White House: Quran burning would put troops in Afghanistan in harm's way

The White House says an American church's threat to burn copies of the Muslim holy book could endanger U.S. troops serving overseas, and the State Department denounced the plan as "un-American." White House spokesman US Attorney General Eric Holder was Tuesday to meet with religious leaders from across all faiths to discuss ways to stem a wave of attacks against Muslims and mosques. The talks would examine measures the Department of Justice "can take against rising anti-Muslim hate and acts of violence and intimidation against American Muslims," the broad coalition said in a press release. The 4:00 pm (2000 GMT) meeting c...

New Mumbai rabbi highlights worldwide Jewish mission

2010-09-07T10:30:19Z

NEW YORK (Reuters) - As they prepare for the High Holidays this week, the Jewish community in India's financial capital Mumbai has good news to report two years after its rabbi there died in an Islamist assault on the city. A new rabbi has arrived, a new community center is open and their worldwide C...

Petraeus warns on Koran burning as Muslim world reacts

2010-09-07T10:21:27Z

The US commander of the Afghan war warned Tuesday that a decision by American evangelicals to burn the Koran on 9/11 would endanger his troops as the Muslim world reacted angrily to the plan. General David Petraeus said the planned torching of Islam's holy book by a Florida church would be a propaganda coup for the Taliban i...

Senegal Prostitution Ramadan

2010-09-08T15:25:29Z

A woman who asked not to be identified but said she supports her young son through occasional sex work, smokes as she waits for clients at a hotel bar in Dakar, Senegal, in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2010. The woman didn't find any clients on this night, one of the last nights of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Ramadan is bad news for sex w...

Germany Denmark Media Prize Westergaard

2010-09-08T15:23:35Z

Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard, left, speaks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, and Joachim Gauck, center, former head of the state-funded body which manages the archives of the former East German secret police Stasi, before receiving the M100 Media Prize 2010 in ...

Mideast Israel Palestinians Ramadan

2010-09-08T09:23:04Z

An elderly Palestinian man makes his way through an alley of Jerusalem's Old City as heads towards the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the holy fasting month of Ramadan, Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2010. Muslims throughout the world are marking the month of Ramadan, the holiest month in Islamic calendar where observant fast from ...

Britain Nireland 1972 Bombing

2010-09-08T09:22:48Z

FILE - This is a Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009 file photo of the senior Sinn Fein politician in Northern Ireland's government Martin McGuinness as he speaks to the media as he leaves 10 Downing Street in L...

Indonesia Muslim Holiday

2010-09-08T03:50:28Z

Indonesian families on their motorcycle queue for ferry boat to cross to East Java at Gilimanuk port, west Bali, Indonesia, Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2010. The mass exodus out of Bali island and other major cities in the country is underway as thousands are preparing to head homes to celebrate Eid al-Fitr holiday...