Residents of the C Street Christian fellowship house will no longer benefit from a loophole that had allowed the house's owners to avoid paying property taxes.

Predictably, after the Ft. Hood shooting some idiot conservatives are suggesting that we do some sort of loyalty exam for Muslim-Americans before allowing them into the US military. Who is "we"? Who gets to do this exam? What, presumably more American people like whites or Christians? Why don't Muslim Americans decide which Christians get to enter the US military? Oh, does that sound offensive? Does it sound weird? Why should it sound any different than Christians getting to decide which other Americans they will allow into the US military?

I was thinking of renaming this article, "Not all Fundamentalists are Created Equal." This article shows that there is still some respect for human dignity and a desire to raise the poor out of poverty amongst some religious leaders. It is a stark contrast to the "Supply Side Jesus" rhetoric that we get from Republicans....I don't know Pastor Evans' politics and I wouldn't be surprised if we disagree on a number of important issues. It is refreshing, however, to read an article written by a Christian Minister that suggests that part of the cure to social ills is to have the wealthiest few pay a larger share of the tax burden.

Richard Dawkins was recently issued a challenge --disprove creation in one sentence. I can do that myself. Here it is: If we can see Andromeda --some 2.5 MILLION years distant from earth --then creationism is false!

Besides the thinly veiled anti-Semitism broadcast around the globe by Christian Zionists, their elaborate and supernatural prophecies manifest themselves in real world lobbying to help move the hands of the prophetic clock. For Hagee, this includes financial support for the West Bank settlements, endorsement of Messianic ministries, and lobbying for real wars against flesh and blood human beings, many of whom he portrays as slated for destruction due to their biblical genealogy. In 2003 Hagee claimed, prior to the invasion of Iraq, that it would be the “gateway to the apocalypse” and produce an “Islamic army of millions, willing to fight to the death, in a massive all out Holy War.” The three part sermon series continued with graphic descriptions of the coming “New World Order” led by the anti-Christ who Hagee states is “partially Jewish” and most certainly gay. Hagee clearly relishes this imminent conflagration because of the revenge that will be taken on those viewed as the enemies of the divine plan for Israel, including those he describes as “half-breed” Jews. According to Hagee, this is a plan in which the end of the religion of Judaism is a prerequisite for the 1000 year reign of Christ, headquartered in a greater Israel which will spread from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates.

The Catholic Church has swung its crook at celebrants of Halloween, warning parents to forbid children to dress up as ghosts and ghouls, and dismissing the celebrations as a pagan night of "terror, fear and death".

The Christian Broadcasting Network has caved in to scoffers and mockers and scrubbed a blog post which explained the dangers of Halloween - specifically, that "most of the candy sold during this season has been dedicated and prayed over by witches", and that this is a time of "sex with demons" and "rape and molestation of adults, children and babies", among much else.

"A French court on Tuesday convicted the Church of Scientology and six of its members of organized fraud, but stopped short of banning the church. ... The plaintiffs focused their complaints on the use of a device that Scientologists say measures spiritual well-being. Members used the electropsychometer, or E-Meter, to 'locate areas of spiritual duress or travail so they can be addressed and handled,' according to Scientology's Web site. The plaintiffs said that, after using the device, they were encouraged to pay for vitamins and books. They said that amounted to fraud."

Nobel Prize winning Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel has agreed to speak at a Christian Zionist "Night to Honor Israel Event." This letter was created by Talk2Action's brilliant and insightful researchers, to expose the reality of these hate groups disguised as pro-Israel advocates....John Hagee teaches "theological racism," the idea that the destiny of peoples is based on their biblical genealogy. Hagee claims that Jewish souls are different from those of gentiles and that, according to divine plan, Jews have no right to live anywhere on Earth but in Israel. Hagee's fellow Christian Zionists predict that a coming, divinely ordained paroxysm of anti-Semitic violence, a "second Holocaust," will be necessary to force all Jews to make aliyah. From the pulpit, Hagee and his fellow Christian Zionists preach their theological racism that risks provoking such a catastrophe.

This is the second in a series by Talk2Action's brilliant writer in preparation for the J-Street Convention next week. There are numerous reasons why the relationship with Christian Zionists "impairs Israel's interests," to borrow a recent comment directed at J Street by the Israeli Embassy. Ambassador Michael Oren is apparently snubbing J Street's upcoming first national conference although he spoke at John Hagee's Christian's United for Israel conference in July. This is my list of the top ten reasons, based on years of research, why it is John Hagee and Christian Zionist activists who should be viewed as impairing Israel's interests, not moderate and liberal American Jews.

A SEXUALLY explicit illustrated Book of Genesis by the controversial artist, Robert Crumb, which features biblical characters having intercourse and ''gratuitous'' depictions of violence, has been condemned by religious groups. The book, released this month, carries the warning ''adult supervision recommended for minors'', and is described as ''scandalous satire'' by its publishers.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State has urged U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak (D–Mich.) to withdraw legislation that would grant seven acres of Coast Guard land to Cornerstone Christian School in Cheboygan, Mich. The school has rented the property from the Coast Guard since 1986. Stupak’s measure, H.R. 1291, would allow the government to convey the land to the school for free.

It later emerged that while deciding whether he should be given the death penalty, jurors consulted the Bible. Four jury members admitted that several copies had been in the jury room and that highlighted passages were passed around. At one point, a juror reportedly read aloud from a copy, including the passage: "And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death."

The mere existence of this project shows that the Bible is truly a Rorschach test, wherein the truth is in the eye of the beholder. The many versions of the Old and New Testaments, as well as the many different sects of Christianity splintered all over the world, testify to that situation as well. Feeling the need to go back and change the Bible to suit one's own image of the world is not only an example of feelings of moral superiority, but it is truly antithetical to conservatism and fundamentalism. Indeed it is Biblical activism to the nth degree, and if the shoe were on the other foot, conservatives would be screaming about liberals trying to re-write God almighty himself. This effort also shows the fear harbored by conservatives that students and religious people might learn something about the teachings of Jesus and actually apply it to their lives. Jesus, as described in the Bible, was a radical liberal who held such outlandish beliefs about equality and social justice that it actually got him killed by the defenders of the status quo (i.e.: the conservatives of the day, to use the word in the traditional sense).

As the seasonal retail admonishment goes, Christmas comes earlier every year. And that means the religious right has already launched their annual war against the war on Christmas. But this year, the ultra-conservative American Family Association is taking the crusade to new levels of shameless self-promotion. With consumer spending expectations especially low for this holiday season, retailers are even more sensitive to customer proclivities. Some are trying to be more inclusive in their marketing and others are instructing their employees to greet customers with "Happy Holidays!" rather than specifying a religious event for people to be merry about. Still other companies seem fearful of losing the militant Christian dollar.

A photograph of the Iranian president holding up his identity card during elections in March 2008 clearly shows his family has Jewish roots. A close-up of the document reveals he was previously known as Sabourjian – a Jewish name meaning cloth weaver. The short note scrawled on the card suggests his family changed its name to Ahmadinejad when they converted to embrace Islam after his birth. The Sabourjians traditionally hail from Aradan, Mr Ahmadinejad's birthplace, and the name derives from "weaver of the Sabour", the name for the Jewish Tallit shawl in Persia. The name is even on the list of reserved names for Iranian Jews compiled by Iran's Ministry of the Interior.

Much of the discussion about abortion and public policy in Washington this past year has been dominated by those who advocate for, or say that they have found, "common ground" on abortion. While this approach and its results have been in considerable dispute, particularly as prochoice progressive religious voices have been largely marginalized during this period, I am pleased to report that prochoice religious progressives have found their collective voice and are seeking to get heard -- the Gatekeepers of the various Conventional Wisdoms be damned.

Flores told police his three companions were "the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost." He said he hijacked the plane after a divine revelation. Flores told authorities Wednesday's date - 9-9-09 - is the satanic number 666 turned upside down. Speaking to reporters after he was detained, Flores said he took control of the aircraft with "a juice can ... with some little lights I attached." "Christ is coming soon," he added, smiling.

With the help of George W. Bush and billions of tax dollars spent on Abstinence Only programs in American Schools - especially in Texas and other less than cold states - has been a complete failure.

Franklin Circuit Judge Thomas Wingate ruled that the law violated the First Amendment’s protection against the establishment of a state religion. Homeland Security officials have been required for three years to credit “Almighty God” in their official reports and post a plaque with similar language at the state’s Emergency Operations Center in Frankfort. “Even assuming that most of this nation’s citizens have historically depended upon God by choice for their protection, this does not give the General Assembly the right to force citizens to do so now,” Wingate wrote.