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today's headlines
APRIL 7, 2006
DA
VINCI CODE
Judge
rejects claims in ‘Da Vinci’ suit
Associated Press (4/7/06)
LONDON -
A judge ruled Friday that mega-selling author Dan Brown did not steal ideas
for “The Da Vinci Code” from a nonfiction work, ending the suspense
about the case with an ultimately unsurprising decision.
Dan
Brown wins 'Da Vinci' battle
CNN (4/7/06)
LONDON, England -- A British judge has rejected claims that U.S. author Dan
Brown stole the ideas of two historians to produce his hugely popular novel,
"The Da Vinci Code."
'Da
Vinci Code' author exonerated
César G. Soriano/USA Today (4/7/06)
LONDON — A British judge on Friday cleared The Da Vinci Code author Dan
Brown of accusations that he copied parts of his best-selling novel from another
book. The decision closed the chapter on a case that gripped the literary world.
'Da
Vinci' paperback vs. 'The Jesus Papers'
Carol Memmott/USA Today (4/7/06)
The Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown and Holy Blood, Holy Grail author Michael
Baigent just butted heads in a London courtroom. This week, they'll go head-to-head
in bookstores, too.
DENOMINATIONS
AND FAITH GROUPS
Assemblies
of God fastest growing faith
Tribune
news services (4/7/06: chicagotribune.com)
NEW YORK -- The Assemblies of God, the Mormon church and the Roman Catholic
Church were the fastest-growing major denominations in the United States last
year, according to the just-released 2006 Yearbook of American and Canadian
Churches.
Liberal
Denomination Fires Salvos at Right
Neela Banerjee/New York Times (4/7/06)
After years of turning the other cheek, the United Church of Christ, among the
most liberal of the mainline Protestant denominations, has recently staked out
a more pugnacious stance toward the Christian right.
CHURCH
AND STATE
Church
Group Calls I.R.S. Unfair on Political Violations of Tax Code
Stephanie Strom/New York Times (4/7/06)
A group of religious leaders accused the Internal Revenue Service yesterday
of playing politics by ignoring its complaint that two large churches in Ohio
are engaging in what it says are political activities, in violation of the tax
code.
House
passes prayer bill
Kit Wagar/Kansas City Star (4/7/06)
JEFFERSON CITY — A proposed constitutional amendment that would emphasize
the right to pray in public was approved Thursday by the House, even though
both sides said people already have that right.
JUDAS
GOSPEL
Manuscript
Indicates Jesus Urged Judas' Betrayal
Associated Press (4/7/06: latimes.com)
WASHINGTON
-- For 2,000 years Judas has been reviled for betraying Jesus. Now a newly translated
ancient document seeks to tell his side of the story. The "Gospel of Judas"
tells a far different tale from the four gospels in the New Testament. It portrays
Judas as a favored disciple who was given special knowledge by Jesus -- and
who turned him in at Jesus' request.
Judas
Is No Traitor in Long-Lost Gospel
Thomas H. Maugh II/Los Angeles Times (4/7/06)
Judas Iscariot, long reviled as history's quintessential betrayer, was actually
the best friend of Jesus and turned him over to authorities only because Jesus
asked him to, according to the Gospel of Judas, a long-lost document revealed
Thursday.
A
new Judas emerges from rediscovered gospel
Charles A. Radin/Boston Globe (4/7/06)
The Gospel of Judas, which offers a radically different account of Jesus Christ's
message and of his betrayal by one of his disciples, has been recovered, authenticated,
and translated from Coptic into English after being lost for more than 1,600
years.
A
Whole New Chapter On Judas
Frances Grandy Taylor/Hartford Courant (4/7/06)
Thursday the National Geographic Society made public for the first time the
fragile pages of the "Gospel of Judas," a second-century text that
had been lost for 1,700 years. Restored fragments of the 26-page papyrus manuscript
written in Coptic and bound in leather describe a pivotal event in the last
days of Jesus Christ - the betrayal by disciple Judas Iscariot.
Newly
Translated Gospel Offers More Positive Portrayal of Judas
Guy Gugliotta and Alan Cooperman/Washington Post (4/7/06)
The National Geographic Society released yesterday the first modern translation
of the ancient Gospel of Judas, which depicts the most reviled villain in Christian
history as a devoted follower who was simply doing Jesus's bidding when he betrayed
him.
ARTS
AND MEDIA
The
Volume That's Making a Loud Noise; People Flock to Hear About 'Covenant'
Linton Weeks/Washington Post (4/7/06)
When a book becomes a collection of people, not just pages, we sit up and pay
attention. "The
Covenant With Black America," a volume of essays pulled together by omnimedia
personality Tavis Smiley, may be doing just that.
The
Power and Glory of Song
Avis Thomas-Lester/Washington Post (4/7/06)
Largo Choir of Prince George's Celebrates Faith, Preps Students for Life
Did your local
paper run an interesting story today about religion or ethics? Let us know at
papers@religionwriters.com.
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