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Did the Church Create or Co-Opt Human Rights?

By Austin Dacey

…otions. But we can still ask which of those notions were widely adopted in international politics and law and which were not. Consider the inclusion of personal dignity in the U.N. Charter and Declaration of Human Rights. The preamble to the Charter begins WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to regain faith in f…

Undercover-ed Religion: 13 Stories That Went Missing in 2012

By Peter Laarman

…remain remarkably successful in taking their pelvic politics overseas via international “mission” activities. Rev. Albert Ogle enjoys a bird’s-eye view of this from his perch at a small foundation that tries to defend and empower gay people internationally. Big-time Christian agencies like World Vision and big-name evangelicals like Rick Warren have been moderating their homophobia on these shores, but they wear a very different face in the Globa…

Why Moscow Wants to Crack Down on Foreign Funding for Minority Religious Orgs

By Diana Dukhanova

…Religion on June 17 that she was concerned about the effect of restricting international aid on the “international solidarity of all Christians.” The bill is reminiscent of recent regulations against foreign NGOs and other organizations in Russia, in effect putting religious organizations in the same category as NGOs in terms of their possible threat. It points to an overarching anxiety on the part of the regime (not to mention a large portion of…

Protesting the Pope’s (Not Yet Released) Environmental Encyclical? Check Your Doctrine

By Kevin M. Lowe

…labour, of technology and communications, of society and politics, of the international community and the relations among cultures and peoples.” If salvation permeates society, then all of us in society must do our part in making it a reality. At the very least, it shouldn’t be controversial anymore for the Catholic hierarchy to talk about protecting the earth. In 2001, for instance, the American Catholic bishops stated in no uncertain terms that…

Competitive Religious Philanthropy in the Wake of the Nepali Earthquake

By Nalika Gajaweera

…gineers to Nepal. Although Sri Lanka is most often on the receiving end of international humanitarian assistance, it stepped up to be one of the first three countries to send relief to Nepal, deploying military troops outside of its sovereign territory for the first time in Sri Lanka’s history. The gesture could easily be chalked up to a diplomatic gesture from one small South Asian nation to another, but the humanitarian gesture is rooted in the…

Anglican Communion Gets Anti-Gay Secretary General; Black Gay Christians Challenge Conservative Evangelicals in Africa; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…als have traveled to the country to defend anti-gay politics there. In the International Business Times, activist Peter Tatchell writes about the efforts of Mista Majah P, a “ground-breaking pro-gay Jamaican reggae singer” and his “two-part stinging video rebuke to the homophobia and murder music commonplace throughout Jamaican reggae and dancehall scene.” Majah P’s support for the LGBT community isn’t a one-off, flash-in-the-pan. He is now workin…

As Trial Approaches, Accused in IHOP Murder Case Challenges Evidence

By Sarah Posner

…national attention because both Moore and Deaton were affiliated with the International House of Prayer (IHOP), and Deaton’s husband, Tyler Deaton, is said to have taken IHOP’s teachings to extremes, creating an abusive cult in his small sub-community, leading to his wife’s death. After Bethany Deaton was found dead, Moore confessed to the murder. But now his lawyers, in a pre-trial motion, argue that the state’s only evidence against him is that…

Pastafarian Rights, Israeli Rosa Parks, Orthodox
Jewish P.I.

By Michael J. Altman

…o be mistaken for terrorists and attacked. The New York Times profiles the International House of Prayer and its recent growth into a full blown religious movement. The leader of IHOP, Mike Bickle, claims that Oprah is the Antichrist. IHOP is one of the sponsors for “Prayin’” Rick Perry’s day of prayer in Texas. An atheist group in Texas is suing Governor Perry for his involvement with the prayer event. An Austrian man convinced authorities to let…

Florida Governor Signs Law Defending Educators’ Right to Witness

By Lauri Lebo

…y and community members.” In response, the Christian Educators Association International filed a motion to intervene in order to overturn the consent decree, arguing it amounted to a violation of teachers and administrators’ First Amendment free exercise rights to practice their religion with prayer. Noting that the battle has been a polarizing force in the community, a judge ruled in February that CEAI did not have standing and did not demonstrat…

The “Shrinking Influence” of Social Conservatives at the United Nations

By Sarah Posner

…ese decisions granted such status to an LGBT group for the first time. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission finally prevailed in its three-year effort to obtain the status, a sign “of the shrinking influence of American social conservatives at the United Nations.” Congressional conservatives Trent Franks (R-AZ) and Christopher Smith (R-NJ) — heroes of the religious right — had joined with Muslim countries in an effort to block…