RELIGIOUS DIALOGUE—GETTING BEYOND THE BASICS

WHILE TWO-THIRDS OF AMERICANS believe that the Bible is God's word, only half of American adults can name even one of the Four Gospels. Ten percent of Americans believe that Joan of Arc was Noah's wife....

The continued decline in religious literacy is a result of changes in both religion and society. The blessings of American democracy and pluralism require tolerance of faiths for the purpose of getting along, with an emphasis on religious similarities. The very American notion of a Judeo-Christian tradition submerges the significant differences between Judaism and Christianity under the happy hyphen of equality and cooperation. Today, of course, we need to talk about a Judeo-Christian-Muslim nation, and the list keeps growing.

In the name of universalism, we are happy to reduce religion to a minimum common denominator and buy into the notion that religion is all about "faith" and "spirituality." But, in truth, religions differ significantly.

While Jews and Christians might agree on the essentials of a golden rule of love of God and neighbor, Judaism, unlike Christianity, is less a religion of correct doctrine and belief and more a religion of communal practices and behavior. That does not mean that anything goes in Judaism when it comes to matters of belief or that there are no behavioral (ritual and ethical) expectations in Christianity. And that is where being an educated member of one's religious community becomes relevant. The Book of Proverbs reminds us: "Zeal without knowledge is not good."

While belief is central to religious life, let us not disconnect faith from knowledge. Religions are not just "faith traditions"; they also are traditions of learning. We're not asked to be in synagogue, church, mosque, or temple "heart in and head out."

Religious dialogue and cooperation would be enhanced if we were willing to learn and affirm both our commonalities and our differences, seeking to reach not only common ground but a higher ground of understanding, mutual appreciation, and respect.

Dennis Sasso
"The danger of religious illiteracy"
The Indianapolis Star. October 9, 2007

RELIGION COVERAGE HONORED

THE RELIGION NEWSWRITERS ASSOCIATION [on September 29] announced the winners of its 2007 contests for excellence in religion reporting in the mainstream media....

Winners were selected from among 327 entries in 11 categories. Judges included current or former reporters, journalists, and scholars who praised the entries as "simply dazzling" with insights "honed and sharp." ...

[Among the honorees:] The Templeton Religion Reporter of the Year Award recognizes excellence in enterprise reporting and versatility on the religion beat. The first-place winner this year is Sandi Dolbee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. From a feature on a team of young Mormons recreating a pioneer mountain trek, to a moving profile of a local National Guard chaplain whose faith was challenged in Iraq, judges said her stories showed a "knack for finding the heart of a story and presenting it in a way that brings difficult and complex subjects to life." ...

The Cornell Award is given to the top religion writer at mid-sized papers with circulations between 50,001 and 150,000. G. Jeffrey MacDonald of The Christian Science Monitor won first place with "fresh angles on religious issues," the judges said....

This year, the Religion Newswriters Association awarded two prizes for television segments on religion. The short form recognized a four-minute television segment, and the long form recognized segments of four to 20 minutes.

In the short form, Maria Arita of CBS II in Dallas/Fort Worth won for her piece "Orbs of Light." The long form was awarded to PBS' NewsHour with Jim Lehrer for a reflection on Sept. 11, 2001. "We were moved to tears," the judges wrote, adding that seldom have they seen a story "so powerfully told."

"Religion Newswriters Association announces 2007 contest winners"
www.rna.org. September 29, 2007

CHURCHES JOIN TO PROMOTE SELF-RENEWAL, TIES TO THE COMMUNITY

THIS FALL , four United Church of Christ congregations in York [Pennsylvania] have yoked their efforts to revitalize themselves and reconnect with the city, their pastors say. Active membership has dropped at the four churches, and leaders feel the congregations have lost touch with the community in some ways.

The goal of TEAM UCC is revival and renewal, which fits into a theme that the larger UCC denomination is stressing on the local level: church vitality. The York cooperative is planning joint events such as a block party or youth conference. Their outreach will get a boost from four seminarians at Lancaster Theological Seminary in Lancaster who will spend their school year interning at one of the four UCC churches ....

The seminary students' duties vary from church to church, but most will spend some time preaching, visiting shut-ins, leading Sunday school or other groups, and generating church renewal, they said. The Rev. Ron Oelrich of Faith UCC said he hopes the initiative will give the quartet of churches greater visibility in the area, and also energize members....

"There will be churches downtown that are community churches that relate to the needs in the city," [the Rev. Dr. F. Chris] Anderson said. "They need to be communities of faith that are committed to the city and live in the city."

The Rev. Ruth Harvey of Trinity UCC is a black woman pastoring a predominantly white congregation. She's hoping the seminarian assigned to her church ... can help her build bridges between the black and white communities in York. "I would like to be able to do more partnering with black churches to be able to bridge the most segregated hour of the week," Harvey said. "I'd like to be able to say, 'Hey, we're here and it's not just a "white" denomination.' The UCC motto is 'that they may all be one.' "

Melissa Nann Burke
"Spiritual renewal by teamwork"
York [Pennsylvania] Daily Record/Sunday News. October 4, 2007