Dec 19th, 2008 · Rep. Keith Ellison, a Minnesota Democrat, is the first Muslim to serve in Congress. Just this month, Ellison undertook a sacred pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudia Arabia. The journey, known as the Hajj, is a pillar of the Islamic faith. The lawmaker shares highlights from his trip, and how he hopes his journey will aid his role as a public servant.
Dec 9th, 2008 · In 1984, author Peter Godwin began a series of pilgrimages to Zimbabwe. He started to chronicle the nation's downward spiral in the hands of Robert Mugabe's regime. Godwin talks about his new book, When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir Of Africa.
Nov 20th, 2008 · The teen vampire movie "Twilight" opens in theaters on Friday. The movie follows the best-selling series of romance-thriller novels, set in the small and rainy hamlet of Forks on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. Despite its remoteness, the town has become a pilgrimage destination for readers from around the world.
Apr 15th, 2008 · Pope Benedict XVI travels from Rome to Washington to begin his first papal pilgrimage to the U.S. on Tuesday. Guests discuss the preparations for the pontiff's visit from the logistics of holding mass in Yankee stadium, to what the pope will wear during his trip.
Mar 23rd, 2008 · In her book Sundays in America, Suzanne Strempek Shea discusses a yearlong pilgrimage, during which she visited a different Christian church every Sunday. The journey took her from her New England home to the West Coast to the Deep South to the Midwest.
Feb 27th, 2008 · Shiite Muslims across the Middle East and Asia are marking the "Arbaeen" -- the end of the annual mourning period for the death of Imam Hussein, the revered Shiite saint. While millions make the pilgrimage to Karbala, Iraq, a group of women in Baghdad gather for a smaller ceremony.
Dec 22nd, 2007 · The four-day Muslim holiday Eid ul Adha comes to an end. The holiday begins after the completion of Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. This Eid is the busiest time of year for an unlikely business: a North Texas butcher shop.
Aug 9th, 2007 · Thousands are walking the streets of Baghdad, performing an annual pilgrimage to the shrine of a much-loved Shiite Imam, or saint. Because many Shiite observances were suppressed under Saddam Hussein, the pilgrimage is an important part of Shiite identity but dangerous.