Mar 5th, 2010 · The Church of Scientology has hired two big names in journalism to investigate coverage in the St. Petersburg Times critical of the secretive religion. As newsrooms downsize, will we see more cases in which the target of a newspaper investigation pays reporters to turn the tables?
Mar 1st, 2010 · Iraqis will vote Sunday in what many say is the country's most important election since the U.S.-led invasion seven years ago. In nationwide polls four years ago, voters elected a large number of Islamists to parliament. But now, religion seems to be playing a much less prominent role.
Feb 26th, 2010 · James Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family, gives his final radio broadcast for the organization Friday. CNN religion writer Dan Gilgoff talks to Steve Inskeep about how changes at Focus on the Family reflect broader changes in the evangelical movement. Dobson became an overtly political leader. New leadership is seeking to soften the group's message.
Jan 14th, 2010 · The celebrated monologist is a man on a mission: To make audiences look a little differently at their relationship with their money. His solo show The Last Cargo Cult examines the American worship of wealth through the lens of a South Pacific religion that worships all things American.
Jan 13th, 2010 · Federal law prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, color, religion and gender — but not sexual orientation. Follow the history of gay rights and discrimination in the workplace, from the anti-gay witch hunts of the McCarthy era to pending anti-discrimination legislation today.
Jan 5th, 2010 · Michael Haneke's The White Ribbon is a dark meditation on physical and psychological violence — and on the role repression in the name of virtue may play in the shaping of violent personalities. Set in a German village on the eve of the World War I, the film's exploration of religion and authoritarianism has led some to call it a subtle look at the origins of Nazism. It may, however, be much more.
Jan 4th, 2010 · A new blasphemy law went into effect in Ireland with the new year, and it was greeted with a certain amount of head-scratching. Uttering anything abusive about matters held sacred by any religion is now an offense punishable by a fine of some $35,000. The law was immediately challenged by atheist groups.
Jan 1st, 2010 · The novelist Margaret Atwood wrote the anti-religious parable The Handmaid's Tale. Religious scholar Karen Armstrong's latest book is The Case for God. While they may seem at odds, Rick Kleffel investigates the areas in which their views overlap.