Religion

The Hermit Pope Who Set The Precedent For Benedict XVI

9:15pm February 26, 2013

by Philip Reeves

Pope Benedict XVI leaves office this week, the second pope to resign voluntarily. The first was Celestine V, a hermit who quit in 1294, after a brief and disastrous stint. Some scholars say Dante damned Celestine as a coward in his Inferno. Yet his example, legally and spiritually, played a major role in Benedict's departure.

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The Kumbh Mela is one of the rare times that sadhu nagas make themselves known. Many of these ascetics live in forests and villages, and have little contact with ordinary Indians. Their population is dwindling, as young devotees prefer not to pursue a lif

Seeking A Glimpse Of Immortality In The Waters Of India's Holy Rivers

1:19pm February 25, 2013

by Julie McCarthy

Hindus in India are celebrating the 55-day-long Kumbh Mela, the world's biggest religious festival. An estimated 100 million pilgrims are expected to gather, pray and bathe in the waters at the confluence of three sacred rivers.

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Religion

Who Gets Religious Exemptions And Why

5:10pm February 21, 2013

Under revised rules of the Affordable Care Act, religious groups can be exempt from paying their employees' insurance coverage for birth control. Religious exemptions are nearly as old as the nation and have been on the rise in recent decades.

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Rabbi Susan Silverman (center, left), the sister of American comedian Sarah Silverman, along with her teenage daughter Hallel Abramowitz (center, right), are arrested by Israeli police as they leave the Western Wall in Jerusalem, on Monday.

Women In Prayer Shawls Detained At Judaism's Holiest Site

9:40am February 21, 2013

by Larry Abramson

Police detained 10 women for donning prayer shawls at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Monday. They are part of the group Women of the Wall, which is fighting to worship in the same manner as men do at Judaism's holiest site.

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Convicted ex-terrorist Mahmudi Haryono recounts his experiences while sitting at a table at the restaurant where he works in Semarang, Indonesia. The restaurant is one of three founded by social entrepreneur and reformed radical Noor Huda Ismail, to help

An Indonesian Extremist Trades Rifle For Spatula

9:02am February 21, 2013

by Anthony Kuhn

Between 2002 and 2009, homegrown Indonesian militants staged deadly attacks almost yearly. The story of one former terrorist-turned-chef — and his unrealized dreams of global jihad — help illustrate why terrorism hasn't flourished in the Muslim-majority country.

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Rami Nashashibi, fourth from left, claps as he marches with IMAN leaders during a May Day immigration rally in Chicago in 2007.

From The Inner City: Leading A New Generation Of Muslim Americans

5:03pm February 16, 2013

by NPR Staff

If Chicago is a stronghold of American Islam, then Rami Nashashibi might be considered one of its most precocious proponents. On Chicago's South Side, his group, the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, works to end violence and improve residents' living conditions.

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Religion

When The Pope Speaks (Latin), Who Is Listening?

10:05am February 16, 2013

Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation this week. He gave the announcement in Latin, but who still understands the language? Apparently there are more than 50,000 people in Finland who do. Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon speaks with Finnish radio broadcaster Tuomo Pekkanen about his Latin radio show.

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A part of the Isaiah Scroll, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls, is seen inside the vault of the Shrine of the Book building at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

'Dead Sea Scrolls' Live On In Debate And Discovery

4:42pm February 14, 2013

In a new book, The Dead Sea Scrolls: A Biography, religious scholar and author John J. Collins tells the history of the scrolls and the controversies they have prompted, and explores the questions they ask and answer about Judeo-Christian history.

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American Catholics Divided On Pope Benedict's Legacy

6:28pm February 11, 2013

by John Burnett

Catholics in the U.S. had varying reactions to Pope Benedict's surprise resignation on Monday.

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After Pope's Surprise Resignation, A Flood Of Speculation

3:40pm February 11, 2013

Pope Benedict XVI, the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, unexpectedly announced Monday that he will resign at the end of the month. With his resignation comes speculation about his tenure, potential successors and the future of the Catholic Church. Rocco Palmo, who runs the blog Whispers in the Loggia, explores the pope's legacy and what's ahead for the Catholic Church.

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