In October, MTV, the popular youth rock cable TV channel, is offering its version of reality TV. “Mall Confessions” features teens who will reveal lurid sins in a “confessional.” When we first heard about this we didn’t like the sound of it, so Pat Scully gave MTV a ring. They were quite responsive and assured him [...]
What do Protestants, Jews, Republicans and Democrats have in common that is not true of Catholics? Protestants and Jews allow Republicans and Democrats to campaign in their churches and synagogues. But Catholics do not. Here are just a few examples. Both contenders for the New York Senate seat, Republican Rick Lazio and Democrat Hillary Clinton, recently [...]
The city of Norfolk, Virginia wanted to put a piece of art at a downtown intersection but didn’t have the money to do so. Instead, they decided to borrow a piece from the Chrysler Museum of Art until a permanent display could be funded. But when a Jewish group protested, the art was removed. The artwork [...]
In the June Catalyst, we asked our members to write to the senior warden at the Texas Department of Corrections. Our complaint was that inmates at the TDCJ Stevenson Unit were denied requests for meatless meals on Fridays during Lent while dietary rules were observed for those who practice other religions. We won. “Effective October 1, 2000,” [...]
A producer of a tony religious website, beliefnet.com, asked us to review two proposed ads to see if they passed muster with us. The one with the pope was fine as it was a light-hearted quip that conjoined the pope with the Dalai Lama and a rabbi. It reads, “The Pope, the Dalai Lama and Rabbi [...]
