Religion News ServiceUNITED STATES, March 22, 2004: When Robert Orsi, the outgoing president of the American Academy of Religion (AAR), delivered his presidential address to the annual meeting in November, he was caught in a heated dispute that marks a pivotal moment in the history of the study of religion in the United States. The AAR’s board of directors had…
SourceBALI, INDONESIA, March 22, 2004: Indonesia’s Island of Gods, Bali, on Sunday showed no sign of life as its predominantly Hindu population observed a holy day of silence and purification to usher in the Hindu New Year. On “Nyepi,” the day of silence, Hindus are prohibited from lighting fires and using lights, working, leaving their houses and from making any…
SourceCHENNAI/KANCHEEPURAM, INDIA, March 18, 2004: The controversy over the alleged remarks on Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam by Sri Jayendra Saraswathi of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam on Wednesday took a new turn with the Kanchi Pontiff blaming it all on the media, reports this article. “The media misquoted me on the issue,” he told reporters in Chennai. The controversy began following the Kanchi…
SourceVICTORVILLE, CALIFORNIA, March 18, 2003: Victorville Mayor Terry Caldwell broke coconuts on rocks as part of a traditional Indian consecration of new property. The Chhatrala Group, which owns the the Comfort Suites and 25 other hotels, was breaking ground on two major hotels and a convention center north of Bear Valley Road on Wednesday. The ceremony was a combination of…
SourceRAIPUR, INDIA, March 21, 2004: The head priest of a temple in Chhatisgarh, India was awed by the massive turnout of cricket fans who came to pray at the temple, way more than devotees who come on a religious day. “I have been here for a decade, but never seen so many devotees throng the Kali temple from morning to…
SourceCHICAGO, ILLINOIS, March 10, 2004: At Lake Shore Health Care and Rehabilitation Centre in Chicago, Koreans, Indian and Pakistani residents are able to socialize and live with other people of their culture and religion. The article says, “It is a new phenomenon in the nursing-home industry, where amid the universal signs of old age — the wheelchairs and walkers, IV…
SourceMIZORAM, INDIA, March 19, 2004: The small state of Mizoram will soon become the first state in India to officially declare its status as organic. Led by Governor A.R. Kohli, the government is drafting a new law that will ban the sale of chemical fertilizers in the state. The governor does not expect any opposition to the new bill as…
Paras RamoutarTRINIDAD, March 19, 2004: Women power is the bedrock of any religion, civilization or culture, according to Swami Nirmalatmananda, Head of the Ramkrishna Vedanta Ashram, Sao Paulo, Brazil. He was giving the fourth lecture in the series on Indian Culture and Religion at Divali Nagar on Friday night. “Women have and, will continue to uphold and to defend any…
SourceCONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE, March 17, 2004: Even after five years, Christy Pugh has no trouble sticking to her vegetarian regimen. The secret to her success? Eating meat. Pugh is one of a growing number of part-time vegetarians whose loose adherence to the meat-free diet is transforming a decades-old movement and the industry that feeds it, says this New York Times…
SourceLAHORE, PAKISTAN, March 21, 2004: Pakistan isn’t the place to be if you are a farm animal — nor is it the best place to be if you aren’t a farm animal eater. Hemang Badani, the pure vegetarian in the Indian team says he’s struggling. “I’m surviving on toast and spaghetti,” he says. Team analyst S. Ramakrishnan is struggling as…