Jennifer's Alternative Religions Blog December 2006 Archive

The Top Altreligion Stories of 2006
1. The rediscovery of the Gospel of Judas, which excited the media and infuriated everyone else- the Orthodoxy, who couldn't understand how anyone could get worked up over a gospel ... Read More

Saturday December 30, 2006 | permalink | comments (1)

The Weirdest Religion Stories of 2006
2006 was a long, strange year, which yielded a bumper crop of important, ground-breaking minority religion stories. We're going to ignore all of those for now, and go straight ... Read More

Thursday December 28, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

The End of Rukhnama?
The death of the world's weirdest dictator, Turkmenistan's Saparmurat Niyazov, also means the end of one of the world's oddest "religions." Niyazov was a sulky, bombastic dictator and one ... Read More

Wednesday December 27, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

Friday Links: Jesus' Missing Foreskin and Other Oddities
Did the Vatican spirit away a villages prized relic to avoid embarassment? Slate explores the mystery behind the decades old theft of the unappealingly named Holy Prepuce, the ... Read More

Friday December 22, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

"Satanic" Baha'is seeking recognition
An editorial in Egypt's Al Jazeera magazine (no relation to the well known News Agency) demonstrates a typical theocratic attitude in Egypt. The issue is the attempt by citizens ... Read More

Wednesday December 20, 2006 | permalink | comments (1)

First, the Menorah, then- Anarchy!
There are so many battles over holiday symbols in public squares, it's surprising that town governments have time to get any real work done. One of the stranger recent ... Read More

Tuesday December 19, 2006 | permalink | comments (1)

Satanic Panic in Italy
In the wake of a highly publicized, gruesome set of murders, Italian police are reportedly considering the formation of a special squad to investigate "Satanic gangs," which may or may ... Read More

Friday December 15, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

"Secrets of the Kabbalah"
Those interested in all things kabablah will want to catch tonight's episode (9pm across the board, but check your listings just in case) of the History channel's "Decoding the Past" ... Read More

Thursday December 14, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

"Only God Can Judge Me"
I must admit that while I'm generally a fan of body art, I'm not so much a fan of body art tv, so I missed the episode of tbs program ... Read More

Thursday December 14, 2006 | permalink | comments (29)

Mrs. Mallory Vs. Harry Potter
The battle over Harry Potter is almost over for Gwinnet County, whose Board of Education voted this week to keep Harry Potter Books on library shelves over the vocal objections ... Read More

Wednesday December 13, 2006 | permalink | comments (6)

Virgin of Guadalupe
The Virgin of Guadalupe is one of many "Marian apparitions" or 'miraculous' manifestations of the Virgin Mary, an icon of the Roman Catholic Church. She is especially venerated in Mexico, ... Read More

Tuesday December 12, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

Hypocrisy in Action (Be careful what you wish for)
This week's entry in the "War on Christmas" is a classic display of almost instant karma. You may remember the furor generated earlier this year when a Virginia elementary ... Read More

Friday December 8, 2006 | permalink | comments (1)

Left Behind: Eternal Forces
The controversial video game based on the apocalyptically-themed "Left Behind" book franchise is in stores in time for holiday ('scuse me, Christmas) gift-giving. What better way to celebrate the ... Read More

Thursday December 7, 2006 | permalink | comments (0)

Faith Behind Bars
An experimental faith-based prison in Florida puts convicts in the hands of a variety of religious volunteers in hopes of spiritual rehabilitation- although unlike previous faith-based prison programs, Florida's Lawtey ... Read More

Wednesday December 6, 2006 | permalink | comments (3)

Miracle's unlikely exit
Two years after the untimely death of popular tourist attraction/religious icon Miracle the white buffalo calf at Heider farm in Janesville, Wisconsin, the farm became host to yet ... Read More

Monday December 4, 2006 | permalink | comments (2)

Reader's rant: Jesus Camp, a wake-up call
Reader Mary Wood writes to sound the alarm on the increasing ideaological reach of evangelical right: If you haven’t seen it yet, I’d strongly encourage you, your readers, and ... Read More

Monday December 4, 2006 | permalink | comments (5)