Although I was too busy to post links last week, that sure didn't stop the oddball religion stories from multiplying- blame Mercury Retrograde if you like, but it's been a strange couple of weeks.

Miracles

First, a ton of miraculous sightings of Jesus, Mary, and Allah, one with a twist. Texans found Jesus crucified in a treeand spitting sparks from his eyes in church. Texas also sports a weeping statue of the virgin. Egypt also has a miracle tree, in which believers see an epithet of Allah.

A pizza pan drew crowds after the face of the Virgin appeared in a grease spot. The twist is that the school that owns the miracle pizza pan demanded its return from the flock of believers (aka PTA moms) who had enshrined it in a local yard, and have now hidden it from view. A quick check of Ebay turned up no pizza pan, but did uncover miraculous driftwood.

Bizarre Discrimination Cases

There were a lot of cases of religious discrimination or defamation, and some were downright strange. A Jewish author inexplicably published a book promoting long-discredited Medieval blood-libel- that is, he claims that Jews did indeed sacrifice and eat Christian babies. Worse, the lengthy comments seem evenly divided between folks willing to accept the claim and those discussing whether baby is kosher.

A Judge in Romania was demoted and given a pay cut after co-workers accused her of witchcraft- and it didn't help her case that these accusations came after she threatened to hex people she didn't get along with.

A little boy and his parents are suing his school after they refused to allow him to dress as Jesus for a costume party. His parents are alleging religious discrimination, pointing out children dressed as witches and devils as example. The law of unintended consequences at work.

An Islamic Cleric in Malaysia suggested a novel way to prevent rape: chastity belts. A Russian woman who discovered her baby was listed as number 666 in a baby registration book is suing for a new number.

A woman in California is engaged in a furious battle with the city over messages from God, which she is compelled to paint on the side of her house. Unlike the ravings of Dr. Bronner, Estrella Benavides' efforts are not appreciated by her neighbors.

A teacher in Washington is in hot water for asking students to compare the Christian creation stories to those of other cultures.

Christian missionaries hope a marathon bible reading will cure Benin of Voodoo.

Just Plain Weird

Followers of "Jesus Man," aka Jose Luis de Jesus Miranda, get matching '666' tattoos.

KFC asks the Pope to bless their new "Fish Snacker" sandwich, but the Pope is probably too concerned that Al Gore may be the Antichrist.

Finally, a man in Indiana is arrested for trying to cash a fraudulent check. How do they know it's fake? It's signed by God, and it's for fifty thousand dollars.