Faith Digest

Posted: 1/30/08

Faith Digest

Catholic Charities study links poverty and racism. Poverty and race remain integrally linked in the United States, and continuing racism contributes to that linkage, according to a recently released study by Catholic Charities. The study cites evidence the poverty rate for African- Americans in the U.S. is 24 percent—three times the rate for whites. Latinos and Native Americans also suffer from poverty rates above 20 percent. On average, white families are 10 times richer than minority families, the study says. And while white families’ wealth grew 20 percent between 1998 and 2001, the net worth of African-American households decreased during that period. At the same time, “the ghosts of our legacy of racial inequality continue to haunt us,” the study says, citing racial violence as well as discrimination in housing and health care. The study, “Poverty and Racism: Overlapping Threats to the Common Good,” is part of Catholic Charities’ campaign to cut the U.S. poverty rate in half by 2020.

Creationists launch online journal. Answers in Genesis, the Christian ministry that founded the $27 million Creation Museum in Kentucky last year, has launched an online technical journal to publish studies consistent with its biblical views. The Answers Research Journal will disseminate research conducted by creationist theologians and scientists who follow a literal reading of the Creation account in Genesis. Ken Hamm, president of Answers in Genesis, said submissions will be peer-reviewed, but the journal’s guidelines discourage asking non-creationists to conduct those reviews. The journal is needed because of academic bias in most scientific journals against creationists, Hamm said.

Supreme Court rules against Muslim inmate. An inmate claiming widespread harassment of Muslims in U.S. prisons cannot sue prison guards who he says took his Qurans and prayer rug, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled. Abdus-Shahid M.S. Ali, a convicted murderer serving a sentence of 20 years to life, asserted the alleged confiscation of his religious items is part of a campaign waged against Muslim inmates since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. But in a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court said the Federal Tort Claims Act blocks suits regarding property detained by law enforcement officers, including prison guards. Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for the majority, said the law applies to all law enforcement officers.

Churches on potential heritage sites list. Two Birmingham churches significant to the civil rights movement are under consideration as World Heritage sites, the National Park Service announced. Bethel Baptist Church and Sixteenth Street Baptist Church are on a tentative list that will be nominated over the next 10 years under a new category, “Civil Rights Sites in the Southern United States.” A 1963 bombing at Sixteenth Street Baptist killed four young girls and helped galvanize the civil rights movement. Bethel Baptist was bombed three times between 1956 and 1962 and served as a staging ground for civil rights leaders. There are 830 places in the world—including 20 in the United States—that have achieved recognition on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s World Heritage list.