CALIFORNIA
Meditate your way to success
BBC News
"Teachers across the UK are searching for ways to tackle classroom discipline. One experiment in California is having significant results. Typical school rituals like recess and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance are being joined by something that has been dubbed "om schooling" in establishments in California."

Kindergartener's stripper-mom in church-school flap
WorldNetDaily.com
"A private Christian school and a kindergartener's mother who stripteases for a living are quickly becoming the focus of the latest debate on religious freedom."
Stripper mom: I'm following the Bible
WorldNetDaily.com
"The mother of a 5-year-old California girl facing expulsion from the Christian school she attends acknowledges her job as a stripper is not one to be proud of, but says her work allows her time to follow the Bible by being a "hands-on" parent."

Calif. Court Backs Religious Groups
The Associated Press
"SAN FRANCISCO- Religious groups have some control over religious speech in their workplaces, the California Supreme Court ruled, backing a Catholic medical center's decision to fire a clerk who preached born-again Christian views."

MASSACHUSETTS
Evacuation due to Muslim prayers sparks debate
The Boston Globe
"STOUGHTON - The four men emerged Tuesday night from a restroom at BJ's Wholesale Club dressed in fatigue jackets. They took off their shoes and began praying loudly in a language that sounded like Arabic."

MICHIGAN
Friends Defend Arrested Islam Leader
The Associated Press
"ANN ARBOR -- To the rabbi at Temple Beth Emeth, Rabih Haddad was the one he turned to when he wanted to bring Muslims and Jews together. To students at a local Islamic school, Haddad was the "cool" guy they approached with their questions and problems. But to the U.S. government, Haddad and the Islamic charity he co-founded might have a link to the al-Qaida terrorist network."

PENNSYLVANIA
Atheists, too, fight to defend their beliefs
Lancaster Intelligencer-Journal
Atheists deserve respect, too. "Look at me. I'm an OK person," said Liz Burcin, a personable neonatal intensive care unit nurse with wholesome good looks.

UTAH
Green's Wives Sell Magazines To Prisoners
The Salt Lake Tribune
"Since their family patriarch went to prison on a felony conviction for bigamy last year, the five wives of polygamist Tom Green have been struggling to support themselves and nearly three dozen children in Utah's west desert."

WASHINGTON, D.C.
Sale of Cove May Be Closer
The Salt Lake Tribune
"WASHINGTON -- Congress inched closer Thursday to completing a bill directing the federal government to sell The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints land in the Wyoming highlands where Mormon pioneers died in an 1856 blizzard."
LDS get ally, foe in fray on cove
The Deseret News
"WASHINGTON - The LDS Church Thursday attracted a powerful new ally - but also another troublesome foe - in its attempt to buy Martin's Cove, the Wyoming site where stranded handcart pioneers suffered and died in 1856, from the federal government."
LDS Church will compromise on Cove bill
Deseret News
"Discussions with Congress on the controversial sale of Martin's Cove continued Thursday in Washington, with the prospective buyer — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — indicating it is willing to compromise to purchase the historic land."

AUSTRALIA
Australian leaders to snub visiting Dalai Lama
Reuters
"CANBERRA -- The Dalai Lama will travel to Australia on Saturday on his first major trip since falling ill in January, but neither Prime Minister John Howard nor opposition leader Simon Crean will meet Tibet's exiled spiritual leader."

CANADA
Parents seek damages after baby given blood
The Edmonton Sun
"A Jehovah's Witness couple whose newborn was forced to undergo blood transfusions are entitled to damages for having their rights trampled, says their lawyer."

Kirpan case goes to court
Canadian Press
"MONTREAL -- Coolly delivered legal arguments in favour of allowing a Sikh boy to carry his religious dagger to school contrasted Thursday with allegations of racism outside the courtroom by the youngster's father."

FRANCE
Scientologists Fined In France
CNN.com
"PARIS -- A French court has fined the Paris branch of the Church of Scientology for data protection violation but acquitted it of attempted fraud and false advertising in connection with its efforts to recruit and keep members."

HONG KONG
Buddhist Monk Starts Fund to Rebuild Afghan Statues
Reuters
"HONG KONG -- A Buddhist museum in Taiwan donated HK$1 million (US$128,200) on Thursday to kickstart a campaign to help rebuild two giant Buddhist statues destroyed last year by Taliban extremists in Afghanistan."

NORTH KOREA
"Great leader" cult alive and well in N Korea
Japan Today
"PYONGYANG - North Korea remains firmly in the grip of a suffocating personality cult glorifying the country's leader Kim Jong Il to the same extent that Christians revere Jesus."

RUSSIA
http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,400008998,00.html?
Deseret News
"WASHINGTON — A former Utahn who heads the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is calling for President Bush to raise concerns in an upcoming visit to Russia about mistreatment of religious minorities in that country."

DISCLAIMER: Sect News Daily is not responsible for the content of any external links or news items written for any newspaper or news agency, nor are we responsible for the length of time external links are available online. Although Sect News Daily is intended for an evangelical audience interested in current events, we do not promote any specific denomination or church. This is to prevent us from unintentionally promoting a group or a group's teachings that may be in conflict with the spiritual beliefs of the staff of Sect News Daily. Sect News Daily does not regard all religious or spiritual groups listed in news items as cults. Some articles are posted to keep the evangelical Christian informed as to events in Christendom.