CALIFORNIA
Stripping mom now poses for Playboy
Christian school shocked, but won't expel daughter again
The San Francisco Chronicle
"Within days after giving up her job as a stripper so that her 5-year- old daughter could finish kindergarten at her Christian school, Christina Silvas of Rancho Cordova pocketed an undisclosed sum to pose nude for Playboy's Web site."

Jury sides with nurse who wouldn't give out "morning-after" pills
The Associated Press
"The decision by the eight-member jury was reached Friday but announced this week. It awarded $19,000 in back pay and more than $28,000 in damages for emotional distress to 28-year-old Michelle Diaz, who said dispensing "morning-after" contraceptive pills violated her religious beliefs."

ILLINOIS
Liberal Catholic group decries 'zero tolerance' approach
The Associated Press
"A liberal Roman Catholic group on Wednesday came out against the adoption of a "zero tolerance" policy toward child-molesting priests, saying those who commit misdemeanors may deserve a second chance."

KENTUCKY
Psychic wants reward for missing man
Kentucky Post
"A Ludlow woman who says her psychic powers helped searchers find the body of an Alabama man on the Covington riverfront April 10 says she plans to file suit today in an attempt to claim the $10,000 reward offered by the family."

NEW YORK
Bob Grant: Where Were All the 9-11 Soothsayers Before 9-11?
NewsMax.com
"'Everybody wants to get into the act,' lamented New York radio talker Bob Grant to his audience Wednesday. The WOR host was complaining about the sudden abundance of post-Sept. 11 soothsayers who now say they saw the terrorist attacks coming, but somehow neglected to warn anybody out loud."

OREGON
LDS Church, Scouts sued in sexual abuse case
The Associated Press
"PORTLAND — A Portland man has sued The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Boy Scouts of America, alleging he was sexually abused during his youth by a church member who was also his Scoutmaster."

UTAH
Prison Punishes Polygamist Green for Part in Magazine Sales Scheme
The Salt Lake Tribune
"After discovering his fellow Utah State Prison inmates were voracious readers, polygamist Tom Green hit upon a scheme to support his five wives and nearly three-dozen children from behind bars."

Methodists Debate Rebaptism
The Salt Lake Tribune
"Two years ago the United Methodist Church passed a resolution that outlined differences between historic, apostolic Christian faith and Mormonism. It recommended that Latter-day Saints seeking to become United Methodists be baptized into the faith."

WYOMING
Wyoming Lawmakers Unite Against Cove Sale
The Associated Press
"CASPER -- Sen. Mike Enzi has decided to oppose the sale of Martin's Cove to the Mormon church, meaning the state's congressional delegation is united against the idea."

WASHINGTON
Fugitive may be living in Bellevue
eastsidejournal.com
"A man accused of plotting a violent jewelry store robbery in California may be in Bellevue or Seattle, the Federal Bureau Investigation believes...He is a member of a Bagwa Rashnish-affiliated religious cult known as Sannyasih (or Sanyasih), officials said."

AFGHANISTAN
Experts defer Buddhas' rebuilding
BBC News
"International conservation experts meeting in Kabul have decided to defer the reconstruction of two giant Buddha statues in Bamiyan which were destroyed by the Taleban. The meeting, organised by the United Nations' cultural organ, Unesco, and the Afghan ministry of culture, selected the restoration of Kabul Museum as their first priority."

AUSTRALIA
Muslim-Christian Clash Looms Over Islamic Teachings
CNSNews.com
"An Australian Muslim organization, seizing on controversial new hate legislation, has brought a complaint against a Christian group it accuses of vilifying Islam. The Christians say all they did was quote from Islamic scriptures."

CHINA
China orders fans screened for Falun Gong
China orders fans screened for Falun Gong
"BEIJING -- Chinese authorities have ordered domestic travel agencies to watch out for members of the outlawed Falun Gong spiritual movement among soccer fans heading to watch China's debut game in the World Cup finals, industry executives said."

ENGLAND
Rastafarian Row: Judge Speaks Out
Sky News
"A judge who locked up a man after he refused to remove his Rastafarian headgear said he did not mean to cause offence."
Also: Judge 'regrets' Rasta row, BBC News

ITALY
Devout Catholics show symptoms of compulsive disorder
Ananova
"A new study claims devout Catholics are more likely to show symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder. It compared nuns and priests with committed lay Catholics and others with virtually no religious involvement."

VENEZUELA
Venezuelan Devil Dancers Celebrate
The Associated Press
"SAN FRANCISCO DE YARE -- On the hot concrete of a church plaza, a man and a boy begin to dance. Faces hidden beneath red veils, they stomp and circle each other, lifting elaborate, monstrous masks up to the Caribbean sun."

ZIMBABWE
Church Warns Herald
The Daily News
"HARARE -- The Johanne Marange Apostolic Church says it will take legal action against the government mouthpiece The Herald for "manufacturing falsehoods," unless the newspaper retracts stories it published on two consecutive days last week. These claimed that some worshippers died when they drank "poisoned" tea at Rupako Farm in Nyazura."

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