CALIFORNIA
Psychic's century-old tax dropped in Fortuna, Calif.
The Associated Press
FORTUNA - Fortune telling is safe in Fortuna. The City Council has repealed a century-old ordinance taxing psychics and fortune tellers $10 a day, thanks to an entrepreneur who's predicting success for a warehouse selling sundry metaphysical accouterments.

COLORADO
Colorado Classroom Yoga Questioned
The Associated Press
ASPEN -- A yoga program at Aspen Elementary school has been put on hold while administrators and parents determine whether the meditation would bring religion into the classroom.

NEW YORK
Religion Enters Political Debate over Milk
CNSNews.com
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has launched an anti-dairy billboard campaign featuring a Madonna and her breastfeeding child. "If it was good enough for Jesus...," the billboard's big lettering reads, followed by the tag line: "The breast is best." The billboard directs viewers to an anti-dairy website.

PENNSYLVANIA
Psychic foresees getting back to work
Tribune-Review
A Latrobe-area psychic charged with "fortunetelling" pleaded guilty to a lesser charge Monday, and she said she plans to stay in business. But prosecutors warned that if Katherine Evans continues reading palms for profit, she does so at her own peril.

UTAH
Tearful Green apologizes before he's sentenced
Deseret News
NEPHI - A 4th District judge said it was up to Tom Green to overcome his penchant for young teen brides or face spending the rest of his life behind bars.
Related news:
Utah Polygamist Sentenced to 5 Years, The Associated Press
Polygamist jailed for child rape, BBC News

Utah Gets Serious on Polygamy
The Salt Lake Tribune
For nearly half a century, polygamy flourished in Utah as authorities -- content to ignore the state's worst-kept secret -- chose not to prosecute those who violated the constitutional ban on plural marriage.

LDS Secrets Could Be Aired in Court
The Salt Lake Tribune
Nearly two decades after Elroy Tillman was sent to death row for murdering his ex-lover's boyfriend, his lawyers will seek testimony Friday that reveals secret details about an LDS temple ceremony.

AUSTRALIA
Australians Feel the Force
FOX News
SYDNEY - May the Force be with you. Amen. More than 70,000 fans of the Star Wars movies have upset Australia's statistics agency by identifying their religion as "Jedi" during last year's national census.
Related news:
Jedi 'religion' grows in Australia, BBC News

ENGLAND
Eucharist Is Cannibalistic, Says Bishop
The Salt Lake Tribune
Anglican Bishop of Oxford Richard Harries has suggested that the "cannibalistic language of the Eucharist" is part of the reason Christianity is declining in Britain. In a controversial new book, God Outside the Box, Harries described the revulsion that the uninitiated can feel at one of the best-loved prayers in the Church of England's prayer book.
Other religion briefs at this site

GREAT BRITAIN
Calls for U.K. chief rabbi to quit for criticizing Israel
Ha'aretz
British Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks set off a storm of controversy in mostly right-wing British Jewish circles Tuesday, after he told The Guardian newspaper that the Middle East conflict has forced Israel to adopt a stance that conflicts with the ideals of Judaism.

INDIA
Tamil Nadu Minister who watched kids’ ‘burial’ steps down
Express News Service
Chennai -- Tamil Nadu Minister C Durairaj, who watched on as around 105 children were buried "for a minute" in Peraiyur village near Madurai on August 21-as reported by The Indian Express-has resigned.

ISRAEL
Debate rages over biblical mystery
BBC News
An archaeological site on the shores of the Dead Sea is at the centre of an ongoing debate over whether it could be the last resting place of biblical prophet John the Baptist. The BBC's Ari Ben Goldberg examines both sides of the argument.

Wailing Wall 'collapsing'
BBC News
Part of the Western Wall - Judaism's most revered site - is in danger of falling down, say Israeli officials in Jerusalem. Mayor Ehud Olmert is calling on the Israeli Government to take action to repair the wall, also known as the Wailing Wall.

JAKARTA
Cures, spells and love potions
The Jakarta Post
Jakartans may consider themselves modern, but when a problem arises, whether it be about their health, career or marriage, some still seek advice from mystics instead of modern experts. Some of them share their opinions with The Jakarta Post.

KENYA
Leaders Could Ease Anxiety
The East African Standard
"The Mungiki menace exposes a national crisis that calls for a patriotic and nationalistic leadership to settle, writes Samwel Rambaya. It was last week that I ex-pressed a wish for an urgent national peace conference sponsored by the government."
Previous related news:
Mungiki Followers Free to Support Anybody, Says Uhuru, The East African Standard
Mungiki Leader Records Statement Over Demonstration, The East African Standard
Uhuru Denounces Mungiki, Denies Links With Sect's Members, The Nation
Mungiki's Long History of Clashes With the Law, The Nation
Uhuru Now Defends Mungiki Adherents, The East African Standard
Mungiki Agenda in Succession Race, The Nation
Ndichu Now Beats Retreat On Mungiki, The East African Standard

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