Religion News: White House announces prayer leaders for inauguration
Week in Religion
Civil rights activist and Medgar Evers' widow Myrlie Evers-Williams will deliver the invocation at the Presidential Inauguration on Jan. 21. Atlanta pastor Louis Giglio was asked to deliver the bendiction, but backed out after a sermon he gave about homosexuality in the 1990s surfaced and was called anti-gay by activist groups.
CNN reported Tuesday that Evers-Williams was chosen because "Following her husband's murder she worked tirelessly not only for justice for his murder but for justice for the nation as well," according to one source via CNN. She is also a civil rights activist and headed the NAACP from 1995 to 1998.
Giglio released a statement Thursday saying "Due to a message of mine that has surfaced from 15-20 years ago, it is likely that my participation, and the prayer I would offer, will be dwarfed by those seeking to make their agenda a focal point of the inauguration. Clearly, speaking on this issue has not been in the range of my priorities in the past fifteen years. Instead, my aim has been to call people to ultimate significance as we make much of Jesus Christ." In sound clips from the sermon, Giglio says that homosexuality is a sin.
Giglio is leader of the Passion movement, which seeks to end sex slavery and human trafficking worldwide. The movement also aims to mobilize young people to the cause and holds events at college campuses.
There has not yet been an announcement of who will now deliver the benediction.
Survey Says
According to a Dec. 24 Gallup poll, people identifying as Mormon are the most religious Americans. Eighty-seven percent of Mormons asked said the religion plays an important role in their daily lives, followed by 79 percent of Protestants and non-Catholic Christians, 78 percent of Muslims, 70 percent of Catholics, 50 percent of people identifying with "other non-Christian religions," and 41 percent of those who identify themselves as Jewish.
Good Book?
"Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God's Work" by Timothy Keller with Katherine Leary Alsdorf
In a work world that is increasingly competitive and insecure, people often have nagging questions: Why am I doing this work? Why is it so hard? And is there anything I can do about it?
Tim Keller, pastor of New York’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church and New York Times bestselling author, has taught and counseled students, young professionals, and senior leaders on the subject of work and calling for more than twenty years.
With deep insight and often surprising advice, Keller shows readers that biblical wisdom is immensely relevant to our questions about our work. In fact, the Christian view of work—that we work to serve others, not ourselves—can provide the foundation of a thriving professional and balanced personal life. Keller shows how excellence, integrity, discipline, creativity, and passion in the workplace can help others and even be considered acts of worship—not just of self-interest.
-- Amazon.com
Quote of the Week
"I have been all things unholy. If God can work through me, he can work through anyone." - Francis of Assisi
The Word
Lama: A Tibetan Buddhist teacher or master.
- Religionstyles.com
Religion Around The World
Religious makeup of Brazil, according to CIA World Factbook:
73.6 percent: Roman Catholic
15.4 percent: Protestant
1.3 percent: Spiritualist
0.3 percent: Bantu/voodoo
1.8 percent: Other
7.4 percent: None