(AFP, May 18, 2012) Jakarta, Indonesia - A mob of 600 Islamic hardliners threw plastic bags filled with urine at an Indonesian church congregation celebrating the ascension of Christ, a lawyer said on Friday. The attack, during which stones and dirt were also hurled, occurred on Thursday as around 100 Christians prepared to hold a service at a church in Bekasi, a city on the outskirts of the capital Jakarta.

Isabelle de Pommereau ("The Christian Science Monitor," May 17, 2012) Germany - For years Aysen Yüsra Yilmaz, the daughter of Turkish immigrants who came to Germany as guest workers, looked for a way to ground her religion in the German culture she has adopted as her own.

Lee Dye ("ABC," May 17, 2012) USA - Two scientists who have met with would-be terrorists and cruel dictators in some of the world's hottest trouble spots have issued an unusual challenge to their colleagues: Focus your labs and your brain scanners and your cognitive skills on religion. They aren't trying to convert anyone.

Irene Monroe ("Huffington Post," May 17, 2012) USA - African-American ministers have come out for, and against, Obama's stance on marriage equality. LGBTQ activists of African descent have pondered what would be the catalyst to rally those African-American Christian ministers to support same-sex marriage and engage the black community in a nationwide discussion.

Niraj Warikoo ("Detroit Free Press," May 18, 2012) Detroit, USA - With his Hollywood-star looks and a doctorate in moral theology, the Rev. Thomas Williams became a nationally known Catholic priest who spoke often on NBC and CBS as an advocate for the Vatican. But this week, the Bloomfield Hills native announced he fathered a child, becoming the latest prominent leader with the conservative Catholic order Legion of Christ to face scandal.

("Associated Press," May 17, 2012) Manila, Philippines - Scores of Christian youths in the Philippines chanted “Stop the Lady Gaga concerts” at a rally Friday calling for the pop diva’s shows here to be canceled despite assurances from authorities that they won’t allow nudity and lewd acts. Sold-out crowds and angry protests followed Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” Asian tour.

Dave Warner (Reuters, May 17, 2012) Philadelphia, USA - The prosecution rested its case on Thursday against Philadelphia Archdiocese Monsignor William Lynn, the most senior U.S. clergyman to go to trial in the Roman Catholic Church's pedophilia scandal.

(AP, May 18, 2012) Washington, USA - Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is paying homage to religious freedom and the separation of church and state in a graduation speech at Georgetown University, after Catholic church authorities lambasted the school's invitation for her to speak.

(Reuters, May 17, 2012) Abuja, Nigeria - Nigerian authorities found improvised bombs in two primary schools in the northern city of Kano on Thursday, hours after the schools were attacked using explosives and gunfire by suspected militants from Islamist sect Boko Haram. Boko Haram is waging an insurgency against Nigeria's government to try to impose stricter sharia (Islamic law) across Nigeria.

("Associated Press," May 17, 2012) Greece, USA - An upstate New York town violated the constitutional ban against favoring one religion over another by opening nearly every meeting over an 11-year span with prayers that stressed Christianity, a federal court of appeals ruled Thursday. In what it said was its first case testing the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state, the U.S.

Scott Atran ("Huffington Post," May 17, 2012) USA - Across history and cultures, religion increases trust within groups but also may increase mistrust and conflict with other groups, according to studies by our research team and others analyzed in a special issue of Science magazine on human conflict. Over the last few millennia, moralizing gods emerged, enabling large-scale cooperation, and sociopolitical conquest even without war.

(Reuters, May 17, 2012) Kuwait - Kuwait's ruler has blocked a proposal by 31 of the 50 elected members of parliament to amend the constitution to make all legislation in the Gulf Arab state comply with Islamic law, an MP said on Thursday. The approval of Kuwait's emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, is needed for any constitutional change.

("Huffington Post," May 16, 2012) Toronto, Canada - The Toronto District School Board has forbidden a controversial Islamic school from operating out of one of its properties. The board revoked the permit for the East End Madrassah, a Sunday school for Muslim children, citing an ongoing police investigation into alleged anti-Semitic course material.

("Associated Press," May 15, 2012) Vatican City - The Legion of Christ religious order, still reeling from revelations that its late founder was a pedophile, admitted Wednesday that it knew that its most famous priest had fathered a child years ago yet didn’t remove him from teaching morality to seminarians or speaking publicly about ethics.

Andrew Chow (Reuters, May 15, 2012) Portland, USA - Thou shall not post bad reviews of your church online -- unless you want to face the wrath of a vengeful lawsuit. That's what an Oregon pastor seems to be saying, as he's filed a $500,000 defamation lawsuit against four former church members who badmouthed his church on a blog, Portland's KGW-TV reports.

("Associated Press," May 15, 2012) Philadelphia, USA - Documents from a clergy-abuse trial show Catholic church officials ignored complaints a Philadelphia priest had molested two boys until they heard he was also running a travel business — and competing with a big donor.

("Associated Press," May 15, 2012) Philadelphia, USA - Documents from a clergy-abuse trial show Catholic church officials ignored complaints a Philadelphia priest had molested two boys until they heard he was also running a travel business — and competing with a big donor.

Maria L. La Ganga ("Los Angeles Times," May 16, 2012) San Anselmo, USA - Days after President Obama announced his support for same-sex marriage, the Presbyterian Church's Northern California governing body refused to rebuke a retired minister for marrying gays and lesbians when it was legal in California.

Alan Travis ("The Associated Press," May 17, 2012) Hermosillo, Mexico - Mexican prosecutors have formally charged eight people in the grisly cult slayings of two 10-year-old boys and a 55-year-old woman. The suspects are mainly members of an extended family whose purported leader has said they killed the victims as an offering to “Santa Muerte,” or Saint Death, between 2009 and 2012.

("BBC," May 17, 2012) Syria - Considered by some Muslims a heretic sect, this small Levantine minority have survived persecution and the Crusades to rise to the top and take over the Syrian establishment. Alawite practices, which are said to include celebrating Christmas and the Zoroastrian new year, are little known even to most Muslims.