8.10.03

WRITE THAT ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE INTO THAT CONSTITUTION. Joanne Jacobs recommends a Christian Science Monitor story about the evolution of the Hilla School of Religion. "Founded six months ago by a Shiite scholar, the institution bills itself as the Arab world's only school of theology, teaching Muslim, Christian, and Judaic texts. In a town full of deep-seated sorrow, the statue may best embody the school's credo of breaking down barriers and asking dangerous questions." The "statue" is a recent monument to people murdered by the Hussein dictatorship and buried nearby. The school makes use of the recently-completed Saddam Hussein mosque. The dean of the school seeks knowledge: " The school's 180 or so full-time students and 50 or so part timers now study the teachings of the Bible and the Torah; they may learn a few things about religions like Hinduism and Buddhism as well. All the while, they are sent searching for religious insights into everything from medicine to astronomy. Computers are taught as a religious tool; philosophy becomes a theological discipline." As Joanne Jacobs notes, "If your heart needs warming, read the whole thing."

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