First-edition Book of Mormon stolen from Arizona store

USA TODAY
By Jim Walsh

ARIZONA -- For years, Mormon missionaries would come to Helen Schlie's bookstore to have their pictures taken with a first-edition copy of the Book of Mormon. Some missionaries would cry as they touched the rare book, one of 5,000 printed in 1830 after Joseph Smith found the gold plates that he translated into the Book of Mormon, which members of the faith consider to be scripture alongside the Bible. Schlie valued the book at $100,000 when she reported it stolen. She said the book was not insured. [link]

Religious Rights: Bills target broad range of perceived attacks on beliefs

ARIZONA CAPITAL TIMES
By Luige del Puerto

 
ARIZONA - Already steeped in the battle over abortion and contraception in health plans, social conservatives have also ramped up their efforts to advance religious expression in the public square, taking advantage of the dominance of policymakers at the state Capitol with similar impulses. Their immediate goal is to paint a protective coat on religious expression. [link]

Five World Religions Opens Today at Phoenix Museum of Art

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS

Image courtesy of ArtDaily

ARIZONA - Throughout history, religious cultures have used sacred objects as part of rituals, devotions and celebrations, and an exhibition opening on January 4, 2012 at Phoenix Art Museum, features the written word and painted image as expressed in the worlds five largest religions. Sacred Word & Image: Five World Religions features over 50 examples of the sacred written word and pictorial image as expressed in the cultures of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Christianity throughout the past 1500 years. The exhibition, on view through March 25, 2012, draws from the collections of Phoenix Art Museum and several prominent private collections, and includes a variety of materials used to document mankind’s significant thoughts and beliefs, including everything from paper, palm leaf and vellum, to wood, lacquer, metal and ivory.

Film Points To Mormon Bigotry Against LGBT Americans

TUCSON CITIZEN
By Jim Gressinger 

ARIZONA - Director Reed Cowan, who is a former Mormon missionary, has made a film "The Mormon Proposition 8" that focuses on the wealth and power of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and how the Church uses the National Organization for Marriage to advocate for denial of rights to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Americans. It points out that Mormon leader Thomas S. Monson asked to ensure the passage of the controversial California Proposition 8. It also points out the fact that many homeless in Utah are LGBT teens who were abandoned by their Mormon parents. [link]

"Piss Christ" Creator, Serrano at Phoenix Art Museum Tonight

PHOENIX NEW TIMES
April 12, 2011

"Piss Christ"

ARIZONA - Andres Serrano, best known for his infamous 1989 work Piss Christ (consisting of a photograph depicting a plastic crucifix floating in a two-gallon jar of his own urine) is visiting PAM for a special lecture and discussion with world-renowned artist (and Valley native) Eric Fischl in the museum's Whiteman Hall on April 13. The artist's strict Catholic upbringing in New York City by his Honduran mother and Cuban father imbued his early work with religious overtones, particularly Piss Christ. Although the artist admits to a fascination with the profane and repulsive nature of bodily fluids (as well as taboo imagery in general), the work is more than just the blasphemous act of placing a religious icon in an utterly foul substance. It contains allusions toward Serrano's feelings about the commercialization of Christian iconography and his conflicted feelings about his own beliefs. Another work from that era is Heaven and Hell, a photograph depicting a smirking priest ignoring a bound and blood-soaked nude woman. In a 1991 interview with High Performance Magazine, the artist explained his belief that his work, while religious, isn't sacrilegious. "I am drawn to Christ but I have real problems with the Catholic Church. I don't go out of my way to be critical of the Church in my work, because I think that I make icons worthy of the Church." [link]

"The Story of the Chinese Buddhist Canon" Exhibit & Lecture

ARIZONA - Jiang Wu, associate professor in the University of Arizona department of East Asian studies, introduces a new exhibition on the Chinese Buddhist Canon at the UA Main Library. Wu's talk will trace the formation and transformation of the Buddhist sacred texts, and will specifically explain the pieces to be on display from March 21 through April 8 in the second floor exhibition area of the Main Library. The exhibit opening lecture will be moderated by J. Philip Gabriel, head of the East Asian studies department. Visitor parking is available at the Cherry Avenue Garage, east of the Main Library. [Source: UANews]

Andy Warhol, Good for Jews?

ARIZONA REPUBLIC
February 26, 2011

ARIZONA -- A one-man show, "Andy Warhol: Good for the Jews?" is being performed at the Herberger Theater Center this month as part of Actors Theatre's season is a commission of the Contemporary Jewish Museum, which was exhibiting Warhol's series of 10 portraits of 20th-century Jews, from Einstein and Freud to George Gershwin and the Marx Brothers. While researching about Warhol, the playwright found out how deeply religious he was. "His parents were from central Europe and went to Byzantine Catholic church. His mother sometimes took him to church several times a day and he would see these "icons", these gaudy, colorful images of saints arranged on the wall." It's not so far a journey from those images to the adult artist's strikingly colorful portraits of Marilyn Monroe and Chairman Mao. [link]

Faith Forum: How can religious leaders reach out to youth?

Reno Gazette-Journal
February 11, 2011

ARIZONA - An interfaith sampling of clergy share their insights into reaching young people. These include the insights of a Buddhist leader who said, "Demonstrating the benefits of faith traditions needs to be done in a way that is culturally appealing to young people, for example, employing media and technology that virtually all our youth in the modern world live with on a day to day basis." [link]

Quote: "Live up to our children's expectations." - Pres. Obama

Wednesday nights memorial service in Tucson, AZ took on the form of a national catharsis, including a presidential reading from the Book of Psalms. Thousands of students and others in the crowd cheered at several points during Mr. Obama’s 32-minute address, which sometimes had the feel of a rally dedicated to the Arizona victims.
 

The entire memorial service is included below:
 

God Bless Indiana, State Fair Scupture is Tribute to Grant Wood

AOA NEWS
By Ernest Britton

INDIANA - A 25-foot-tall sculpture inspired by Grant Wood’s iconic painting “American Gothic stands guard in Dow AgroSciences Celebration Park during the Great Indiana State Fair from Aug. 6 – 22. “God Bless America,” which has traveled to Chicago, Florida, Arizona and New York, features the well-known farmer with his pitchfork and daughter by his side. The sculpture, installed July 26 with the help of giant cranes, is a reminder of the nation’s agricultural roots. “This piece of public art is a great opportunity for our visitors to capture a unique moment at the fair,” Cindy Hoye, the State Fair’s executive director, said.