that began in October. Justman wrote Dec. 20 to synod members, sharing his hope that they knew “how much I have loved this calling, and how hon- ored I have been to share in ministry and mission with you. For personal reasons, the timing is best for me to step away at this time.” Justman was re-elected in 2012 to his third six- year term as synod bishop. At press- time, an interim bishop had not yet been named.
Interfaith work
A number of nontheist or nonreli- gious young people are doing inter- faith work, according to Interfaith Youth Core, an organization that works with college and university campuses to equip young people for cooperative service and dialogue around shared values. Nearly 1 in 4 IFYC alums identify as atheist (4.7 percent), agnostic (7.1 percent), sec- ular humanist (5.3 percent), or spiri-
tual but not religious (6.5 percent). “The number of IFYC alums that identify as atheist, agnostic or secu- lar humanist is about as much as our Roman Catholic, Hindu and Bud- dhist alumni combined,” said IFYC director of alumni relations Amber Hacker.
Christmas banned
Last Christmas Eve, Somalia’s gov- ernment banned all Christian cele- brations including Christmas, warn- ing that security forces would deal with infractions. Hotels and other sites in Mogadishu received copies of the directive from the Ministry of Justice and Religious Affairs. Accord- ing to
Ghanaweb.com, it was the first time since 1991 that the government banned such celebrations.
Bombs in Iraq Christians in Baghdad continued to grieve after at least 34 people were killed Christmas Day 2013 by bomb- ings in mostly Christian neighbor- hoods. Meanwhile, numbers of Iraqi Christians continued to dwindle due to immigration, nearly halved from a population of 1.5 million before the U.S.-led military invasion.
The winner is … Officials at YouVersion, a popular Bible app with more than 100 mil- lion downloads, reported that the Scripture users most frequently bookmarked, highlighted or shared via text, email and social media in
LORI WELK
A warm tribute Dee Appleton of Flora, Ind., like many family members of pastors, wondered what to do with her father’s clergy vestments after he died. Appleton took the robes, clerical shirts and stoles of her father, Richard Recher, to her aunt, Grace Recher, an avid quilter, and cousin, Linda Recher Denger, saying she wanted to preserve the items and pass them down to family members. They decided to transform them (along with her mother’s wedding gown and some photos) into “stained-glass” quilts and wall hangings for the descendants: Appleton and her sister, Vickie Greene; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. After six weeks, nine quilts were complete; blessed by their family friend, retired pastor Jacob Hoffman, Lafayette, Ind.; and given as a surprise to each family member.
“ ” 10
Even an ardent atheist can look at a house of worship and see the signs of an invisible human
longing that is common to us all, believer and unbeliever alike.
Canadian photographer Mark Schacter, writ- ing in CNN’s Belief Blog about being an athe- ist who photographs houses of worship.
February 2014 9
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