lohud.com

Sponsored by:

Blogging Religiously

From a New York point of view

Gary Stern

Gary SternGary Stern has covered religion for The Journal News for a decade. He's reported on just about every major religious group in New York's spiritual mix and covered many of the significant trends, stories and people of the day. The world of religion, we don't have to tell you, is vast. The purpose of this blog is for Stern to note, flag and comment on some of the more interesting religious developments on the scene -- weighty and quirky, somber and laughable, far away and just down the road. He won't interpret Scripture, take sides in conflicts or judge anyone. But he will take advantage of the journalist's license to observe. Stern was once leery of taking on the religion beat. It's a sensitive subject, you know. But a wise editor told him "Just cover it like you would cover anything."? Since then, he's learned a lot about many hard-to-define elements of religious life, including the modern meaning of religious history, the myriad ways that people reconcile their faith with everyday life, and the unspoken cultural characteristics that help to define each faith and sect. He's won some awards along the way, including the two highest honors given by the Religion Newswriters Association: National Religion Writer of the Year (2001) and National Religion Reporter of the Year (2005).

E-mail Gary Stern at gstern@lohud.com

Entries written by Gary Stern

The anti-Catholicism debate continues

November
6

The Catholic blogosphere is rallying around Archbishop Dolan’s recent attack on what he calls “anti-Catholicism” in the NYTimes, which I blogged about early in the week.

Many bloggers have been particularly buoyed by Dolan’s criticisms of columnist Maureen Dowd, who often writes about her (liberal) unhappiness with the state of her church.

On his blog, Bishop Robert [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on November 6th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Yankee manager Girardi finds the time to be a good guy

November
5

This is not a religion story, but on a morning when many New Yorkers are thinking about the Yankees, it’s worth noting:

Hoa Nguyen
hnguyen7@lohud.com

EASTCHESTER – On his way home from winning the World Series, Yankees Manager Joe Girardi stopped to help a woman who had lost control of her car on the Cross County Parkway and [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on November 5th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

From interviewing the pope to running Westchester

November
4

Last night’s victory for Rob Astorino in the race for Westchester County Executive is a loss for the Catholic Channel on SIRIUS and XM Satellite Radio.

Astorino has served as program director since the channel kicked off in December 2006, with its programming run by the Archdiocese of New York.

He’s been on leave since Labor Day [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on November 4th, 2009 | Post a Comment »

Have questions about priestly celibacy?

November
3

If you read this blog, you’re probably aware that the question of priestly celibacy in the Catholic Church remains a hotly debated one.

I’ve heard people offer vastly different accounts of the history of celibacy and its meaning for today.

Well, tomorrow (Wed. Nov. 4), Father Joseph T. Lienhard, a Jesuit and professor of theology at Fordham University—and [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on November 3rd, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Much enthusiasm will be curbed

November
2

My friend, Cathy Lynn Grossman, the religion writer at USA TODAY, is off for a few weeks. So I’m part of a small group that will be contributing to her blog, Faith & Reason, while she’s taking a breather.

I wrote up my first offering today, about a (typically) offensive storyline on HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on November 2nd, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Dolan takes on the Times

October
30

There’s been a lot of buzz about Archbishop Dolan starting a blog.

There will be more buzz now that the Boss has posted a letter that he submitted to the NYTimes, which Dolan says the Times declined to publish.

In his letter/blog post, Dolan takes the Times to task for several examples of what he believes to [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on October 30th, 2009 | 6 Comments »

Want to learn more about meditation?

October
29

Doesn’t it seem like everyone is meditating these days?

Churches and synagogues host all sorts of meditation groups, and community-based meditation (and yoga) centers are opening all over.

I guess it’s no surprise given our stressed-out, racing-for-time, recession-weary culture.

A few years ago, I wrote about an in-depth, three-year class in Buddhism for meditators who want to go [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on October 29th, 2009 | Post a Comment »

Bagels vs….Tastykakes?

October
28

I’m off to the World Series in a few hours to talk to fans and write about the excitment.

Don’t be too jealous: I can’t actually see the game. The press box is filled and supplementary reporters such as myself are relegated to an auxiliary press room where we can work while we watch on TV!

But [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on October 28th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

The Ecumenical Patriarch is in town

October
27

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the head of the Orthodox Christian world, is visiting the U.S. and is spending the next few days in New York.

He arrived in New Orleans last Tuesday and has spent the last week talking about the environment, which has become the subject he is most identified with.

He came to New York on [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on October 27th, 2009 | Post a Comment »

Antichrist in the news

October
26

Someone asked me the other day if a new movie called Antichrist has something to do with the antichrist?

Does the film have religious overtones?

No, it doesn’t. It’s the latest work from a controversial, cutting-edge-type move-maker named Lars von Trier.

From what I’ve read, the film sounds pretty grim. It’s about chaos and sorrow—and there’s a talking [...]

Posted by Gary Stern on October 26th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Advertisement
About this blog
Religion writer Gary Stern comments on news and trends in the world of religion — in the Lower Hudson Valley and beyond.

Subscribe

Daily Email Newsletter:








About the author
Gary Stern has covered religion for The Journal News for a decade. He's reported on just about every major religious group in New York's spiritual mix and covered many of the significant trends, stories and people of the day.

Gary SternThe world of religion, we don't have to tell you, is vast. The purpose of this blog is for Stern to note, flag and comment on some of the more interesting religious developments on the scene – weighty and quirky, somber and laughable, far away and just down the road. He won't interpret Scripture, take sides in conflicts or judge anyone. But he will take advantage of the journalist's license to observe.

Stern was once leery of taking on the religion beat. It's a sensitive subject, you know. But a wise editor told him "Just cover it like you would cover anything."

Since then, he's learned a lot about many hard-to-define elements of religious life, including the modern meaning of religious history, the myriad ways that people reconcile their faith with everyday life, and the unspoken cultural characteristics that help to define each faith and sect.

He's won some awards along the way, including the two highest honors given by the Religion Newswriters Association: National Religion Writer of the Year (2001) and National Religion Reporter of the Year (2005).





Other recent entries

Recently Updated LoHud Blogs
Monthly Archives



Bad Behavior has blocked 1797 access attempts in the last 7 days.