The “Pope Michael” AKA David Bawden was elected by 6 people to be pope in 1990, in Bellevue, Kansas. He lives with his mother (his father is deceased, although he voted in the election) in Delia, Kansas – about 20 miles outside of Topeka. Since his election in 1990, Bawden has been working on getting Read more
Members of Presbyterian Church congregations won’t be told off for taking their mobile phones out during sermons this Easter Sunday, 8 April. In fact, minsters will be encouraging them to make more use of texting as Holy Week 2012 (1 – 8 April) sees the launch of Kiwieaster – a chance to step into Easter Read more
From hiccups to wisdom teeth, the evolution of homo sapiens has left behind some glaring, yet innately human, imperfections. The process of evolution uses the typical Kiwi “number 8 wire” mentality making do with what it has, modifying already existing structures and processes to carry out new tasks that they were not originally designed to do. Some times the Read more
J Wilson, homebrewer and certified beer judge who is passionate about the flavors and culture of craft beer, last year fasted on beer and water for the duration of Lent. Wilson describes himself as l a “beer geek,” and so the monastic origins of the doppelbock style of beer had long intrigued him. Doppelbock (literally “double Read more
An church in Ohio offered a drive-thru Ash Wednesday blessing for parishioners pressed for time or reluctant to come inside the church for the Lenten observance. Bridget Spitler, the church’s secretary and building manager, said the church had received a lot of positive feedback for offering the drive-thru ashes. “Some people may not be too Read more
Pop star Lady Gaga believes the devil keeps haunting her during sleep. The 25-year-old has enlisted the help of Michael Jackson’s former doctor and spiritual adviser Deepak Chopra to try to ward off evil spirits from her “terrifying” dreams. Chopra helped the late Jackson achieve better sleep and breathing patterns with counselling sessions. “I have Read more
Last year, the Municipal Court of the Alabama town of Bay Minette began an alternative sentencing program that would give non-violent offenders a new choice: Go to jail, or go to church. The program allows a city judge to sentence misdemeanor offenders to work off their sentences in jail and pay a fine, or go to church every Read more
RICHARD DAWKINS suffered a rare skewering at the hands of the clergy after taking to the airwaves to argue that people who call themselves Christians are often lying. And at one point the high priest of atheism even appeared to call for divine intervention as he struggled to remember the title of Charles Darwin’s bible Read more
The Simpsons are corroding the morals of Iranian youth, an official said early today (NZ time), as dolls based on Bart, Homer and the rest of the American cartoon family joined the shapely Barbie among Western toys targeted by a new crackdown in Tehran. “The Simpsons dolls are merchandise from an animated series, of which Read more
Here’s a serious question about levity: The Bible clearly paints a picture of Jesus of Nazareth as a clever guy, but he never seems to laugh, much less crack a smile. Did Jesus really have no sense of humor; didn’t he ever laugh? Or do we just miss Jesus’ jokes? “Maybe we just know the Read more