With gifts, gambling and greasy fried pancakes, the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah is no time for repentance and fasting. “Nobody would say Hanukkah is on the same level as Passover or the Day of Atonement,” said Jewish studies professor Richard Elliott Friedman. “It’s serious, but it’s more fun.” During the eight-day festival of lights — [...]

Uprooting shrubs to make space for healthier plants. Uprooting stereotypes to make space for healthier relationships. Christian and atheist students are aiming to do both during their joint community service project at Sandy Creek Nature Center Saturday. “It’s important for us to put differences aside to make a difference,” said Holly Aversano, the Presbyterian Student [...]

Forget keg parties — this fraternity is drunk with religious fervor. Today, Beta Upsilon Chi, the University’s Christian fraternity, is hosting “Greek Light,” a worship service designed to give students a chance to pray for Greek life at the Chapel on North Campus “I’m blown away by the amount of people stoked for the Lord,” [...]

Questioning your faith? You may want to ask an atheist for help. Atheists, Jews and Mormons scored the highest averages on a recent survey concerning Americans’ religious knowledge, but the results shouldn’t be taken as the word of any god, said one University religion professor. “You have to ask yourself, is this really the most [...]

When Dr. Nidal Ahmad lived in Jordan, his family served lunch in an American guest’s honor. Ahmad translated the English to Arabic for his father while the American ate serving after serving. The guest, Ahmad exaggerated, gained about 40 pounds that day. “The propaganda that we hear that Muslims hate Americans is not true,” Ahmad [...]

What may appear to be a makeshift tailgating tent on the bed of a pickup truck is actually a sign of God’s embrace. That’s how Rabbi Michoel Refson, co-director of the Chabad Jewish student center, described the “mobile sukkah” he is driving around campus today. During the weeklong Jewish holiday of Sukkot — Hebrew for [...]

Jones, who is the leader of the Dove Outreach Center in Gainesville, Fla., represents about 50 people in the community. Despite opposition from the White House, State Department and numerous religious leaders who say his actions could raise anti-American feelings and put our troops in Afghanistan in danger, Jones had claimed he wouldn’t back down. [...]

Sundown Wednesday marked the new year for Jewish students. They didn’t celebrate this High Holiday, Rosh Hashana, by watching the ball drop. But they made resolutions and ate signature holiday foods, such as apples and honey. “We eat sweet foods because we want to have a sweet year,” said Chana Refson, co-director of Chabad of [...]

Most students who spoke at Wednesday’s discussion about the proposed mosque near Ground Zero supported its construction. About 60 people attended the “Cordoba House Conflict” event the University’s Zeta Nu chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity co-sponsored with the Muslim Student Association. The audience could and did raise opposition to Park51 — the Muslim [...]

You’ve seen it on CNN. You’ve seen it on the news stands. You’ve seen our opinions page explode with fervent debate. An Islamic Community Center was announced to be placed only two blocks away from where the Twin Towers once stood. In an era with such a strong political divide, debate runs rampant on whether [...]