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In secular Japan, what draws so many to temples and shrines? Stamp collecting and tradition

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Almost weekly Momo Nomura makes time to visit Shinto shrines. She performs the prescribed rituals — cleansing her hands, ringing a bell, bowing and clapping. But her main purpose is getting a Goshuin, a stamp with elegant calligraphy that shrines provide for a fee to certify the visit.She loves the stamps, which she began collecting during the pandemic. One with blue hydrangeas got her started.“Because of the Goshuin, shrines have become closer to me, but I don’t consider this a religious activity,” Nomura said after getting her stamp and taking selfies at Sakura Jingu, a western Tokyo shrine established in 1882 as a minority Shinto sect focused on traditional values.Nomura, who posts about her hobby on social media as Goshuin Girl, says she enjoys the stamp designs, and shrine visits allow a moment of reflection and a change of pace from her busy life as a graphic designer and entrepreneur. Differences of religious sects are not an issue, she says.“It’s a mindfulness k...

Nonreligious struggle to find their voice and place in Indian society and politics

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

CHENNAI, India (AP) — Despite India’s millennia-old history of nonreligious movements, most atheists and rationalists choose to keep quiet about their skepticism of faith — it’s easier and far less risky than going public in one of the world’s most religious countries.The space that does exist for debating religious authority and belief is shrinking, said Avinash Patil, a religious skeptic who was born Hindu and is now a leader of an anti-superstition group working in one of the country’s western states. He blames the growth of nationwide religious and communal tensions over the last decade as well as rising Hindu nationalism under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.“When you are open about it and engage in activism, it can get challenging, and even dangerous,” said Patil, chairperson of Maharashtra Andhashradha Nirmulan Samiti.In fact, Patil and his organization are still seeking justice for its founder and renowned rationalist, Narendra Dabholkar, who was gunned down ...

Israel is perennially swept up in religious conflict. Yet many of its citizens are secular

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

MEVASSERET ZION, Israel (AP) — Israel is a nation perennially swept up in religious fervor and conflict. And yet, strikingly, a large portion of its population is secular, and even its insular ultra-Orthodox community loses a steady stream of members who tire of its strict religious rules.The country is home to about 7 million Jews, almost half of the global Jewish population. But Jewish identity is a complex blend of religious and ethnonational identity; most Israeli Jews are not diligent observers of Judaism.An Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics survey published in 2021 found that among Israeli Jews over the age of 20, about 45% identified as secular or not religious, while 33% said they practiced “traditional” religious worship. Ultra-Orthodox Jews, known as Haredim in Hebrew, made up 10%.For Naor Narkis and many other secular Israelis, their Jewish identity is cultural — defined by the Hebrew tongue and historical experience — rather than governed by traditional religious wors...

Adnan Syed goes before Maryland Supreme Court facing ‘specter of reincarceration,’ his lawyers say

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Attorneys for Adnan Syed, who is now free after being imprisoned more than two decades ago for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, will once again be arguing to keep his freedom in a case known to millions by the true-crime podcast “Serial.”In a case fraught with legal twists and divided court rulings, arguments are set to begin Thursday in Maryland’s Supreme Court. Syed’s attorneys are appealing the reinstatement of his murder conviction by an appellate court, in a case that has broader ramification’s for victim’s rights as well as Syed’s future. Syed, 42, was released from prison in September 2022, when a Baltimore judge overturned his conviction. City prosecutors had dropped all charges after finding flaws in the evidence.However, in March, the Appellate Court of Maryland ordered a redo of the hearing that enabled Syed to walk out a free man. The appellate court said the victim’s family didn’t receive adequate notice to attend the ...

Nearly every Alaskan gets a $1,312 oil check this fall. The unique benefit is a blessing and a curse

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Nearly every Alaskan will receive a $1,312 check starting this week, their annual share from the earnings of the state’s nest-egg oil fund. Some use the money for extras like tropical vacations but others — particularly in high-cost rural Alaska where jobs and housing are limited – rely on it for home heating fuel or snow machines that are critical for transportation.But the unique-to-Alaska benefit has become a blessing and a curse in a state that for decades has ridden the boom-bust cycle of oil, and it now competes for funding with services like public education, health care programs and public safety as lawmakers tap into the earnings to help fund the state budget. Squabbling over the oil checks’ size has resulted in legislative paralysis, and a Senate proposal aimed at resolving the dividend debate this year fizzled with no agreement.As Alaska struggles to attract workers and stem a years-long trend of people moving away, some residents are won...

Folly at fullback costs Minnesota United in 5-1 loss to Los Angeles FC

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

Los Angeles FC had not scored a single goal across four matches coming into Wednesday’s MLS game against Minnesota United.The Loons fullbacks helped LAFC get off the skid.LAFC attacker Denis Bouanga netted a first-half hat trick — including exposing DJ Taylor and Ethan Bristow before two goals — in a 5-1 win at BMO Stadium.The defeat was the latest blow to MNUFC’s already wounded chances of making the MLS Cup Playoffs. The 12th-place Loons (9-12-11, 38 points) were not eliminated Wednesday, but the odds are much longer after dropping all three points to LAFC (13-10-9, 48 points). LAFC clinched a playoff spot with the blowout win.Trailing 3-1 at the half, Loons manager Adrian Heath hooked both fullbacks, replacing them with veteran defenders Zarek Valentin and Bakaye Dibassy.The Loons have had persistent issues at fullback this season.MNUFC terminated the contract of Kemar Lawrence in early August after the Jamaican had become a persistent detriment in the locker room and to the club...

High school volleyball: Lakeville North downs Eagan in match between top-5 teams

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

Lakeville North marched into hostile territory and took down conference rival Eagan in five sets Wednesday night.In a back-and-forth match, the Panthers won 22-25, 25-19, 16-25, 25-12, 15-10.Lakeville North clawed its way to the win in the fifth set after losing the first three points.Eagan was ranked second in Class 4A and Lakeville North fifth.Lakeville North head coach Jackie Richter commended the opponent’s program and her own team for playing hard against an opponent they knew would challenge them.“Eagan is a remarkable program, and this is a very tough gym to play in,” Richter said. “We have the ultimate respect for Mckenna and Kathy, and I’m proud of our girls for enduring. The conversation before the fourth set was to play aggressively. That’s the only way to have a shot against Eagan, is to play aggressively.”Eagan coach McKenna Melville said preventing mistakes was a focus coming into the game for the Wildcats and will continue to be for the rest of the season.“They put a ...

3 dead, including pedestrian after 5-vehicle crash in Los Angeles County

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

Three people are dead after a multi-vehicle traffic collision Wednesday afternoon in Azusa, authorities announced.  The Azusa Police Department said the accident, which involved approximately five vehicles, occurred at around 4 p.m. at the intersection of Cerritos Avenue and Arrow Highway. According to Jake Bushey with the Azusa Police Department, two motorcyclists were traveling eastbound on Arrow Highway at a high rate of speed when they struck several other vehicles at the intersection. One of the motorcycles that spun out of control struck a pedestrian who was seated off the roadway on nearby patch of grass, police said. All three victims died. Medical personnel with the Los Angeles County Fire Department responded to the crash and pronounced two of the victims dead at the scene. A third victim was taken to the hospital where they later succumbed to their injuries. Aerial footage of the scene captured from Sky5 showed the intersection cordoned off while police were investi...

Mother killed, kids hospitalized after multi-vehicle Pomona crash

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

A multi-vehicle crash left a mother dead and her two children hospitalized in Pomona on Wednesday.California Highway Patrol responded to a crash on the 10 Freeway just east of Fairplex Drive around 12:30 a.m.Arriving officers found multiple people injured at the scene. A 30-year-old woman from West Covina was pronounced dead. Inside her car were two children — a 6-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl.The boy was transported to Children's Hospital Orange County with major injuries and the girl was transported to Pomona Valley Hospital with minor injuries. The woman was driving a Kia Forte on the westbound lanes of the 10 Freeway when, for unknown reasons, she collided with a semi-truck and trailer driving in the next lane.A multi-vehicle crash left a mother dead and her two children hospitalized in Pomona on Oct. 4, 2023. (KeyNews)A multi-vehicle crash left a mother dead and her two children hospitalized in Pomona on Oct. 4, 2023. (KeyNews)A multi-vehicle crash left a mother dead ...

Fleeing suspect causes violent crash; 3 in critical condition

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:56:03 GMT

SOUTH LOS ANGELES - An armed robbery suspect trying to escape arrest caused a collision that sent seven people, including three children, to the hospital Wednesday, authorities said.Three of the victims were in critical condition.The crash occurred just after 1 p.m. at Broadway and West 81st Street.According to Los Angeles Police, officers with LAPD's Community Safety Unit were trying to arrest a man on an armed robbery warrant when he sped away in a BMW."The officers were in proximity but not behind him," Lt. Kenneth Busiere told KTLA. “Their lights and sirens were not activated … The helicopter was overhead, and he may have been aware of the helicopter’s presence."The scene of a four-car crash in South L.A. that sent seven people to the hospital. Oct. 4, 2023. (Citizen)When the suspect reached the intersection of Broadway and West 81st, he slammed into a silver Hyundai Elantra carrying three adults and three children, Busiere said.Another vehicle was also damaged in the collision....