Reverend Franklin Graham, isn't convinced that President Obama is a Christian, and this morning on MSNBC alluded to the delicious possibility that he is a secret Muslim: “I can’t say categorically [that Obama doesn't practice Islam] because Islam has gotten a free pass under Obama." But if Graham really wanted to know if Obama is a Christian, he could have just asked his father, the Rev. Billy Graham, who prayed with the president in 2010 at his private residence in North Carolina. more ›

Valentine's Day is a garish, corporate shill designed to trick you into substituting commerce for Love, but don't take our word for it: it also just happens to be the Word of God. We picked out a few religious takes on the holiday that have us pondering conversion. Hear that, deities? We'll accept cash, anatomically correct chocolate hearts, and massage hula-hoops for our soul. more ›

Members of Occupy Faith, "a small group of Christians, brought together by our time living at Occupy Wall Street," is asking Brookfield Properties to allow then to host a 24-hour prayer vigil in Zuccotti Park on Christmas Eve. With the assistance of the NYCLU, the group has drafted a letter to city [pdf] officials and Bookfield, detailing the ceremony that will begin "with a midnight service on Christmas Eve and culminate with a closing ceremony at midnight on Christmas Day." Additionally, the vigil calls for Occupy Faith to "bring into the park food for meals as well as bread and sacramental wine for communion," as well as the requisite instruments. more ›

Every year, decent, red-blooded Americans attempt to celebrate the humble holiday of the birth of their savior. And every year, more and more government bureaucrats paper over Baby Jesus because of some antiquated "separation of church and state" policy. At least the Rockefeller Christmas Tree-Corpse is still a Christmas tree. But the same can't be said of Rhode Island's "Holiday tree," which Governor Lincoln Chafee lit up last night. "He's trying to put our religion down, one man told the AP. "It's a Christmas tree. It always has been and it always will be, no matter what that buffoon says it is." more ›

Remember when soda was a nickel and you could just pray whenever you danged well felt like it? Most of the GOP 2012 presidential candidates do, and from the looks of last night's "debate" sponsored by the ultra-conservative Christian organization the Family Leader, they'd sure like to take us back to that magical time. Held in a church in Des Moines, the event was billed as a "Thanksgiving table forum," which makes sense if all your family talks about at Thanksgiving is same-sex marriage and abortion. more ›

Even if you're not an evangelical Christian fundamentalist, you're probably familiar with the 58 Commandments. Standard stuff: Thou Shalt Not Kill, Thou Shalt Not Drink Alcohol in Public, Thou Shalt Not Support Homosexuality, etc. etc. It's not enough for employees at Georgia's Shorter University to place their faith in these tenets, so the school wants them to put it in writing, requiring them to sign a "Personal Lifestyle Statement" that forces them to pledge loyalty to the school, refrain from having a glass of wine at Applebees and "reject…premarital sex, adultery, and homosexuality," or be fired. Because nothing strengthens the sacred bond between one's God and one's soul like a legally binding document. more ›

This weekend, the who's who of people who think it's their business to tell you how to live your life are meeting in DC for the Value Voters Summit. Somehow, it makes CPAC look like Bonnaroo ("Don't take the brown Werther's, man") but the meeting received a jolt when Robert Jeffress, a Baptist pastor who backs Rick Perry, called Mormonism a "cult." When Politico asked Jeffress if he thought Mitt Romney was a Christian, he replied "No," and said, "Every true, born again follower of Christ ought to embrace a Christian over a non-Christian." OOH Savior fight! Savior fight! So it was Romney's time to shine: “The blessings of faith carry the responsibility of civil and respectful debate. The task before us is to focus on the conservative beliefs and the values that unite us—let no agenda, narrow our vision or drive us apart.” more ›

Local atheists say they're considering suing the city over a new street sign in Red Hook that honors firefighters who died on 9/11. The change was made after winning approval from Community Board 6 and the City Council, and at a ceremony last month, part of Richards Street was renamed "Seven in Heaven Way"—atheists be damned. At the time, a spokesperson for City Councilmember Sara González told us, "There are any number of streets named after religious figures, like Sister Mary Franciscus Way [in Sunset Park]? Should we not honor these people because the community chooses to call them the Seven in Heaven?" But it looks like the city is messing with the wrong atheists, and may have to fend off a lawsuit from these heathens! more ›

A science teacher at a Sunset Park public school has been reprimanded for selling junior high school students copies of a controversial book about the devil, according to the Daily News. Steven Arizmendi is accused of hawking the evangelical Christian book "He Came to Set the Captives Free" to four of his students at JHS 220 for $5 apiece, and loaning the text to eight other students. more ›

Oh, Catholic League - it isn't even Halloween and you're getting ready for Christmas already! The Sun reports that the Catholic League sent a letter to Schools Chancellor Joel Klein questioning why nativity scenes cannot be displayed in schools. more ›

Can someone's religion shield her from charges for smuggling bushmeat into the United States? The NY Sun has a fascinating article about the case of a woman who is facing criminal prosecution for bringing "steaks of monkey meat" from Guinea to NYC. The Scopes Monkey Trial, this is not, but Milbank, Tweed Hadley & McCloy is representing Mamie Manneh on a pro bono basis. more ›

When the son of famed televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Jay Bakker, made the decision to be a “gay affirming” pastor, his life was almost ruined for the second time. Financial backers dropped him, he had to let go of some of his staff, and churches he was scheduled to speak at pulled out. more ›

A six-foot tall chocolate sculpture of Jesus which will be displayed at a Midtown hotel next week is stirring up controversy. Catholics are calling Cosimo Cavallaro's "My Sweet Lord" an "all-out war on Christianity." more ›

The Pentagon released a transcript where Khalid Shaikh Mohammed has confesses to planning the September 11 attacks, as well as other terror attacks, during a tribunal hearing. The NY Times notes that the hearing "also summarized some of the evidence the Pentagon says supports the designation of Mr. Mohammed as an enemy combatant." Mohammed has been in U.S. custody since his capture in 2003. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: A large fight in the Bronx, an unusual MVA in Manhattan and a "Jet Blue aircraft disturbance" at LaGuardia - Gate B5
• Promises from the Department of Transportation mean nothing, even after two children die
• Activists want tax-paying immigrants to have the right to vote; immigrants did vote in national elections between 1776 and 1926

Last month, Jason Kidd filed for divorce from his wife, Joumana, citing extreme cruelty. The Nets point guard claimed his wife kicked and punched him, as well as put tracking devices on his cars and computers, not to mention taunted him during games. The Kidds' relationship had its patches and other allegations of spousal abuse - back in 2001, Joumana Kidd had some called 911 while Kidd played for the Phoenix Suns (she said he had punched her in the face because she didn't want him eating their son's French fries). more ›

A traditional french dessert served during the holidays, Gothamist gets excited about these each year. They come in every kind of flavor combination: chocolate/coffee, chocolate/caramel, lemon, raspberry, there are even ice-cream-cake versions. They're usually made with a sponge cake, layered with flavored buttercream or other filling, rolled up and then covered with more buttercream and decorated with powdered sugar, fondant leaves or mushrooms, or other decorations. Intended to look like a log ready for the fire, they're eaten on Christmas day. more ›

Premiering tonight on the Sundance Channel is a six part reality series about a tattooed, pierced alterna-preacher Jay Bakker, called . As the only son of TV evangelical preachers Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Jay had a pretty troubled childhood what with the scandals over Jim's illicit affair and accounting fraud, the Bakkers subsequent divorce and Jay's descent into substance abuse. However, now Jay has his life more on track with a marriage and a commitment to running his church, Revolution which holds its non-denominational services in a bar. The series follows Jay's attempts to reconnect with his estranged father, care for his mother who's battling cancer and move Revolution from Atlanta to Williamsburg, Brooklyn when his wife gets into grad school. more ›

THEATER: Pot-au-Noir (The Black Hole) is a retelling of the story of Cain & Abel "through the lens of the Great American Myth -- combining images of Hollywood Film Noir, the Gold Rush, the Dust Bowl, and Manifest Destiny with a story that is at the core of Judaism, Christianity and Islam and, therefore, America." Jake Hooker’s new production promises lyrical text, contemporary dance and live music to tell a story of lies, deceit, jealousy, lust, revenge and, finally, murder. - John Del Signore more ›

Michelle Goldberg, Brooklyn resident and senior political reporter for Salon.com, recently published her first book, Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism, a detailed examination of the rise of Christian Nationalism. Her research took her outside the largely secular NYC, and even further afield from the liberal ideology of which New Yorkers have grown so accustomed. In her book, Goldberg details the actions and intentions of the Christian right and presents a clear picture of politics under an evangelical president. more ›

Cathlin Baker, Ordained Minister & Special Asst. to President, UTS more ›

There's a really cute picture in the New York Times of little kids dressed up as the Bible action hero, Bibleman. Bibleman has been in Flushing Meadows Park, on hand for the Billy Graham revival (which saw Bill and Hillary Clinton last night), is fascinating to Gothamist because who knew Christians would think men wearing tights would be okay. That, and the "Jew-y villains" that WFMU's blog pointed out. For instance, here's WFMU's description of one villain: "The Fibbler - A Jewish Gene Wilder / Burgess Meredith kind of villain who clouds the minds of young people and gets them started down the path of evil secular humanism by encouraging white lies and equivocation." Check out the Times to see more quotes like this prayer that the man playing Bibleman yesterday gave the children, "Dear Jesus, I think you're really cool, and I want you to be my best friend. So I admit that I have sinned, and I ask you to forgive my sins." See, that's why kids love Christianity - being forgiven of everything bad they do! more ›

EVENT/MUSIC: It's Children's Day at South Street Seaport this Saturday. With Gordon from Sesame Street, The School House Rock Stage Show and They Might Be Giants! Wait...AND fireworks! [via FreeNYC] more ›

Admittedly, Gothamist has Easter bunnies on the brain. But when we glanced at the Special Op-Ed Report on the NY Times homepage, we couldn't help but wonder if an Easter story would accompany the caption "An International Basket Case." Alas, it's a story about the troubles in Zimbabwe (the interactive report starts "Africa is a mess...") and where Christianity is on the rise. more ›

Gothamist turned 1 this week. And the week in full more ›