Indiana

Around 200 students at a Christian university in Indiana are spending four days this week living in a cardboard village to experience and highlight the plight of the world’s homeless population.

Since Monday and until this Thursday, the scores of Taylor University students will be abstaining from technology and showers while wearing the same clothes and living on a diet of rice and beans, according to Dr. Michael Jessup, a sociology professor at the Upland, Ind., institution.

“To truly understand poverty, social injustice, and oppression is wisdom, and provides a window into the heart of God,” explained Jessup ahead of this week’s Social Justice Week ‘09. more >>

Hundreds of people on Sunday turned up for the first public demonstration protesting President Obama's invitation to speak at the University of Notre Dame commencement ceremony.

A mixed crowd of 400 students, alumni and pro-life supporters gathered in front of the campus' administration building after Palm Sunday Mass to rally against the speech.

The prayer rally was organized by Notre Dame Response, a coalition of student groups that formed in response to the university's decision to invite Obama as the commencement speaker and award him a honorary doctor of laws degree at the May 17 event. The White House formally accepted the invitation last month. more >>

With the backing of outraged pro-life Catholics, a coalition of student groups at the University of Notre Dame will hold a prayer rally on Palm Sunday to protest the school's invitation to President Barack Obama to be the commencement speaker and to receive an honorary doctor of laws degree.

The coalition of a dozen on-campus student groups, Notre Dame Response, plans to hold a public demonstration in front of the campus’ main building beginning at 2 p.m. The students have invited pro-life attorney Harold Cassidy, who will argue how abortion violates the rights, interests and health of women.

Organizers behind the rally are demanding the university withdraw its invitation to the president, who agreed last month to speak at the commencement on May 17. They say Obama should not be honored by the Catholic institution when his decisions have shown disregard for Catholic teachings on the sanctity and dignity of all human life. more >>

ELKHART, Ind. – Roughly 1,600 familes picked up food and other items sent by a charity to economically distressed Elkhart, Ind., which has an unemployment rate of 18.3 percent.

The 13 semitrailers that came to Elkhart carried more than $2.1 million worth of food, enough to help sustain about 5,200 families for a week. In addition to those who picked up supplies Tuesday, Feed the Children arranged for shipments to 3,600 northern Indiana families.

President Barack Obama visited Elkhart recently to muster public support for economic stimulus legislation. Layoffs in the recreational vehicle industry have driven much of the job loss in northern Indiana. more >>

"I know my responsibility. I hate it, but I know it. Yesterday I did one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. I eliminated the jobs of several friends," lamented Pastor Mark Beeson. "I cried. I hated every minute of it."

The recession at Granger Community Church in Indiana began in early 2007. As the local community was hit hard by one of the highest unemployment rates, the megachurch had to reluctantly record its first unemployed numbers.

Eight of about 60 staff members were laid off from Granger late January. It was the only time in the church's 22-year history that people were let go, according to Tim Stevens, executive pastor at Granger Community Church. more >>

Three Presbyterian churches in Indiana have been granted dismissal from their denomination this week.

Citing concerns over the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)'s liberal direction, the three churches will be leaving to join the smaller and more conservative Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

For Covenant Presbyterian Church in West Lafayette, Ind., their dismissal was granted on Tuesday by the Wabash Valley Presbytery – a regional governing body in the PC(USA). The presbytery voted 115 to 2 in favor of dismissal. more >>