Wisconsin

The 9th Annual Lifest Festival is kicking off today, bringing together over 150 of top names in Christian music and comedy.

Held yearly at the Sunnyview Fairgrounds in Oshkosh, Wis., and running until Sunday, the event has organizers excited as they look forward to encouraging attendants to celebrate their faith while building a relationship with God.

This year’s theme, “This is your festival,” emphasizes how the five-day festival can reach out to people of all ages. more >>

A Wisconsin church displayed a set of paintings this past Sunday which were initially described as being “too controversial” by a local hospital.

The series, titled “Rabbi Jesus,” was painted by a Jewish artist, Clara Maria Goldstein, and displayed in English Lutheran Church in La Crosse, Wis., as a way to show the common heritage that both Jews and Christians share.

The Rev. Mark Solyst, pastor of English Lutheran, welcomed the artwork and questioned why there had been so much debate over the theme in the first place. more >>

After facing de-recognition at a major university, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship has been granted full benefits of official recognition while the campus ministry’s lawsuit against the school is pending.

The University of Wisconsin-Superior agreed to a stipulated injunction, allowing the campus ministry to operate on campus as the lawsuit moves forward. InterVarsity had filed suit in October to be reinstated as a campus organization.

“The university was giving InterVarsity second-class treatment on campus,” said Alliance Defense Fund Senior Legal Counsel David French, director of ADF’s Center for Academic Freedom, which is representing the ministry chapter in this case. “This stipulated injunction will allow the InterVarsity chapter to enjoy the same benefits and privileges of all other groups while the court considers the case.” more >>

MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Sex education teachers must present abstinence as the preferred behavior for unmarried people under a bill signed Tuesday by Gov. Jim Doyle.

The legislation means teachers must emphasize that refraining from sex before marriage is the most effective way to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. A spokesman for the governor, a Democrat, said most Wisconsin school districts already take that approach.

"The governor thinks that abstinence should be an important part of the message that kids hear from adults as part of their classes," spokesman Dan Leistikow said. more >>