Religion Briefs: Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Religion Briefs: Wednesday, March 26, 2008

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Published: March 26, 2008

Water world

WASHINGTON — World Vision, Islamic Relief and Catholic Relief Services are among several faith-based groups supporting the new U.S. WASH-in-Schools Initiative, which aims to bring clean water to Third World schools.

About 1 billion people living in underdeveloped countries are dying from preventable illnesses related to poor water quality, humanitarian groups said.

Advocates chose water for schools as the best way to approach a crisis that affects entire communities. The goal of the WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) program is to provide fresh water to schools so children spend their day in a classroom learning rather than hauling water.

American schools are getting involved through H2O for Life, a program that pairs a school in the United States with one in the developing world. Public schools, however, cannot support an overseas religious school under the program.

"We have to be cautious of that just because of the church and state separation,” said Patti Hall, president of H2O for Life.

Single dedication

•"Holding Her Head High: 12 Single Mothers Who Championed Their Children and Changed History” by Janine Turner(Thomas Nelson, $22.99).

Actress Janine Turner skillfully documents how 12 women demonstated strength, dedication and commitment with a robust vision of moving ahead.

Turner, also a single mother, scoured thousands of historical documents to unearth proof of the effect these single mothers had.

Band debut

•"Hello” by After Edmund (Slanted Records).

Produced by Scotty Wilbanks (DecembeRadio, Third Day), After Edmund's debut album, "Hello,” has a wonderfully original and surprisingly mature sound.

Each musician's diverse background forms a modern indie rock sound with British rock influences, which fans of bands such as Muse will appreciate.

The disc includes a good balance of upbeat, driving songs and mellow, more laid-back ballads. The lyrics vary from worshipful to introspective, fit for a broad range of listeners. Expect to hear more about this new band from Georgia in the near future; the group brings a refreshingly unusual sound to Christian music.

— David Harder

From Staff and Wire Reports

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