In every era, there are athletes who transcend athletics, rising above the level of mere entertainment to express something essential about the national mood, to answer a need in the collective psyche. In the 1920s, Babe Ruth personified America’s explosive new power on the world stage. The comeuppance that Jesse Owens administered to Nazism at the Berlin Olympics cheered a nation deep in the Great Depression. Muhammad Ali encapsulated the volatile 1960s.

A beleaguered, balkanized and self-doubting America needs a different kind of signature athlete, a different kind of hero. And we might have found him.

Last week, he did the same thing to the New York Jets and in front of the New York media that he did the week before to the Kansas City Chiefs, and for years while winning a national championship and Heisman Trophy at Florida.

Last week, America got Tebowed.

Tim Tebow is unpredictable and improbable — symbolizing the triumph of will over skill. read more »

The recent cover of the French edition of Vogue magazine caused considerable controversy, and it was not because of the all too typical, female model featured in a sensual pose. Instead, it was the fact that the model this time was a 10-year-old girl.

The headline of an article appearing on JewishJournal.com announced that, "Vogue Blurs the Line between Fashion & Pedophilia with 10 Year Old Model," and the article's author, Ilana Angel, rightly noted that, "A 10 year old is not able to distinguish between playing dress up in mommy's make-up and high heels, and proving a sexual aid to pedophiles." How true!

But this is only one, extreme example of the way our kids are being sexualized. How many children watch MTV and VH1, mimicking the moves and memorizing the lyrics of the latest song by Britney Spears or Lady Gaga, having no clue that the moves they are making and the words they are mouthing are sexually charged? read more »

A new report by the International Planned Parenthood Federation is advocating that children as young as 10 be given extensive sex education, including an awareness of sex's pleasures.

The report, "Stand and Deliver," charges that religious groups, specifically Catholics and Muslims, deny their young access to comprehensive sexual programs and education.

"Young people's sexuality is still contentious for many religious institutions. Fundamentalist and other religious groups — the Catholic Church and madrasas (Islamic Schools) for example — have imposed tremendous barriers that prevent young people, particularly, from obtaining information and services related to sex and reproduction. read more »

Two girls are suing their high school in Indiana over punishment they received for posting suggestive photos of themselves on MySpace during summer vacation.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed the suit claiming the school violated the girls' free-speech rights. Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel and dean of Liberty University's law school, says the ACLU has gotten it wrong. He contends that if the school sets certain standards for behavior, they can enforce them. As a result of this stance, the students might pay a price in more than one way...

GENEVA — The United States has asked Switzerland to hand over Roman Polanski to authorities in California, where he is wanted for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl, Swiss authorities said Friday.

The Justice Ministry said in a statement that Washington filed its formal extradition request late Thursday. The 76-year-old filmmaker has been in Swiss custody since his arrest Sept. 26 as he arrived in Zurich to attend a film festival.

The request has been forwarded to Zurich authorities, who will hold a hearing on an unspecified date to decide whether Polanski should be sent back to Los Angeles...

A noted entertainment critic and author says Christians are making a difference when it comes to the availability of family-friendly movies.

Ted Baehr is president of MovieGuide, a magazine and Internet site offering in-depth reviews of movies from a biblical perspective. Baehr says the box-office success of recent movies such as Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and The Passion of the Christ have shown Hollywood executives there is a market for movies with a biblical worldview.

"The studios are fighting over [getting those] movies now -- and I get sent [release information about] one every couple of weeks," he shares. "It's fun getting other people's notices of the movies they brought out"...

If you tuned in to the soap "One Life to Live" this week, you may have noticed there's been a change of character. One character in particular.

Actress Patricia Mauceri says she was fired and abruptly replaced for objecting to a gay storyline because of her religious beliefs.

Mauceri played the recurring role of Carlotta Vega on "OLTL" for the last 14 years. But when she objected to how the writers wanted her deeply religious character, a Latina mother, to handle a storyline involving homosexuality, she objected. And for that she claims she was fired...

A well-known entertainment critic says vigilance from Christians has resulted in more family-friendly movies coming out of Hollywood.

Ted Baehr is founder of MovieGuide and chairman of the Christian Film & Television Commission. For more than 20 years, he has reviewed theatrical releases from a Christian perspective. He says while Hollywood still produces movies that are unsuitable for Christians, moviemakers are discovering a large market for films with a biblical message or theme...

Christians in Illinois are upset over an atheist sign being placed next to a nativity scene at the state capitol.

Illinois made history this year by permitting a private group to put a nativity scene at the state capitol. However, the state granted permission to the Freedom From Religion Foundation to display a sign next to it that reads: "Our message at this season of the winter solstice is may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds"...

Washington's governor has put a moratorium on new holiday displays, after an atheist sign placed next to a nativity scene sparked a controversy.

Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, believes people have a right to be dismayed.

"The governor of the state of Washington has really made a mockery out of this situation in the State Capitol. At one time we had a nativity scene with a 25-foot-tall spruce Christmas tree and a menorah," he notes. "And then she allowed this Freedom From Religion Foundation plaque that denigrated the existence of God -- [it] said that there is no god, no angels, no heaven, nor any hell"...