• Rick Warren: My Son Wasn’t Gay and I Don’t Blame God

  In his first interview since his son’s suicide in April, famed pastor Rick Warren told CNN that he knew his son, Matthew, had bought a gun, dismissed rumors that Matthew was gay and said he doesn’t blame God for the tragedy.

  

• Study: Holy Water Used in Catholic Mass Full of Bacteria Found in Fecal Matters

  Despite its purported cleansing properties, holy water could be more harmful than healing, according to a new Austrian study on "holy" springs.

  

• The Demise of Miley Cyrus, from Disney to the Most Recent Indecency

  Surely Hannah Montana was blushing as she watched Miley Cyrus perform at the recent MTV Video Music Awards. But how did Miley Cyrus go from a faithful Christian with a purity ring to her latest performance of “Wrecking Ball?”

  

• Being Poor Changes Your Thinking About Everything

  What’s the psychology of scarcity and poverty? Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much, by Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir, was recently released. Its authors study people for a living -- often people who lack money.

  

• China's President Xi Jinping Looks West, Bolsters Ties with Central Asian Countries

  Fresh from the Group of 20 summit meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, China's president referred to Kazakhstan as an increasingly important energy supplier for China and an anchor for its new “marching westwards” policy, which looks to quickly strengthen economic and strategic relations with Central Asia.