Pope’s death, his successor top stories

Religion writers deemed Pope John Paul II’s death and the naming of his successor, Pope Benedict XVI, the top two religion stories of 2005.

An end-of-life dispute, faith-based disaster relief and the ordination of gay clergy also made the list released by the Religion Newswriters Association.

One hundred of its journalist members ranked 28 religious events in an online survey Dec. 7-12.

Terri Schiavo captured the No. 3 spot in the poll. Her death in a Florida hospice center after her feeding tube was removed under court order sparked heated debates in Congress and among religious groups.

Faith-based organizations’ massive mobilization to help victims of natural disasters was voted the No. 4 news story of the year. The ordination of gay clergy continued to roil mainline Protestant groups, making it the No. 5 story.

Other ranked stories included the debate over intelligent design as an alternative theory to evolution; faith-based groups’ response to Supreme Court nominees; megachurch pastor Rick Warren’s book sales and AIDS relief work; and the Rev. Billy Graham’s farewell evangelism tour in New York City.

A complete list of the top 20 stories can be found at www.rna.org.