RELIGION

Shirtless men clad in red sweatpants have been lining up for days in Singapore's prime shopping district, part of an advertising gimmick revealing not just muscle but also a gradual unpeeling of the city state's puritanical ways.

Controversial radio shock jock Howard Stern will be the new judge on TV show America's Got Talent, NBC said on Thursday, and will also continue to host his daily radio program for SiriusXM.

As New Year's Eve 2011 approaches, one haunting thought comes to many minds - December 21, 2012. On this date, the Maya calendar comes to a halt; and many are predicting it will be the end of days.

Indonesian police have detained 65 young men and women, from different areas in Aceh Besar, of the country's Banda Aceh province, and shaved their heads because they apparently posed a threat to Islamic values; these youngsters reportedly attended a punk rock concert on Sunday.

Voters in Egypt went to the polls Wednesday to vote in the second round of parliamentary elections.

Hasidic reggae icon Matisyahu has kicked up a furor in the Jewish world. Why? Because he shaved off his beard.

"We don't call it the 'God particle', it's just the media that do that," a senior U.S. scientist politely told an interviewer on a major European radio station on Tuesday.

A woman in Saudi Arabia was convicted, and beheaded this week, becoming the second in Saudi Arabia to suffer execution for practicing witchcraft and sorcery this year.

A Saudi woman, Amina bint Abdulhalim Nassar, was beheaded Monday after national security convicted her of practicing witchcraft and sorcery.

Unknown arsonists set an unused mosque in Jerusalem ablaze and sprayed anti-Arab graffiti on its walls early on Wednesday morning, provoking Muslim sentiments and prompting the government to take action.

Matisyahu, the renowned Hasidic Jewish reggae star, altered his religious image on Tuesday after he posted photos of himself on Twitter with a shaved beard.

In a letter sent to the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said lawmakers have a moral obligation to ensure unemployed Americans and their families are able to support themselves in an economy that has not been conductive to job growth.

Musician Matisyahu has shaved his facial hair in a shocking departure from Hasidic Jewish traditions.

The 1 for All campaign is promoting FreeToTweet campaign on December 15, a project that urges young Americans to understand, appreciate and protect the freedoms of the First Amendment.

The woman, said to be in her 60s, became the second to be executed in Saudi Arabia for practicing witchcraft this year. The BBC reports that a Sudanese man was executed in September for witchcraft.

In a move likely to increase tension with Canada's Muslim minority, the government said on Monday it would bar all women wearing face coverings from taking part in citizenship ceremonies.

Amnesty said it believes hundreds of other prisoners are languishing in death row in the kingdom.

The nine best and one worst Don't Think Twice by Bob Dylan covers, including Ke$ha, Johnny Cash, John Mayer and more.

President Barack Obama struck a pious tone on Sunday at a Christmas concert featuring teen pop star Justin Bieber and other singers that the president attended with his wife and daughters.

Rick Perry says he hasn't memorized the names of the nine Supreme Court justices, and if voters want a robot who can spit out that kind of information, they should look elsewhere. He struggled to remember the name of Justice Sonia Sotomayor, eventually coming up with Montemayor.

An estimated 40 Occupy Boston protesters were arrested by police at their former campsite early Saturday. Those arrested had ignored an advisory to vacate the premises by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino.