>> abernethy: welcome. i'm bob abernethy. it's good to have you with us. the clergy sex abuse scandal continues to roil the catholic church. new claims of abuse emerged across europe and elsewhere, as did allegations that known abusers were transferred between parishes. the vatican responded by urging bishops to report all accusations to civil authorities when the law requires it, but also again lashed out against what it called bias in the news coverage. at the same time, a top vatican official drew criticism for linking pedophilia to homosexuality. pope benedict xvi alluded to the crisis in a homily thursday. he said now that we are "under attack from the world, we realize that it's necessary to repent." the scandal will be the backdrop to benedict's weekend trip to malta, a predominantly catholic country, and next week, during observances of the fifth anversary of benedict's election and installation as pope. tariq ramadan, considered one of the most prominent scholars in the muslim world, made his first visit to the united states since the obama administration lifted a six-year-old ban against him. kim lawton reports. >> thank you so much for this invitation, six years later. >> reporter: in 2004, swiss scholar tariq ramadan had been hired to teach at notre dame when the bush administration banned him from the u.s., accusing him of giving money to a charity that funded terrorists. ramadan said the charity was not on any terrorist watch-lists at the time. he said the west has to stop considering all muslims a threat. >> the most important danger for our societies in the west is not the muslim presence, it is to nurture the fear of the other and to act against your own principles because you are scared. >> reporter: ramadan has criticized u.s. policies in iraq and afghanistan, but he is also critical of muslim interpretations of the koran that he says can lead to violence. the scholar praised president obama's pledge to improve relations with the islamic world, but said there hasn't been enough action. >> i think that the vision is here, i think that the will still also is here, and i think that now what we can do and what the muslim americans can do and their fellow citizens is to push into that direction, to make it... to say, okay, we heard those words, now what we want is for that to be implemented. >> reporter: he is still banned in six countries, including saudi arabia and egypt. i'm kim lawton in washington. >> abernethy: a federal judge in wisconsin has declared the national day of prayer unconstitutional. the judge ruled that the government should not try to influence anyone's decision on whether and when to pray. congress established the day in 1952 and, in 1988, set the first thursday in may as a time for presidents to ask americans to pray. since appeals are expected, the obama administration said it plans to honor the day, as usual, may 6. this coming monday, the supreme court hears arguments in a widely-watched case involving claims of religious discrimination. at issue is whether hastings college of the law of the university of california can deny taxpayer money to a student chapter of the christian legal society because that society insists that only those who adhere to its beliefs can be members. tim o'brien lays out the issues. >> reporter: the supreme court is asked to consider thousands of appeals every year. the justices end up taking about one in a hundred, usually difficult cases that divide the lower courts. but few cases present the head- on collision of constitutional principles and other precious values as the case of "christian legal society versus leo martinez." martinez is the dean and acting chancellor of the hastings college of the law in san francisco and the defendant in this case after his law school refused to give official recognition to the christian legal society, thereby denying it funding and any right of access to school facilities. headquartered at this office building outside washington, d.c., the christian legal society is a national network of lawyers who are guided by their christian faith. there are student chapters at law schools across the country. the chapter at hastings opens its meetings to all students, but members are asked to sign the christian legal society statement of faith: "trusting in jesus christ as my savior, i believe in one god, eternally existent in three persons-- father, son and holy spirit." if you don't sign the statement of faith, you cannot vote or hold office. members must also accept the society's sexual morality standards which state that any "sexually immoral lifestyle" is grounds for disqualification, including "all acts of sexual conduct outside of god's design for marriage between one man and one woman." that was enough for dean martinez to deny the christian legal society official law school recognition. >> we are a public institution. when we admit students, we tell them "we will admit you regardless of your beliefs, regardless of your race, regardless of whether you're striped or not." and i think part of our promise when they come here is that they are allowed to share in the full educational experience of hastings. and i think it's a terrible thing that we would have to do to say, "yes, we will admit you. oh, but by the way, there are certain groups where you're not welcome." and to the extent we're a public institution and we're using public money to fund our student groups, i think we simply can't do that. >> reporter: to martinez, it's a simple case of discrimination and the law school doesn't have to support it. >> this is not discrimination. this is about shared beliefs. >> reporter: attorney greg baylor says requiring the christian legal society to allow non-believers to vote and hold office strikes at the society's very identity, its core mission. >> it makes no sense for a public university to force the republicans to have a young democrat as their leader; it makes no sense for the environmentalists' group to be forced to have a lumberjack who's out there cutting down trees to be the messenger for it. the constitution is clear about this. it protects the rights of groups to come together to articulate their messages and to choose their messengers. >> reporter: california and especially san francisco, where the law school is located, has shown great tolerance of the gay and lesbian lifestyle. the city was among the nation's first to adopt an ordinance prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. for the christian legal society to deny membership to students who are gay not only violates the law school policy, it may also violate local law. >> this is discrimination based on sexual orientation. >> it's not discrimination based on sexual orientation. >> reporter: well, it is if those who are gay cannot join, and those who are not gay can join. that's discrimination. >> what christian legal society cares about is a person's belief in and commitment to its christian ideals. christians traditionally have believed that sexuality is reserved for the relationship of marriage between one man and one woman. it's not discriminatory. christian legal society allows all people to come in to participate in its meetings, to be there, to witness what happens. what we're talking about here is the ability of a group to preserve its message. and it doesn't make sense for a public university to say to a private student group, "you have to give up your christian faith in order to get the same privileges that other groups have." >> reporter: the teachings of the christian faith dominate the meetings. at this meeting at a law school in virginia, students brainstormed over whether their faith required them to adhere to a higher ethical standard than the profession itself requires. >> in addition to being lawyers, we're christians. and we have standards as christians we want to live up to. >> reporter: the signature activities of c.l.s. chapters are weekly bible studies, which, in addition to discussion of the text, usually include prayer and other forms of worship. would a student chapter of, say, b'nai br'th, a jewish anti- defamation league, have to admit muslims? >> the short answer is yes. >> reporter: a black student organization would have to admit white supremacists? >> it would. >> reporter: even if it means a black student organization is going to have to admit members of the ku klux klan? >> yes. >> reporter: you can see where that might cause some consternation? >> well, there's a spanish saying to the effect that "the thinnest of tortillas still has two sides," and the other side of that is that with any other regime, we would be forced, using public money, to subsidize the discriminatory practices of a particular group. >> reporter: this case reaches the supreme court at a time in the nation's history when our society and our law are much more supportive of inclusion than they are of exclusion. laws have sprung up in cities and states against discrimination that go far beyond anything the constitution might require. yet the first amendment also guarantees freedom of association, a fundamental right to gather with whomever we choose and collectively express ourselves. the danger in this case is that it may be impossible for the supreme court to reconcile this dispute without compromising one of those cherished principles. for "religion and ethics newsweekly," i'm tim o'brien at the supreme court. >> abernethy: meanwhile, in nebraska, a controversial new law. it is the first to ban abortions on the basis of fetal pain. most procedures would be banned after 20 weeks of pregnancy, although researchers are divided as to when fetuses feel pain. there would be an exception for extreme medical emergencies. abortion rights groups say that before the nebraska law takes effect in october, they will challenge its constitutionality. at a summit meeting in washington convened by president obama, leaders of 47 countries promised to take steps to stop the spread of nuclear materials and weapons. this followed agreement earlier by the u.s. and russia to cut back their deployed nuclear weapons by a third. many religious groups are active in support of nuclear arms reduction and eventual elimination, and we want to talk about that with richard cizik, president of the new evangelical partnership for the common good. richard, welcome. there are lots of new organizations around that are trying to call attention to the problem of nuclear weapons. why now? >> among other reasons, bob, not simply the outrage that this could happen-- that is, detonation of a nuclear device in an american city. that would be enough to motivate anybody, it would seem. but the younger evangelicals and others their age, they grew up post-cold war, after the fall of the berlin wall, and frankly after 9/11. they know terrorism, but they don't know nukes. but they are optimistic this can be done, the global zero movement. but it's educating a whole new generation that has to be done, who didn't grow up with it, hasn't acquiesced to it. >> abernethy: how representative do you think you are in this position of evangelicals in general? >> i think i'm very... i've changed my mind. i was part of the cold war, part of the evil empire speech by ronald reagan, who, by the way, advocated the virtual elimination of nuclear weapons. so i have changed my views on these subjects due to both the cold war and 9/11. but i think all evangelicals... >> abernethy: but there are evangelicals, aren't there, who don't agree with you? >> not everyone is there, but the younger evangelicals do. they know that this is real, and it's their lives. >> abernethy: for a long time, there's been the theory that we needed a deterrent because that was the only way to prevent attack against us. >> mutually assured destruction was the nuclear paradigm. >> abernethy: yes, yes. well, don't we still need a deterrent? >> well, yes, we do, but that's not prohibitive of us virtually eliminating over time in a gradual process. we're not for unilateral disarmament. none of us are. but we do know that the longer this goes on, the possession of these weapons without a lock-wm down, without reducing, the chances of a detonation in an american city go up. >> abernethy: from terrorism. >> from terrorism. >> abernethy: now what can nuclear weapons do about terrorism? where does that fit together? >> well, frankly, we're talking about reducing strategic weapons in this start treaty, but there's also the lock-down of nuclear materials and the rest. that's what has to happen, and frankly, terrorists can get these weapons through nuclear materials from russia and elsewhere. and we know it's going to happen. the question is, can we stop it? >> abernethy: yeah, well, that's my question. what is your recommendation about how to prevent that? >> what most policy analysts in this town aren't doing is talking about engaging with religious groups internationally-- muslim leaders where i'm going to morocco this week to do just that-- for peace-making purposes. in other words, engaging with religious actors and communities is what's absolutely necessary. in american foreign policy, that has never been done, and it has to be to stop this from happening. >> abernethy: the senate probably will be taking up the start treaty. >> 67 votes are needed. >> abernethy: 67 votes are needed. >> eight republicans. >> abernethy: can you predict how that's going to happen? >> well, i can say this: if younger evangelicals who are disproportionately conservative, yes, get engaged on this issue, they'll change those republicans who are resistant. now some of this opposition is simply loo-loo, you know, looney tunes, the kind of talk that "we need peace through strength." now look it, strength is doing this: global zero. that is real strength. >> abernethy: richard cizik of the new evangelical partnership, many thanks. >> thank you. >> abernethy: former president jimmy carter was in sudan this week to monitor that country's first election in more than 20 years. carter is well known in sudan because of his campaign there and elsewhere for two decades to eradicate the terrible guinea worm disease. now, at age 85, carter is on the verge of seeing the complete success of his fight. fred de sam lazaro caught up with carter in sudan and talked with him about his unique method of foreign aid: bypassing governments to get help directly to those in need, adapting hard science to local culture and no condescension. >> reporter: the trademark smile is undiminished by the years or by a long, punishing journey to this remote village in southern sudan, a grateful community, said the area's anglican bishop. >> i want to thank you for having been courageous to come and bear with us all the suffering of our people. >> reporter: jimmy carter is in the final stretch of a global campaign he's led to eradicate a tropical disease called guinea worm. >> the bishop has described the travels of the chosen people out of slavery in egypt and into the promised land, and the fact that they prayed and worked hard and had faith and god gave them water. >> reporter: similarly, the former president said, the world will soon be delivered from a scourge that dates back to biblical times. his methods and approach have been praised as an effective model for how to tackle entrenched poverty and disease. >> we've been working on it now for more than 20 years. we've reduced the incidence from more than 2.5 million cases down to about 2,500 cases in the whole world. and the last major holdout will be here in southern sudan. >> reporter: in war-torn southern sudan, clean water is a rarity for many people. and of all the diseases from unsafe water, few are more disabling than guinea worm. worm larvae enter the body and grow up to three feet, crippling the human host. the only cure is to slowly, painfully extract the parasite as it emerges through skin blisters. to relieve the burning pain, patients dip these blisters in water-- typically open ponds-- and that's when the worm spreads new larvae, and that starts the whole cycle again. >> there's no question about it, that we'll be free of this plague throughout southern sudan if the people remain to have their faith and also work hard to make sure that no one with guinea worm ever goes into a pond where you get water from the pond. it's very important that you not let them go into a source of drinking water because they spread the disease from themselves to many others. >> reporter: the atlanta-based carter center has trained thousands of field workers and volunteers. they've taught how guinea worm is spread and distributed simple tools to prevent it: a personal filter used like a drinking straw or a treated cloth, which can keep the parasite out of water people gather from ponds. today, field workers like simon taban are tracking down some of the last cases, trying to protect ponds to contain the spread of the larvae and break the transmission of the worm. how has this campaign succeeded unlike so many aid projects in the developing world? the epidemiologist in charge pays much credit to jimmy carter. he's motivated by faith but does not proselytize. he's opened doors and raised some $225 million for the cause. most critical, the carter center approach is not prescriptive or top-down, but respectful and collaborative, says dr. don hopkins. >> people are very, very astute at picking up condescension, and unfortunately there's a lot of that, especially with westerners coming into the countries. and i think you have to approach people with the idea that "we're here to help you and, no, we don't have all the answers. you know your own community far better than we ever will, but here's this information, use it to help yourself get rid of this disease." >> reporter: as one example, former president carter says they've used local religious beliefs to reinforce what science calls for. for instance, some communities didn't like the idea of spraying ponds with chemicals to kill the guinea worm larvae. >> in fact, their ponds of water were looked upon as sacred. if that particular rain-filled pond hadn't been there, they wouldn't have existed. they wouldn't be alive. of course, we said that the pond was in fact sacred, but there was a curse on that pond. and if they would just help us remove those guinea worm eggs from their pond or from the drink of water that they took out of that pond, then that curse could be removed from their pond and their village forever. so we had, you might say, a not only philosophical but also a theological explanation to make. >> reporter: they've also had to deal with the political realities, and here, dr. hopkins says having a former head of state personally involved helped smooth out many complications. >> he's always willing and available to call, to write, physically meet with heads of state. the protocol really doesn't allow him to write directly to a minister of health. i can write to a minister of health, but when he comes in at that level, it helps enormously. he's also been very helpful in having that same kind of approach to leaders of international agencies, the w.h.o., unicef, various donor agencies as well. >> we have to recognize and acknowledge that corruption exists in many parts of the world still-- not just in africa but in many countries, even some developed countries as well. >> reporter: the former president said the carter center works directly at the local level to treat people and to break the transmission of guinea worm, bypassing governments plagued by corruption without offending them. >> some of the ministers of health in african countries, for instance, obtain their positions as a minister just because they were heroic fighters in winning freedom from the colonial powers in europe. so we honor them, but we don't ever derogate or condemn them, even when we know corruption exists. and we don't let them impede the carter center's policy of going directly into the jungles and into the desert areas, directly to the villages where we know the infliction needs to be eradicated. >> reporter: he says his work in public health, focusing on guinea worm and other neglected tropical diseases, was inspired by his late mother, lillian carter, about whom he wrote one of his 11 books. lillian carter worked with leprosy patients in india long after what many would consider retirement age. >> she epitomized, in my opinion, what a human being ought to be. she was in india when she was 70 years old. she was looked upon then as an untouchable, because she dealt with blood and human feces and so forth. but that was transforming experience in her life, even at that age. >> reporter: jimmy carter is now 85, and he may well live to see the eradication of a disease from the planet for the first time since small pox was eliminated in the early 1970s. for "religion and ethics newsweekly," this is fred de sam lazaro in juba, southern sudan. >> abernethy: civil rights leader and baptist pastor benjamin hooks has died. he was 85 years old. well known for his stirring oratory, hooks led the n.a.a.c.p. for 16 years. when he stepped down in 1992, he told members "i have fought the good fight, i have kept the faith." in turin, italy, crowds lined up to see the shroud of turin, on public display for the first time in ten years. the linen shroud is believed by many to have been jesus' burial cloth. it has an image that many see as the face of christ, though others have dismissed it as a fake. 1.5 million people have already reserved tickets to view the shroud in its bulletproof, climate-controlled case. pope benedict will be among them next month. on our calendar this week, beginning wednesday, the baha'i feast of risvahn. the 12-day holiday commemorates the prophet baha'u'llah's announcement in 1863 that he was the new messenger of god. that's our program for now. i'm bob abernethy. we'd like to hear from you. you can follow us on our facebook page. we also have much more on our web site, including more from muslim scholar tariq ramadan. you can comment on all of our stories and share them. audio and video podcasts are also available. join us at www.pbs.org. captioning sponsored by the lilly endowment captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org [orchestral fanfare]