MÃœNSTER, Germany -- Muhammad Sven Kalisch, a Muslim convert and Germany's first professor of Islamic theology, fasts during the Muslim holy month, doesn't like to shake hands with Muslim women and has spent years studying Islamic scripture. Islam, he says, guides his life. So it came as something of a surprise when Prof. Kalisch announced the fruit of his theological research. His conclusion: The Prophet Muhammad probably never existed. Muslims, not surprisingly, are outraged. Even Danish

A team of Princeton University scientists has discovered that chains of proteins found in most living organisms act like adaptive machines, possessing the ability to control their own evolution. The research, which appears to offer evidence of a hidden mechanism guiding the way biological organisms respond to the forces of natural selection, provides a new perspective on evolution, the scientists said. The researchers -- Raj Chakrabarti, Herschel Rabitz, Stacey Springs and George McLendon

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The US Supreme Court Wednesday took up the issue of freedom of speech and religion in a case in which a small sect wants to place its own monument alongside one of the Ten Commandments in a public park in Utah. The sect, called Summum, filed a lawsuit against the small city of Pleasant Grove for rejecting their monument while allowing the Ten Commandments erected in 1971 by the Fraternal Order of Eagles because it had a historic value. Summum sued the city for violating thei

UNITED NATIONS, New York: Saudi Arabia, which deploys a special police force to ensure that only one narrow sect of Islam predominates in the kingdom, is sponsoring a discussion at the United Nations on religious tolerance starting Wednesday. More than a dozen world leaders are expected to attend, including President George W. Bush, Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Britain and the Saudi monarch, King Abdullah, making a rare appearance at the UN headquarters. Officially, the United Nations do

Israeli police have had to restore order at one of Christianity's holiest sites after a mass brawl broke out between monks in Jerusalem's Old City. Fighting erupted between Greek Orthodox and Armenian monks at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of Christ's crucifixion. Two monks from each side were detained as dozens of worshippers traded kicks and punches at the shrine, said police. Trouble flared as Armenians prepared to mark the annual Feast of the Cross. Tapes