Sikh pupils should be allowed to carry ceremonial daggers, Britain’s first Asian judge has said, following a case in which a 14-year-old was excluded for insisting on bringing his Kirpan blade to school. Telegraph reports here>

Ringo Starr, the Beatles’ drummer, has admitted he has “found God” after taking what he described as a winding life of enlightenment. From the Telegraph here>

The Church of England is poised to give greater recognition to homosexual clergy in relationships. Telegraph reports here>

“We are not Muslim bashing, but this is incompatible with Britain’s values of freedom and democracy.”

The UK Independence Party is considering a call to ban the wearing of burkas, it has been reported. From the Telegraph here>

The Hindu festival of of Makar Sankranti is celebrated across India as the end of winter and the beginning of the harvest season. More>

At a meditation retreat, I learned to watch myself. But would it be more effective if the aim wasn’t my own wellbeing?

Mark Vernon writes for the Guardian here>

The Pope will visit Italy’s most important synagogue on Sunday in an attempt to mend strained relations with the Jewish community. Telegraph reports here>

Millions of Hindu pilgrims readied Thursday for a ritual, pre-dawn bath in the waters of the holy Ganges river in northern India as the world’s largest religious gathering gets underway. The Telegraph reports here>

Pope Benedict XVI yesterday met and forgave the woman who knocked him over at St Peter’s Basilica during Christmas Eve Mass, the Vatican said. Susanna Maiolo, 25, who has a history of psychiatric problems, and her family met in a private audience with the pope, the Vatican spokesman, the Rev Federico Lombardi, said. Maiolo apologised to the pontiff, while Benedict inquired about her health and “wanted to demonstrate his forgiveness”. Maiolo had also tried and failed to reach the pope during the 2008 midnight mass service. She has been treated at a clinic since the incident.

From the Guardian website

A radical Islamist group that planned a march through Wootton Bassett will be banned under counter-terrorism laws, Home Secretary Alan Johnson has said. BBC reports here>