JERUSALEM — Ovadia Yosef, the former Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel, is being criticized for a televised sermon that called Hurricane Katrina a punishment from God for President Bush's role in forcing Israelis to leave the Gaza Strip.

"It was God's retribution," Yosef said. "He (Bush) perpetrated the expulsion.

"Now everyone is mad at him. This is his punishment for what he did to Gush Katif, and everyone else who did as he told them, their time will come, too." Gush Katif is the largest group of Gaza settlements.

In response, U.S. Rabbi Jerome Epstein, chief executive of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, said the vast majority of Jews reject Yosef's "perverse belief" that "venomously and shamefully" claimed divine punishment.

"My understanding of God does not permit me to accept that every bad or good thing that occurs is a reward or punishment. There are times when bad things happen to good people," Epstein said.

"We need consolation, not anger; love, not hate. The God I serve and pray to daily has charged me not to blame but to help."

Yosef, 85, singled out black victims, saying "they don't study Torah." He used the word "Kushim," which in the Bible refers to an ancient African group but in vernacular Hebrew is considered derogatory. The rabbi is a leader of Jews of Mideast origin, represented by the Shas faction in parliament.

MUSLIM CLERICS BACK TENNIS PLAYER

LUCKNOW, India — Top Muslim clerics supported India's teen tennis sensation Sania Mirza, days after a Muslim group in her hometown issued a religious edict describing her short skirts and sleeveless shirts as un-Islamic.

"What Sania wears in (the) tennis court is the demand of the game," said Khalid Rashid of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, which arbitrates religious issues for the nation's more than 160 million Muslims.

"Perhaps, the fatwa (edict) was issued to gain cheap publicity," Rashid said.

Last week the Sunni Ulema Board, a little-known group in Mirza's hometown of Hyderabad, issued the edict saying Islam did not permit women to wear skirts, shorts and sleeveless tops in public, so Mirza should cover up.

The 18-year-old Muslim tennis player, the first Indian woman to break into the top 50 WTA rankings, dismissed the fatwa.

CHURCH TAKES MULTIMEDIA TACK

DULUTH, Minn. — With drama, multimedia presentations, talk shows and a motorcycle rally, Bayside Baptist Church in Superior, Wis., hopes to attract people who don't usually attend worship.

Organizers hope the unconventional presentations will particularly draw young adults.

"It's about communicating the Gospel in a relevant way," said Randy Brodeen, Bayside's senior pastor. "Real people, real God and real issues of life.

"We're gonna have fun, a lot of humor. We think it fits. It's needed."