Religion/ Spirituality

Nick Cannon will NOT make his daytime talk show debut this fall ... it's being pushed to next year on the heels of his anti-Semitism controversy.

Lionsgate's Debmar-Mercury -- the co-producers behind his nationally syndicated daytime talk show -- announced Friday, Nick's debut will be pushed from this September to fall 2021. The production company said, "After conversations with Nick, we do believe that his public comments don’t reflect his true feelings and his apology is heartfelt and sincere."

The company added, "We want to continue the healing process as he meets with leaders of the Jewish community and engages in a dialogue with our distribution partners to hear their views. We are standing by Nick in our hope that by fall 2021 he will be able to use his extraordinary talent and platform to entertain, enlighten and unite his audience on the ‘Nick Cannon’ talk show."

As we reported ... Nick said Thursday night the black community turned on him after he apologized for the anti-Semitic remarks he made on his "Cannon's Class" podcast. The comments triggered ViacomCBS to cut ties with him ... because the company said he refused to apologize

Pro basketball star Amar'e Stoudemire is both Black and Jewish -- and says he's uniquely positioned to help "bridge the gap" between the two groups.

Stoudemire has been living and playing ball in Israel since 2016 -- but he's been paying attention to the recent wave of anti-Semitic comments from high profile people like DeSean Jackson, Stephen Jackson and Nick Cannon.

All 3 of the above-mentioned stars have apologized -- but Amar'e says moving forward, there should be a focus on educating young people about the SIMILARITIES between Black people and Jews.

"There's more similarities with the African Americans and Jewish people than there are differences. I went over a few of them -- the Holocaust and the transatlantic slave trade. There's post-traumatic stress between both from those events. Think about all the persecution, it's always the Jews or the blacks," Stoudemire says.

Stoudemire suggests a "lack of leadership" in the Black community has led to many Black people turning to Louis Farrakhan for leadership, which is problematic because of his long history of anti-Semitic comments.

"Amongst the African-American community, there's not a lot of leadership," Amar'e says ... "So, they gravitate to a leadership factor that help keep people off the streets, right? So, Farrakhan is seen as one of their leaders in their African-American community."

"But, I do think, I know with me being in the position where I am where being an African American Jew who's learning at a high level, I think there's a narrative shift that's happening."

"We have to figure out a way to now teach the next generation on positivity."

There's more ... Amar'e explains why he's down to have conversations with both DeSean Jackson and Stephen Jackson.

Nick Cannon is at his wit's end over his anti-Semitic comments and his apology for them -- he clearly feels he's in a no-win situation, and now some fans are concerned about his well being.

"The Masked Singer" host let his frustrations out Thursday night, saying ... "I hurt an entire community and it pained me to my core, I thought it couldn’t get any worse. Then I watched my own community turn on me and call me a sell-out for apologizing."

He added ... "Goodnight. Enjoy Earth."

An hour later, he followed that up, tweeting ... "Y'all can have this planet. I'm out!"

As you know ... Nick came under fire for pushing anti-Jewish rhetoric on his "Cannon's Class" podcast, which resulted in ViacomCBS dropping him. Instead of apologizing, he initially stuck to his guns and was defiant.

But he changed his tune after a discussion with Rabbi Abraham Cooper, and posted a lengthy apology for his "hurtful and divisive words."

Nick's frustration is clear from his Thursday night tweets -- after initially getting backlash for the anti-Semitic remarks, he's now getting backlash for apologizing. It's interesting ... you could read the apology backlash as a reflection of just how much anti-Semitism there is out there.

Some fans online took Nick's tweets as a sign he might harm himself.

Nick Cannon's seeking enlightenment following his anti-Semitic comments and subsequent apology ... according to Rabbi Abraham Cooper, who says they're getting to work right away.

Rabbi Cooper tells us his first step was sending Cannon a report on Louis Farrakhan -- whose teachings Nick has vocally supported -- to show him the Minister's pattern of hate speech ... and then they started talking on the phone.

As you know ... "The Masked Singer" host came under fire for pushing anti-Jewish rhetoric on his podcast, and though he was initially defiant ... Nick eventually said he was sorry and credited Cooper for helping him understand why his words were hurtful.

The rabbi says Cannon was apologetic upfront, but more importantly ... he listened when Cooper explained how some of his perceived "facts" were actually hateful and harmful propaganda.

Rabbi Cooper says Nick's owned up to his wrongdoing, and he's even requested another discussion to gain more knowledge. The rabbi's obliging and says their having a face-to-face meeting Thursday evening, which he thinks could lead to some major progress.

W. Kamau Bell says Nick Cannon's anti-Semitic comments were wrong -- full stop -- but he has a theory about how Nick got himself into this bigoted mess.

The "United Shades of America" host told us he thinks Nick wanted to show that he supports the black community, no matter what ... so he leaned in to defend Professor Griff and repeat some of Minister Farrakhan's preachings.

Kamau joined on "TMZ Live" Thursday when he suggested Nick can still be a strong voice for African-Americans ... but it should be done without promoting divisive and anti-Semitic ideas.

As we've reported ... Cannon has since apologized, and FOX has said he'll remain the host of "The Masked Singer."

Kamau's show returns to CNN on Sunday night for its 5th season, and he'll be taking a hard look at anti-Semitism and white supremacy -- in all its forms -- on the premiere episode. That got us talking about all the violence between citizens, police brutality and general contentiousness across the country.

Nick Cannon says his eyes have been opened to the horribly anti-Semitic things he said, and he's offering an apology -- one that might have saved his 'Masked Singer' gig.

24 hours after Viacom cut all ties with Nick for anti-Semitic remarks he made on his podcast, he says, "First and foremost I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth during my interview with Richard Griffin."

He continued, "They reinforced the worst stereotypes of a proud and magnificent people and I feel ashamed of the uninformed and naive place that these words came from."

If you missed it, Nick defended Griffin -- aka Professor Griff, ex-Public Enemy member -- over comments he made in the late '80s about Jews spreading wickedness around the world.

On the podcast, Nick supported Griffin ... saying he couldn't be anti-Semitic because black people are the real Semites. He also said Griffin was speaking the truth, and repeated long-held -- going back to Hitler -- stereotypes about Jews controlling banks and much of the world's wealth.

While he got tons of backlash online -- in addition to the Viacom axing -- Nick says several rabbis, including Rabbi Abraham Cooper from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, have also tried to educate him. As he put it on social media ... "I have had at least a minor history lesson over the past few days and to say that it is eye-opening would be a vast understatement."

Late Wednesday, FOX -- home of "The Masked Singer" -- said it had been in talks with Nick regarding the podcast and felt he was "clear and remorseful that his words were wrong and lacked both understanding and context, and inadvertently promoted hate." The network said, based on that convo, it would move forward with him.

Cannon also vowed he is now committed to strengthening the bond between black and Jewish cultures going forward. He says he's also taken down the Professor Griff episode of his podcast.

It's interesting ... Viacom said Nick was unwilling to apologize when they contacted him about his podcast comments and, in fact, said that was a big part of why they were cutting ties.

It's unclear, at this point, if his mea culpa will change anything for Viacom. Nick had demanded the company give him ownership of his show, 'Wild 'N Out.'

The world is constantly adapting to a new normal during the pandemic -- and that includes churchgoers and their leaders, who are pivoting too. As proof, here's Exhibit A and B.

We'll start with Archbishop Jose H. Gomez here, who presided over a mass this Sunday at the historic San Gabriel mission in Southern California -- this after a fire ravaged the main edifice Saturday, and parishioners were redirected to a separate chapel on the same campus.

Once the church service wrapped, the bishop and what looks to be a fellow priest were dishing out socially distant-friendly goodbyes to their worshipers ... giving 'em elbow bumps, waves and air crosses. One lady wanted a handshake, but got a blessing instead.

Everyone seemed to be wearing masks, and per reports on the ground ... the number of people allowed inside capped out at 100, so folks were spread out fairly well in the pews.

Now, elsewhere in the Catholic world ... someone captured an innovating way one church went about doing their weekly collections. Usually, there's a person going around with a basket, which then gets passed around with people tossing in cash and donations.

With 'rona going around though, that ain't that safe obviously. So, instead, one parish got creative to get their dough ... strapping a basket to a remote control car and zipping out to the crowd, some of whom threw down some bucks and carried on like normal.

DeSean Jackson will be meeting with a 94-year-old Holocaust survivor on Friday ... in an effort to educate himself about the Jewish struggle.

Earlier this week, Edward Mosberg expressed his disappointment in Jackson's IG post in which the NFL featured an anti-Semitic quote attributed to Adolph Hitler.

In his letter to Jackson, Mosberg invited the Philadelphia Eagles WR to visit a Nazi concentration camp to better understand why pushing anti-Semitic rhetoric can lead (and has lead) to death and destruction.

"I would invite you to join me at the sites of these German Nazi death camps, to understand what evil truly is, and why sharing quotes of the man behind this evil is so offensive to us all," Mossberg wrote.

Mosberg says he survived several Nazi concentration camps -- including Mauthausen in Austria. He also says his late wife was a survivor of Auschwitz.

Now, we're told Jackson will meet with Mosberg over Zoom on Friday -- in the hopes of starting a positive, constructive dialogue.

As one source close to Jackson puts it -- "He really is educating himself ... and will continue to do so."

We're also told Jackson met with the Creative Community for Peace organization this week ... an organization dedicated to battling anti-Semitism.

Earlier this week, Julian Edelman invited Jackson to have an "uncomfortable conversation" about anti-semitism and racism in America.

And, Friday morning, Edelman says the two got the ball rolling.

"DeSean and I spoke for a while last night. We're making plans to use our experiences to educate one another and grow together. Stay tuned."

Jewish NFL star Julian Edelman says he wants to have an "uncomfortable conversation" with DeSean Jackson about the WR's anti-Semitic IG post ... but he's hopeful the two can learn from each other.

Edelman broke his silence on Jackson Thursday morning ... saying he "wanted to take some time because it's a complicated issue and I wanted to be thoughtful."

As we previously reported, DeSean posted a quote on IG attributed to Hitler (though it's not a real Hitler quote) suggesting a secret Jewish conspiracy for global domination.

Edelman acknowledges Jackson posted some "ugly things" about Jews ... but notes, "I do see an opportunity to have a conversation."

The 34-year-old Super Bowl MVP explained his own experience with anti-Semitism -- and how he was called a hateful slur on the football field back in 2011.

He called on the Black and Jewish communities to listen and learn from each other ... and then made an offer to DeSean.

"DeSean, lets do a deal. How about we go to D.C. and I take you to the Holocaust Museum and then you take me to the Museum of African American History and Culture."

"Afterwards, we grab some burgers and we have those uncomfortable conversations. This world needs a little more love, compassion and empathy."

For his part, Jackson has said he's been meeting with Jewish leaders to try and educate himself about anti-Semitism.

"He was trying to educate himself, educate people and he's speaking the truth."

Former NBA star Stephen Jackson attempted to defend DeSean Jackson's anti-Semitic social media post in a video Tuesday ... adding in the clip, "You know he don't hate nobody."

"But, he's speaking the truth of the facts that he know and trying to educate others."

DeSean re-shared a quote attributed to Hitler (though it's not an actual Hitler quote) on his social media page earlier this week ... appearing to endorse a passage that claimed Jews will "extort" and "blackmail" America as part of a greater "plan for world domination."

DeSean apologized for the post multiple times ... and his team, the Philadelphia Eagles, ripped him in a scathing statement shortly after.

"Regardless of his intentions," the team said, "the messages he shared were offensive harmful, and absolutely appalling."

Stephen took issue with it all in a now-removed video ... bringing up the Eagles' handling of the infamous Riley Cooper n-word incident back in 2013.

"If it's talking about the Black race, y'all ain't saying nothing about it," Stephen said. "They killing us. Police killing us. And, treating us like sh*t. Racism at an all-time high. But, ain't none of you NFL owners spoke up on that. And, none of you teams spoke up on that."

"But, the same [Eagles] team had a receiver that said the word [n-word] publicly, and they gave him an extension."

Jackson continued, "I play for The Big 3, we have a Jewish owner. He understands where we stand in some of the things we say, but it's not directed to him. It's the way we been treated."

"Philadelphia, y'all need to repost this."

For the NFL's part, it released a statement on DeSean's post as well, saying, "DeSean’s comments were highly inappropriate, offensive and divisive and stand in stark contrast to the NFL’s values of respect, equality and inclusion. We have been in contact with the team which is addressing the matter with DeSean.”

The Eagles have not yet announced if a punishment will be handed down to the star receiver.

A group of Christian church members went to extreme lengths to remove a black woman peacefully sitting on "their" grass ... and it all played out on video.

The woman's name is Alex Marshall-Brown -- a stunt woman and voice actor here in L.A. -- and on Tuesday, she documented her North Hollywood encounter with the churchgoers ... who seemed to grossly overreact to her chilling out on church grounds.

She was working on her laptop, sitting under a tree and minding her business ... when a couple guys who apparently work for the church came out with a "No Trespassing" sign just for her. Alex questions why they're booting her, but they don't seem to have a good reason.

The men say they don't want strangers on their property, period -- insisting that them telling her to scram isn't anything personal ... that they're just doing their jobs and protecting the church.

But then it took a disturbing turn ... one of the guys dropped the ol' "All Lives Matter" on her.

Alex continued to point out she's not threatening anyone, and that escalating the situation by calling police -- which the men say was already happening -- wasn't necessary.

She noted she was asked by some bike cops to leave at first, or else she'd have a run-in with "Cop cops" -- but our law enforcement sources tell us no one in LAPD was even made aware of this. Instead, it sounds like Alex just had to deal with the church staffers.

She went on to say it's ironic a church, of all places, was being so unwelcoming.

Now, head honchos from this parish -- St. Paul's First Lutheran Church -- have already weighed in, and they say their workers on the ground got this one wrong. The church says they strive to spread the love of God, and they're saddened by the way this went down.

This is bad.

NFL star DeSean Jackson claims he's NOT a Jew-hater -- despite posting quotes suggesting a Jewish plot for world domination.

The Philadelphia Eagles WR first posted a screenshot of a book that features a quote attributed to Adolf Hitler -- saying Jews will "extort" and "blackmail" America as part of a greater "plan for world domination."

According to the multiple research websites, including Snopes, the quote is NOT originally from Hitler -- but STILL A HORRIBLE THING TO POST!

There was obvious backlash to the post from people including former Philadelphia Eagles president Joe Banner, who is Jewish.

"If a white player said anything about AA’s as outrageous as what Desean Jackson said about Jews tonight there would at least be a serious conversation about cutting him and a need for a team meeting to discuss. Which would be totally appropriate," Banner said.

"Absolutely indefensible."

Jackson later responded on another IG post -- saying, "Anyone who feels I have hate towards the Jewish community took my post the wrong way."

He added, "I have no hatred in my heart towards no one!"

On his IG page, Jackson also features several tributes to Louis Farrakhan -- a man the Anti-Defamation League has dubbed anti-Semitic over his long history of trashing the Jewish people.

Farrakhan has previously referred to Judaism as a "gutter religion" and praised Hitler as a "great man."

Pope Francis wrote a personal note to a Paralympics star who's fighting for his life after a horrific crash ... saying in the letter, "I am close to you and I pray for you and your family."

The 83-year-old penned the comments to Alex Zanardi -- an ex-Formula 1-racer-turned-amazing-Paralympian who tragically crashed his handbike into a truck in Italy last week.

The scene was terrifying ... Zanardi -- who had both his legs amputated after a racing accident in 2001 -- reportedly suffered massive head trauma in the wreck.

According to officials at the hospital Zanardi is recovering at ... the 53-year-old is in stable condition -- but is in danger of suffering from possible brain damage.

The hospital adds he's been intubated and is on a ventilator.

Enter the Pope ... who after hearing about the accident -- reached out with an emotional letter encouraging Zanardi's recovery.

"Dearest Alessandro, your story is an example of how to start again after an unforeseen stop," the Pope wrote. "Through sport, you have taught us to live life as a protagonist, teaching a lesson of humanity through disability."

"Thank you for having given strength to those who have lost it. In this painful moment, I am close to you and I pray for you and your family."

The Pope signed the letter, "Fraternally, Francis."

Zanardi -- a four-time gold medalist in the Paralympics who's backed the Pope for years with multiple charity donations -- is expected to remain in a medically-induced coma for at least another week.

Ben Roethlisberger says he's fought both porn and alcohol addictions in the past ... but credits his relationship with his religion for helping him cut the habits.

The Pittsburgh Steelers QB made the revelations at the "ManUp Pittsburgh" conference over the weekend ... giving a pump-up speech to people who are going through similar struggles.

"People don't realize all the time that us athletes, we're human," Roethlisberger said. "We sin like everyone else. I am no different. We make mistakes. We get addicted to things. We sin."

Big Ben continued, "And I think sometimes we get put on this pedestal where we can't make mistakes. We do. I've fallen as short as anybody."

Roethlisberger -- who's been in the NFL since 2004 -- says his past transgressions include vices like booze and porn ... adding, "which makes me then not the best husband, not the best father, not the best Christian I can be."

But, 38-year-old Ben says he was able to re-find religion after meeting his wife -- whom he married in 2011 -- and says he believes he's now a better person because of it.

"My message to the men out there that are watching this is, we all fall short," Roethlisberger said. "That's what happens. But it's OK. You can get back into the good graces."

Roethlisberger also spoke about his recent elbow surgery ... and said if it had happened earlier in his career, he's not sure he could have handled it.

Though Ben now says he's being patient with the whole process ... and is confident he'll return to form sooner than later.

Rayshard Brooks is being laid to rest with a home going ceremony in one of Atlanta's most historic churches ... and TMZ is streaming the service live.

The procession is getting underway Tuesday morning at the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once served as co-pastor for years. Rayshard's casket actually arrived at the church on Monday for a public viewing ahead of Tuesday's funeral service.

His golden casket was brought in by pallbearers wearing "Here 2 Serve" t-shirts. During the viewing, his casket was open, and his widow, Tomika Miller, reached out to touch her husband at one point.

As for Tuesday's ceremony, it's meant to be a more private affair with some noteworthy speakers ... including MLK's daughter, Rev. Bernice A. King, as well as Rev. Raphael G. Warnock -- the senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist, who's supposed to deliver the eulogy.

On Friday, June 12, Rayshard was approached by two APD officers after he was found asleep in his car and partially blocking the line at Wendy's drive-thru. After a lot of cordial back-and-forth interaction, for about 30 minutes, the cops tried to handcuff Rayshard place him under arrest.

When Rayshard resisted, a struggle ensued, and he broke free with one of the officers' tasers ... which he pointed back at them as they gave chase. Officer Garrett Rolfe then opened fire and struck Rayshard twice in the back. He also allegedly kicked him after he was down.

Rayshard later died from his injuries -- and the Wendy's where and the officers tussled was burned to the ground the next day as intense protests sprung up in Atlanta.

The Fulton County D.A. announced murder charges against Officer Rolfe. His partner, Devin Brosnan, faces less severe charges ... aggravated assault, specifically. Both men have since turned themselves in for booking. Brosnan, for his part, has denied wrongdoing.

If Rolfe is convicted, the death penalty would be on the table for sentencing.