coming up -- with u.s. troops home from iraq and others returning from afghanistan, we talk with an ethicist about the moral wounds of war. also, the controversial ahmadiyya muslim community, which believes the messiah already came. and the ancient chinese practice of feng shui -- trying to create harmony everywhere people live and work.

welcome, i'm bob abernethy. it's good to have you with us. religion remains a key factor in the tumultuous gop primary race. in south carolina this week, as saturday's election approached, the candidates actively courted evangelicals, who make up about 60% of the gop primary voters in both south carolina and iowa. in iowa, a surprise. officials reviewing the flawed vote count in the caucuses earlier this month have discovered that rick santorum, not mitt romney, apparently received the most votes. meanwhile, republican evangelicals have been divided over which candidate to support. a group of conservative

christian leaders met last week and urged unified support for santorum. but that's not binding, and they acknowledged there is significant support in their community for newt gingrich as well. several religious groups praised president obama's decision to reject plans for the keystone xl pipeline, a controversial pipeline that would have stretched from canada to texas. the president expressed concerns that the environmental impact of the project had not been sufficiently studied. the company behind the pipeline may propose an alternate route in the future. some faith leaders had joined in earlier protests against the pipeline's construction. the head of church world service, a christian aid organization, said obama's decision showed a profound respect for god's creation and the sacred responsibility to protect the earth. protestors with the occupy

wall street movement renewed their calls this week for an end to corporate greed. on martin luther king jr. day, several prominent african-american clergy and civil rights leaders called occupy the dream held marches in new york and other cities. on tuesday, more than 100 people with occupy d.c. gathered at the capitol and the white house. meanwhile, in london, a court ruled against the protestors camped out in front of st. paul's cathedral. without a successful appeal, the protestors will be evicted next week. violence against shiite muslims continued this week. more than a dozen people died in a bombing in pakistan and more than 50 were killed in basra in iraq as shiites marked the end of a 40 day mourning period for the prophet mohammed's grandson who was killed in a seventh century battle. close to 160

people are believed to have died in iraq this month in attacks on shiite muslims. the last of the u.s. troops in iraq came home last month, and we want to explore today how they are being received. are they getting the help they need? how do they feel about the violence in the country they left behind? meanwhile, what can be said about the incident in afghanistan when four marines defiled the bodies of taliban fighters, and the picture of that went online around the world. kim lawton, managing editor of this program, joins me to talk with nancy sherman, a university professor at georgetown university in washington. her specialty is the ethics of war, including what she has called moral wounding. her most recent book is "the untold war." nancy, thank you for being with us. >> my pleasure. >> when people see the pictures of the marine incident, everybody says that's terrible,

reprehensible, no excuse for it. but, you know, here are guys who may have been on several tours, they're tired, they see their friends, their buddies blown up, killed, maimed. it would seem to me a fairly natural reaction to demonize the enemy, hate the enemy and want to do something despicable to express your feelings about this enemy. >> you're right. the angry responses increased as the weapons have gotten dirtier and the enemies more invisible. and the rules of engagement have clamped down, and so there is a lot of frustration. and as you say, lots of deaths and maimings. and if you can't exercise your frustration at the living, you may do it toward the dead. that said, officers are furious that there was this kind of

misconduct, this lack of professionalism and a sense of not really having compassion for the respect due for the dead. >> nancy, we've seen in the news this past week but over successive weeks, ongoing sectarian violence in iraq between sunnis and shiites, tensions in the government. how does all of this contribute to this notion you talk about, the moral wounding of those troops who serve there? >> well, i think the troops have been on a rollercoaster these ten years, especially in iraq. they were exhilarated with the fall of baghdad, frustrated with not finding wmds, ambivalent about a mission and reluctantly took on the role of being city builders, city planners, school builders and the like. and now they see that whole project of stability and democratization unraveling and they feel, i think, frustration.

some come home, their marriages have exploded, they've lost custody of the children. they come home carrying heavy invisible wounds of a sense of betrayal and ptsd. that's hard. was it worth it? >> was it worth it? >> a sense of their having carried the whole burden and the whole rest of the country not having done so? >> that's right, they are a volunteer force. but they're still only 1% or fewer than the country and that makes them kind of an isolated group. >> but they are getting the medical care they need? >> well, yes, they are getting medical care. it's better than ever, but it's massive and we'ren the process of dod budgetary constraints. we have to make sure that at primary care they get psychological screening and that it carries through to the end of their days. >> is there an ethical obligation, a moral obligation we as a society have toward these troops? >> absolutely, absolutely. they may come home with a sense of resentment, because they carried so much. we have to reach out through

community organizations, creation of jobs, and simply talking to the vet who comes home. >> is that hard to do? >> yeah, but first thing to do, no judging and a lot of empathy, because it could have been your son or daughter, and it probably is your neighbor. >> and is that happening? do the troops feel that that is happening enough? >> more and more, but don't be surprised if when you say, "thank you for your service," you get a mixed response. >> really? >> they want you to know it was harder than just your utterance of that remark. >> nancy sherman of georgetown university, many thanks. >> thank you so much. >> and kim lawton of this program. thank you. we have a special report today on a small group of muslims you may have noticed. it's called the ahmadiyya muslim community, and it has a growing

public profile. ahmadis are vocal advocates for peace. they also hold distinctive theological views that are highly controversial in the muslim world. indeed, many muslims believe ahmadis aren't really muslim at all. kim lawton reports. >> in new york's times square, it was an unexpected sight -- nestled amid ads for rum and hit tv shows, a sign proclaiming that muslims are for peace. the billboard was part of a high profile campaign by the ahmadiyya muslim community usa. >> we just want people to know if you're going to judge islam, judge it based off its true teachings, not based off of this political ideology that's now all over the internet and all over television. >> ahmadis have been active in several cities across the country, sponsoring bus ads and leafleting drives, trying to get out the message that muslims are for peace, for loyalty and for life. they say ten years after 9/11, that message is more important than ever. >> we want to stress that there

are muslims, especially living in america, that emphasize on peace, liberty, democracy and just the freedoms that americans love, and there have been so many people that ask, where are these modern muslims that promote these ideals, and we've been promoting these ideals for a long time. >> the campaign has disturbed some muslims who resent the idea of the controversial ahmadiyya muslim community speaking for islam. many mainstream muslims say they too hold those ideals, although they have significant theological differences with ahmadis. john esposito teaches islamic studies at georgetown university. >> the majority of muslims would view the ahmadiyya -- the ahmadiyya would either be seen as not muslim, or they would certainly be seen as a very, very marginal group you know at best by most mainstream muslims. >> the ahmadiyya muslim community is a reform movement that grew out of sunni islam. it was founded in 1889, in

india, by mirza ghulam ahmad, who claimed to be the metaphorical second coming of jesus and the divine guide, whose appearance was foretold by the prophet muhammad. most ahmadis believe he was the long awaited mahdi, or messiah. >> we believe that the promised messiah has come, as he was promised by the holy prophet so many years ago, 14 centuries ago. he came according to all those prophecies at the right time, and we have accepted him. >> naseem mahdi is national vice president and missionary in charge of the ahmadiyya muslim community usa. he says mirza ghulam ahmad came to bring muslims back to the true teachings of islam. >> according to the prophecies of prophet muhammad, that when the messiah would come, he will be a sort of an arbitrator. he used the word "arbitrator." that he will tell you what is right and what is wrong, because

with the passage of time, muslims have practically abandoned the real teaching of islam, the real teaching of the holy koran. >> in islam, the notion is that the prophet muhammad is the final prophet, the last of the prophets. and so, then the question becomes for, in the eyes of many other muslims, are these people really muslims or not? >> many ahmadis respond that while they do believe muhammad was the final prophet to bring the law, that didn't preclude a prophet like mirza ghulam ahmad from coming to bring muslims back to that final law. >> he came to revive the teachings of god and he came bringing the truth. >> mirza ghulam ahmad preached what he called jihad of the pen or persuasion through discourse, saying that violence was not necessary to defend and propagate islam. >> he said we live in a time where jihad -- an aggressive jihad by the sword -- is no

longer needed because you don't have to ever defend freedom of religion physically. he said we live in a time where you're no longer physically attacked simply for being a muslim. so he said jihad by the sword is done. >> for many muslims and certainly in south asia as the movement was developing, extraordinarily controversial, rejected. it was seen as the equivalent of heresy. >> and that view persists. today there are millions, some say tens of millions, of ahmadi muslims spread across 195 countries. in many parts of asia and the middle east, they face severe persecution. in pakistan, ahmadis are even officially declared nonmuslim. they are legally forbidden to call themselves muslims or their houses of worship mosques. and they are frequent targets of violence. >> i go with this fear that during the night i might get a phone call that some of my very

close loved ones have been kidnapped or killed or, or their properties have been looted and this kind of fear is going on and nobody can do anything. >> mahdi says it's painful, but his faith forbids any kind of retaliation. >> islam promotes peace and islam does not need any kind of blood shedding in the name of islam. >> according to esposito, despite the persecution, ahmadis have a strong missionary tradition. >> ahmadiyya in general are very concerned about spreading their faith. that's very much part of, of what they do. >> ahmadis established a community in the us in 1920. they claim they were the first official american-muslim organization. their us headquarters is in maryland, and they have thousands of members here. after the events of 9/11, ahmadi leaders say they realized the need to do even more aggressive outreach, and the muslims for peace campaign began. >> they ratcheted the campaign

up even further after the failed terrorism plot by a muslim-american in times square. >> we noticed that after the failed times square bombing attempt by faisal shahzad in may of 2010, that there was what people kept referring to as a deafening silence within the muslim community. so that's where we decided, well hey we've been here the longest, it's incumbent upon us to do something. >> they developed another project called muslims for loyalty, which emphasized the prophet muhammad's teachings that muslims should be loyal to the countries where they live. >> for the tenth anniversary of 9/11, they launched a blood drive called muslims for life. their goal was to collect 10,000 units of blood. >> 10,000 units would save 30,000 lives which would be ten times the lives lost on that day of heinous crime against humanity ten years ago. we are promoting a religion which gives life and not destruction, which promotes peace and not terrorism, and this is not just a statement,

but giving our blood. >> they ended up collecting nearly 12,000 units of blood, and they're continuing to hold other blood drive events. >> ahmadi outreach includes an active women's movement. >> we are given a voice. our community, the women have a voice. and we have -- we are very well educated and we are very knowledgeable about our religion. >> and in many communities, ahmadis are deeply involved in interfaith dialogue, although that can complicate relationships with mainstream muslims. esposito says us ahmadis have an influence beyond their numbers. >> although they are a relatively small percentage of the american muslim community, they play a significant role. they've been out there doing their work, but far more i think well organized and visible in terms of the public relation side of things. >> ahmadis say they are just trying to live out the tenets of their faith. >> as part of the ahmadi muslim

community, we believe that we have a true message, and we want people to know it. >> and they pledge to continue those efforts, despite the controversy they may generate. i'm kim lawton reporting. now, feng shui. according to chinese tradition, there is in everything and everyone a life force called chi. chi flows best, they say, through the wind, or air, called feng, and through water, shui. feng shui is the science or practice of arranging everything in your environment -- your home, workplace and city -- so it's in harmony with the flow of chi. lucky severson took a tour of hong kong recently and discovered that even in that modern center of business and banking, feng shui still guides decisions. >> few cities around the world can match the stunning skyline of hong kong. architecture here is a big deal,

and so is the 3,000-year-old chinese practice of feng shui. few skyscrapers are constructed without the advice of a feng shui master, and raymond lo is one of a handful of grand masters. >> definitely, hong kong is a feng shui city. you can see hong kong is such a tiny spot in such a big country. why hong kong is so unique? because it enjoys the best feng shui. >> nury vittachi is an internationally syndicated columnist and author of over 30 books, including several about feng shui. >> one of the great things about hong kong is that it's very rational and businesslike but at the same time, we believe in magic and we take it very seriously. >> feng shui is about more than tall buildings. people here practice it in their apartments and gardens and in their lives. >> feng shui means that it is an ancient chinese knowledge which is talking about how the environment will affect people's well being. so the chinese has discovered in

their environment that different kind of energy. some are good energy, which make you improve your health, improve your relationship with people and also improve your money. and there are negative energy which will do the opposite. >> mr. lo views himself as a scientist who, with the right tools, can actually measure good and bad energy. >> of course this is an instrument we need. this is a compass, and those characters and numbers are actually the formula which the feng shui master, they have invented. so basically this is an instrument we use to measure the direction of the building and then based on the direction and based on the time the building was built, we can establish where is the good energy and where is the bad energy. >> nury vittachi's columns are known for their humor and irony, and he finds plenty of both among the power structures of downtown hong kong. >> so you'd think this would be the most rational,

number-focused place on earth, but in fact, feng shui rules even here. as the building was being put up and finishing touches were being arranged, a feng shui master said, "oh, it's too regular. everything is on a grid shape here and you've got to put something askew." >> so plans for the escalators were changed. they are no longer perpendicular, they run askew. >> it does seem to have worked because over the last 20 years since this building was created, hsbc has grown to become literally one of the biggest banks in the world. >> this being hong kong, our next building is another bank and more feng shui. >> this is the standard charter bank building which has taken the idea of mixing money and spirituality very seriously in that, although it's the headquarters of a major bank, it has a church-like feel or a temple-like feel, right up to

the extent of having stained glass windows. but instead of religious icons, you have the trappings of modernity, you have computers, a gold mobile phone, aircraft, that sort of thing. it's done in a good spirit and the community loves it. >> our next building is the bank of china which was built by an architect from the states who apparently didn't realize that the diamond designed exterior is a negative shape in feng shui, and the diamonds were pointed directly at the governor's house. >> and the governor lost his job, so they built a swimming pool between this and the governor's house so that the water would take away the negative energy. it didn't work. the replacement governor had a heart attack. >> today the bank has a moat around it. >> you notice the fish are mostly different shades of gold, and they represent, of course, gold flowing around your life. so, definitely a prosperity theme at this bank. >> as an example of how seriously hong kong takes feng shui, in recent years, the city has spent more than $8 million

compensating people living next to construction sites because all that activity disturbed their feng shui. nury says some people go a little overboard when it comes to feng shui. >> if you move your desk over here a bit, you know, suddenly grandma will feel better. you know, if you move your desk a bit there, she'll feel great. you move your desk too far and she dies. you know, there's that sort of feng shui, which i think is very -- it's clearly superstitious. but i think underpinning all that, there's just good psychological sense. if you make your environment feel good, if you focus away from material things to spiritual things, it's good for everybody. >> actually feng shui encompass every walk of your life. everything in life. there's always a logic, a reason, behind things happening. so therefore you have an answer. if you don't know feng shui, don't care about feng shui, that means everything seems to be mystery. >> raymond lo has taught feng shui classes all over the world,

including the u.s. where an increasing number of architects are using the practice in their house designs. >> the good energy that you are bringing in, it funnels into the front entrance. >> william page is a seattle based architect who builds and sells houses. he uses feng shui principles in his designs. >> a curved wall lets the good energy that comes in, the good chi that comes in, dissipate throughout the building. >> he says the feng shui must be working, at least for him. it's helped him sell houses. >> it is said that you should not have a stove directly across from a sink because one is fire and one is water and they do not mix. it is important not to have the head of the bed backing up against a bathroom because it tends to flush the energy down the drain. >> back in hong kong, nury vittachi takes us to a buddhist shrine in the middle of a lively business district. in his view, the shrine is part of the feng shui of this neighborhood, the calming and centering part.

>> there's a big tree actually growing right here, you know, in between the floor and the ceiling of this temple. what a lovely unity between man and nature. i mean, i actually think it is a very religious community. behind every temple, every village, every modern skyscrapers, including the stock exchange, you will find something like this. you'll find a little shrine. spirituality, feng shui, is very much woven deeply into the fabric of a very rational, scientific, business-obsessed community. >> a business community so rational that executives decided to shift the angle of the entrance to the hong kong disneyland theme park by 12 degrees after a feng shui master said the change would result in the park's prosperity. for "religion and ethics newsweekly," i'm lucky severson in hong kong. incidentally, the chinese new year begins monday. it will be the year of the dragon, said to be a good year. also, on our calendar, the feast

of the epiphany was celebrated this week by some orthodox christians, among them the russian orthodox, coptic and ethiopian churches. for them, the day commemorates the baptism of jesus. in russia, thousands of orthodox christians celebrate each year by jumping into icy cold water to retrieve a cross. the temperature in some parts of russia -- minus 26 degrees fahrenheit. that's our program for now. i'm bob abernethy. you can follow us on twitter and facebook, find us on youtube, and watch us anytime, anywhere on smart phones. there's also much more on our web site. you can comment on all of our stories and share them. audio and video podcasts are also available. join us at pbs.org.