Scripture engagement among American adults is at its lowest point in the 14 years the American Bible Society has commissioned the annual State of the Bible report, researchers said in releasing the first chapter of the 2024 report. Well over half — 57 percent, or 151 million — of American adults are Bible Disengaged, based on a 15-question metric.
Read MoreJust three months after he was installed as president of the Rainbow Push Coalition, the Rev. Freddie Haynes II abruptly resigned this week as leader of the historic Civil Rights organization. Last July, the Rev. Jesse Jackson had selected Haynes to lead the organization starting in 2024.
Read MoreEvery year at Passover we are commanded to imagine ourselves leaving Egypt — Joel Silverstein painted himself into the picture. In “The Brighton Beach Bible” — an art book with narrative commentary — Silverstein envisions the boardwalks and abandoned attractions of his childhood in Brooklyn as the staging ground for the Exodus and 40 years in the wilderness.
Read More“The Roof,” released as part of the second season of the platform’s “Launchpad” series, tells the coming-of-age story of a two-spirit Northern Cheyenne teenager (played by Phoenix Wilson) who is sent to live with their grandfather (played by Academy-Award winner Wes Studi). The two learn to connect and the teen gains an understanding of what it means to be two-spirit, while the grandfather opens up about his life.
Read MoreA law criminalizing gender transition care for minors in Idaho can be applied while two anonymous teenage plaintiffs’ challenge to the law continues in court, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on April 15.
Read MoreBeverly LaHaye, a prominent conservative Christian activist who founded Concerned Women for America, passed away Sunday at the age of 94, CWA announced. LaHaye formed CWA 45 years ago to advocate for biblical principles at all levels of public policy. Since then, it has become the “nation’s largest public policy women’s organization,” with chapters in nearly every state, CWA said on its website.
Read MoreThe religious freedom case pitting a Christian group against local activists over Sunday access to a New Jersey beach may not be resolved in time for this summer. A hearing — originally scheduled for April 17 — has been postponed and a new date of May 16 set, just two weeks before the traditional start of the summer beach season.
Read MoreSome find the constant pop of the wiffle ball batted about by oversized ping pong paddles annoying. Others see a sport encouraging exercise, multigenerational competition, and camaraderie. Regardless, pickleball is here to stay. It’s called the fastest-growing recreational sport in the U.S., although it has been around since 1965.
Read More(OPINION) I arrived at my radio studio Monday to learn that social media sites were blowing up over the latest controversy involving Pastor Mark Driscoll. He had publicly called out the performance of a sword swallowing acrobat as demonic without talking to the pastor first. The pastor, in turn, then called out Driscoll in midstream, shutting down his comments.
Read More“We must fight Christian nationalism. It’s what fueled Jan. 6 and the pews in our churches, every Sunday, are filled with them.” That isn’t the only time I’ve heard that ominous warning offered up by an earnest, well-weaning pastor, non-profit leader or Christian influencer. It’s shaped by a narrative repeated often by the press, echoed in a seemingly unlimited new genre of books and accepted as gospel even by many people of faith.
Read More(ANALYSIS) One of the most important components of the Democratic coalition is the Black church. But I have to wonder if there are not cracks beginning to form in the alliance between the Democratic Party and Black Protestant Christianity.
Read MoreIn an age of shrinking theological schools, Wesley Biblical Seminary is defying expectations. While many of the largest and prominent evangelical seminaries across the United States — such as Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Fuller Theological Seminary and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary — are downsizing, WBS is growing in enrollment.
Read MoreAmid what many consider an increasingly hostile climate for Jewish students on campus, Hillel has updated its college guide, including a new feature that indicates whether students at a particular school have held a vote to boycott Israel.
Read MoreWith its manicured greens, blooming azaleas and a spectator menu featuring prices from yesteryear, the scene at Augusta National Golf Club in the first full week of April is, indeed, a tradition unlike any other. The subject of faith can also be raised. Scottie Scheffler, the top-ranked golfer in the world who earned his first green jacket in 2022, talked about how the sport doesn’t define him, but his faith does.
Read More(OPINION) There is no neutrality when it comes to Donald Trump. To the contrary, he is arguably the most polarizing figure in America, if not in the world, and at the mention of his name, temperatures rise. To his loyal supporters, he is a courageous hero of superhuman proportions. To his fervent detractors, he is the incarnation of evil itself in exaggerated form. Why, then, does Trump bring such extreme polarization? Why is he so hated?
Read MoreA large majority of U.S. Catholics have a positive view of Pope Francis — although his popularity has slipped since he became pontiff in 2013, a new poll has found. Furthermore, when it comes to whether priests should be allowed to marry, among other hot-button issues, Catholics in the United States remain divided primarily along political lines.
Read MoreChristians are divided on how to address this growing issue. One camp sees this as a problem — something that needs to be solved by helping people get married. The other sees the problem as the privileging of marriage — and that it’s the church that needs to adapt to reflect such societal changes. Here’s what some books are saying about the issue.
Read More(ANALYSIS) True Charity is a network of nearly two hundred organizations that seek to improve charity, influence relevant policy, and inform the public about the importance of effective compassion. The group held its annual conference last week in Springfield, Missouri.
Read MoreEven as countless books, newspaper articles and cable TV segments devote intense attention to Christian nationalism, the term has become so pervasive that it risks losing any real meaning, according to a growing group of scholars both on the left and right. Nonetheless, expect its use to grow as another presidential election nears.
Read MoreWhen Jews gather around their Passover seder tables on April 22, most will read in the hagaddah prayerbook a simple tale of four children who are tasked with learning of the Jewish exodus from slavery in ancient Egypt: The wise child, the wicked child, the simple child, and the child who does not know how to ask.
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