(ANALYSIS) The power of today’s digital media is much more complex than that, said Barbara Nicolosi Harrington, a former Catholic nun-turned-screenwriter and Hollywood script doctor. “Hollywood has been the church of the masses, but I don't think that’s still true. At least, we cannot say that movie theaters are the sanctuaries they once were for most people, especially for the young,” she Harrington.
Read MoreThe feature is framed with bad news — that progressive Catholics in the United States are experiencing pain because of the rising numbers of young priests and young adults (especially parents with, wink-wink, lots of children) seeking a more pro-Catholic Catechism approach to faith.
Read MoreNeighborly Faith studied academic publications addressing this issue and created a detailed, 14-point compromise definition stating, in part: “Christian Nationalism is a movement advancing a vision of America's past, present, and future that excludes people of non-Christian religions and non-Western cultures. Christian Nationalists romanticize Christianity's influence on America's development, attributing the nation's historical provenance to God's special favor.”
Read MoreNo doubt about it. Quite a few students up north are taking their talents, and tuition dollars, to Southern states. For a conservative take on the statistics, see this Daily Mail piece: “Why college kids are abandoning Ivy Leagues to go to Southern schools.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) “Father Justin,” a 3D AI character created by the San Diego-based Catholic Answers network, offered biblical advice for wrestling with anger. That’s when legions of cyberspace believers pounced.
Read MoreObituaries are hard to write. When a reporter tries to describe a complex person, who has lived a complex life, it’s rather like trying to write a biography in 700 to 1,000 words. In the end, you have to make choices about which facts and themes to stress.
Read More(ANALYSIS) During his 2,454 days in captivity — between strategic moves among 20 or more hiding places in Lebanon — journalist Terry Anderson was often allowed by Hezbollah leaders to read a Bible.
Read MoreActually, we do need to talk about terms like “liberal” and “conservative” since the struggle to define these kinds of journalism labels was the hook for this week’s “Crossroads” podcast.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Close observers of Eastern Orthodox Christianity were not surprised when the recent World Russian People’s Council bluntly rejected “abortion propaganda,” efforts to promote LGBTQ rights and this age of “sexual licentiousness and debauchery.” It wasn’t surprising when that Moscow conference urged the defense of traditional families, “strong with many children,” during an era where birth rates are falling.
Read MoreIt was the must-read article of the week, especially for anyone interested in how cultural, moral, political and, yes, religious issues are covered in one of America’s most influential newsrooms.
Read More(ANALYSIS) In the late 1970s, researchers began asking why journalists often struggle when covering religion stories or avoid religious news altogether. I wrote my 1982 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduate project on this topic, and some of that work was published by Quill, the magazine of the Society of Professional Journalists. This week marks the start of my 36th year writing this “On Religion” column.
Read MoreTry to imagine an America in which families that have, for generations, urged their children to serve in the armed services stopped doing precisely that. Here is a question about the religion data in that equation: Can Episcopal and liberal mainline Protestant churches in the Northeast produce as many future soldiers as Baptists, Pentecostals and nondenominational evangelicals in the Bible Belt?
Read More(ANALYSIS) Sen. Joe Lieberman died on March 27 at age 82, ending a career defined as much by his life as an Orthodox Jew as by his attempts to remain a centrist as Democrats kept moving to the cultural left. While voting with his party on issues such as abortion, gun control and gay rights, he was a strong supporter of religious liberty — including for conservatives who frequently clashed with his party.
Read MoreIn the year since the Covenant School shootings, authorities — think FBI — have said they cannot release the manifesto and diaries of shooter Audrey (Aiden) Hale because they are relevant to ongoing investigations. If that is the case, then it’s safe to assume that these investigations are real. If they are not real, then that’s a stunning fact in an of itself.
Read More(ANALYSIS) At this stage in his country music career, Oliver Anthony is still reaching his fans by propping his smartphone in a tour bus window and recording social media videos. Seven months ago, of course, he didn't have a career, didn’t have a tour bus and didn't have fans.
Read MoreWhy do churches grow? Lots of reasons. Why do churches shrink and die? Lots of reasons. That’s the complex reality that we discussed during this week’s “Crossroads” podcast.
Read More(ANALYSIS) There is a “Demos II” epistle from another anonymous cardinal — criticizing Pope Francis and describing seven tasks facing the next pontiff.
Read MoreOn this week’s “Crossroads” podcast, we focus on a top-secret meeting of Catholic bishops and trans Catholics, their families and some LGBTQ+ activists. You probably didn’t read about this newsy meeting because the mainstream press didn’t cover it (unless I have missed something).
Read More(ANALYSIS) Often, these “nominal Christian men” internalize the “real-man script” while defending their behavior by “pinning Christian language” on abusive beliefs.
Read MoreA major “parental rights” case in Indiana is big news — only it's being ignored by the mainstream press.
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