(OPINION) Governments have often overstepped their bounds in restricting religious gatherings more than other types of gatherings in restaurants, protests or casinos. Media has unfairly blamed churches for spreading COVID-19 cases when they make up a tiny portion of the overall case spread. But should churches defy orders and worship in-person?
Read More(OPINION) In times of crisis, people often turn to religion for comfort and understanding. Studies have shown that prayer and interest in prayer have increased since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Read More(OPINION) Tisha b’Av is a Jewish day of mourning to remember the destruction of Judaism’s First Temple in Jerusalem in 586 BCE and the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE. The way this mourning is completed provides valuable insight on how to handle the problems of our country today.
Read MoreAt least 82 positive COVID-19 cases link back to Christian youth camp Kamp Kanakuk’s site in Lampe, Missouri. The camp has now shut down for the season.
Read More(OPINION) India needs to urgently tackle its problems of obvious intolerance and police brazenness against members of the minority Muslim community and those who protest the government. Recent viral videos show physical attacks and intimidation have become commonplace, particularly under the guise of enforcing COVID-19 lockdown measures.
Read More(OPINION) Conversations surrounding structural racism and how to address it have risen to national attention, particularly in the disparate impact of COVID-19 on communities of color and in recent incidents of violence against Black people. This interview explores one pastor’s vision for the role of community-based, Black congregations and faith-based nonprofits in advancing solutions relevant to structural racism.
Read More(OPINION) The Kutupalong refugee camps in Bangladesh are inhabited primarily by the Rohingya, a Muslim minority group that fled mass atrocities in Myanmar. Amid the spread of COVID-19, there is a growing fear that the refugees will now face further threat to their lives, as the camps are more densely populated than New York City.
Read More(OPINION) The white-majority mainstream media often ignore the news of Black religion. Reporters should pay more attention to how African-American newspapers are treating the coronavirus crisis, with its disproportionate impact on communities of color, alongside the nationwide reckoning on police conduct, structural racism and protests.
Read More(OPINION) Like secular news outlets, Catholic media also face financial hardships created by the pandemic. This is a trend that has, of course, affected all news media and across many other industries, such as hospitality and tourism to name just two.
Read MoreThe newly ordained must take everything they learned and adapt it to serve their communities during a pandemic. New chaplains in particular are jumping into virtual pastoral care and may have to wait on certifications that lockdowns have delayed.
Read MoreLike everything else that involves large gatherings, the global pandemic has forced many schools to either hold their ceremonies online or postpone them to a future date. For the colleges and universities that did decide to hold ceremonies this month, the topic of God wasn’t far from the minds of commencement speakers like actor Tom Hanks.
Read MoreThe geneticist and physician is a leading voice in the conversation about faith and science, and has been a steady voice urging religious communities to have faith in science. His agency is hard at work in the global race to find treatments for COVID-19.
Read More(OPINION) Believers draw strength from their faith and support from their communities. The coronavirus is straining the remarkable resilience of medical workers, even those who have the added safety nets that religion provides.
Read MoreAs COVID-19 locks people in their homes and has put others out of work, more people than ever are relying on charities, many faith-based, to fill basic needs. Tree of Life, based in Virginia, has seen a rise in demand from undocumented persons.
Read More(OPINION) Restrictions by the Church of England and a “revolving” Body of Christ by a French Catholic priest are two responses to this crisis as clergy struggle to attend to the spiritual needs of their flocks.
Read More(OPINION) Nobody knows how long the COVID-19 crisis will last. Simply “waiting it out” is not an option for businesses, and it’s not am option for faith communities. In order to stay relevant in this time of uncertainty, churches need to exercise the same innovation seen in the marketplace.
Read MoreFor Holocaust survivors, including some who later lived under Communist rule, COVID-19 has brought a mixed bag of old traumas sparked anew, depression and anxiety, isolation and fear, but also reminders of the traits that sustained them through difficult periods in their lives.
Read MoreA neighbor of the field hospital and an area activist had sharply different reactions to Franklin Graham’s organization setting up an emergency medical facility in Central Park.
Read More(OPINION) The ever-evolving coronavirus pandemic has upended our world in ways no one could have ever expected. Journalists still don’t know where this story is going. One thing is clear. While death tolls climb and fall depending on which countries are effectively flattening the curve, the vast majority of those of us who are healthy and staying at home still have to deal with loneliness.
Read More(OPINION) People of faith will be asking deep questions about said faith as this crisis drags on. Journalists should not sidestep that aspect of this experience, but inquire about it and treat it with the respect it deserves.
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