Politics
The Trump administration’s aggressive immigration crackdown in Minnesota — which has led to confrontations with protesters and two high-profile shooting deaths of U.S. citizens — has dominated national headlines for days and even weeks. Here are key faith angles to follow.
Delegates from 17 congregations of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America heard five hours of argument in a church outside of Pittsburgh on Jan. 24. They determined Samuel Ketcham, a self-described “race realist” who says white supremacy is a historical fact, is guilty of “serious sin … and to the profession of the Reformed Presbyterian Church.”
(ANALYSIS) Beyond the debate over who is polarized in the U.S., there’s an adjacent, and perhaps more critical, discussion I want to tackle today: What drives polarized views? There is ample reason to think that religiosity impacts views on topics like abortion, same-sex marriage, and gender identity.
An affidavit describes how protesters disrupted a Jan. 18 service at Minneapolis’ Cities Church, frightening worshippers, blocking parents from children, and forcing families to flee. Federal agents say organizers targeted the church over alleged ICE ties, leading to arrests and civil rights conspiracy charges under an 1871 federal law statute.
Since December, the Department of Homeland Security has deployed about 3,000 federal agents to the state where Minnesotas’s Tim Walz — the 2024 running mate for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris — serves as governor. Over that time, ICE agents have killed two people, unleashing violence and protests across Minneapolis.
This past Dec. 18, on International Migrants Day, participants in an interfaith prayer group gathered at Winton’s statue with Jewish children. In freezing weather and amid the noise of passing trains, the refugees were remembered by the people who had helped them.
In South Africa, a child or woman faces rape or murder every 23 seconds, with perpetrators including pastors and trusted figures. Survivors like Fikile Sondela-Farrow recount lifelong trauma from clerical abuse. Amid several acquittals, thousands have marched, prompting lawmakers to declare gender-based violence a national disaster. Churches are enhancing safeguards.
The Pennsylvania governor’s new memoir, “Where We Keep the Light,” explores his Jewish identity, principled stances on Israel and political risks. He recounts antisemitic attacks, early ties to Israel and his refusal to soften controversial views during 2024 VP vetting, offering a candid reflection ahead of a potential 2028 run.
During this tense moment in journalism, will Southern Baptist leaders return telephone calls from elite newsrooms or will they choose to speak to “conservative” and “religious” publications, alone?
“Why not keep busy?” That’s Richard Ostling’s response when asked why he’s still covering religion at age 85 — after six decades on the Godbeat.
(ANALYSIS) The Maldives, the small South Asian island nation, recently passed a new law to tighten the noose of the media. But this new law also indirectly strengthens the state’s restriction on religious freedom. Under this law, media outlets will be punished if they publish any content that contradicts Islamic principles or that could be seen as offensive to Islamic sentiments.
Federal authorities announced arrests after activists disrupted a Minneapolis Southern Baptist church service to protest ICE activities. Civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong and two others were charged under an 1871 conspiracy statute. Church leaders have condemned the protest, while activists called it a peaceful demonstration.
“It is painful to see how, especially in the West, the space for genuine freedom of expression is rapidly shrinking," said Leo.
Nearly 175 worshippers were abducted on Jan. 18 from three churches in Kaduna State in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, Christian advocacy groups reported, after at least 35 were killed in separate attacks on villages in the Middle Belt and eastern Nigeria.
Leaders of Cities Church condemned protestors who disrupted a St. Paul worship service, calling the conduct unlawful and intimidating. Pastor Jonathan Parnell addressed the incident biblically, urging perseverance. The Department of Justice began investigating, while church leaders affirmed their mission and called on authorities to protect religious freedom rights broadly.
(REVIEW) Ryan Burge has created the most important and readable book right now to understand religious decline and polarization in the U.S. His message to commit your life to a shared community is one America needs right now. But it will be up to others to create and maintain the compelling shared vision that binds together the community that Burge wants.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi says she has spoken to a Minnesota pastor following a disruption by protestors during Cities Church’s morning worship service on Sunday. “Attacks against law enforcement and the intimidation of Christians are being met with the full force of federal law,” Bondi wrote on X late Sunday night.
An anti-ICE protest disrupted Sunday worship at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minn., with demonstrators chanting inside the sanctuary. Former CNN anchor Don Lemon streamed the incident live. Southern Baptist leaders condemned the disruption, calling it a violation of religious freedom and urging authorities to protect churches.
(OPINION) Christians understand what science reveals: masculinity and femininity are fixed moral categories that God has made and declared to be good. When societies reject God’s moral law, anarchy results. God’s people must boldly declare to the world what is true. At the same time, we must communicate the good news of the Gospel to those who disagree.
(ANALYSIS) Where are there lots of evangelical Christians in the United States, and where is it hard to find one? That’s actually a really difficult question to answer from a methodological perspective. Very few surveys offer enough granularity to provide rigorous state-level estimates, let alone data at the county level. But because of the rapid acceleration of Artificial Intelligence, I can actually provide you all with a really good answer now.
Perhaps not surprisingly, in a Bible Belt state such as Oklahoma, religion came up even in prison reporting — from Catholic bishops making appeals at clemency hearings to Allen, the inmate whose death I witnessed, declaring in her final statement, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
India recorded 1,318 in-person hate speech incidents in 2025, averaging more than three each day and overwhelmingly led by Hindu nationalist groups affiliated with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. The report supports the inference that a political choice is behind the sustained scale of public incitement, which undermines both the rule of law and the idea of equal citizenship.
Violence against Christians has reached an all-time high in 15 countries, with 388 million people facing severe persecution worldwide, Open Doors reported. Nigeria remains the deadliest nation, while Syria saw the largest single-year rise amid instability. Other dangerous parts of the world include North Korea, Somalia and Yemen.
(ANALYSIS) When protests began in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar in December, authorities misjudged them as limited economic unrest. Instead, demonstrations spread nationwide, killing thousands and drawing in ethnic minorities. The uprising exposed deep divides over change, revealing that centralized opposition visions failed to address Iran’s ethnic diversity adequately.
A Nigerian minister and humanitarian urged the U.S. government to use peaceful methods to address religious persecution during a Jan. 13 USCIRF hearing in Washington. Rebecca Dali said bombing worsened trauma for communities and encouraged intelligence-based cooperation, as witnesses testified about Christian persecution in multiple countries worldwide.
(OPINION) Days of protest across Iran left hundreds dead as authorities imposed an unprecedented internet blackout to suppress dissent. Social media nevertheless shaped mobilization, documentation and global awareness through diaspora networks and dissident media, revealing escalating demands for regime change through the use of technology.
History nerds rejoice! An incredibly detailed land-use survey and census from the 1500s, commissioned by none other than Henry VIII, will soon be digitally available to everyone, including genealogists, educators, researchers and community groups, thanks to a new $2 million project. The historic records, published under the title “Valor Ecclesiasticus,” or Value of the Church, were the Tudor equivalent of the Domesday Book.
(OPINION) Christian Reconstructionism was a small but influential movement within conservative Protestantism that argued society should be governed by biblical law. Originating with R. J. Rushdoony, its ideas spread through churches, homeschooling, and dominionist networks, shaping debates over religion, politics and culture in the United States.
Nigeria, Rwanda, China, Mozambique and Mexico were the most dangerous countries for Christians from 2023-2025 in five distinct categories of persecution, Global Christian Relief said in its second annual Red List.
Former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested early Friday morning for his role in the Jan. 18 disruption at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minn.