The book, six years in the making, vividly recreates Pope Francis’ childhood in Buenos Aires and offers few new insights into his papacy. The book is enhanced by remarkable photographs, including private and unpublished material made personally available by Francis himself. He tackles a series of topics, including the future of the church, social policy, migration and the environmental crisis.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Could it possibly have been coincidence? The very day Congress certified Donald Trump’s election as the next U.S. president, the Vatican announced the transfer of San Diego’s Cardinal Robert McElroy to become the politically significant archbishop of Washington, D.C. There’s no doubt Pope Francis wants McElroy to keep an eye on Trump.
Read MoreUn nuevo museo de inmigrantes, cerca de las iglesias anglicanas y luteranas del siglo XIX y los cementerios católicos y protestantes, planea convertirse en el centro de la vida cultural de la atracción más visitada de Valparaíso, el Cerro Concepción. La antigua Escuela Alemana de Valparaíso está siendo renovada para convertirse en el Museo del Inmigrante.
Read MoreA new immigrant museum near the 19th-century Anglican and Lutheran churches and Catholic and Protestant cemeteries plans to become the center of cultural life on Valparaíso’s most visited attraction, Cerro Concepción. The former German School of Valparaíso is undergoing a renovation to become the Museo del Inmigrante.
Read MoreIt may be the start of a new year, but many of the same issues and concerns will dominate the news cycle in 2025. From Pope Francis’ health from the erosion of religious freedom in many parts of the globe to the moral implications that come with the widespread use of AI, here’s what to watch for in the new year.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Almost two decades ago, the reigning editor of The New York Times admitted, during a speech to the National College Media Association, that the world’s most influential journalism cathedral had changed one of its core doctrines.
Read MoreWhile the global median score on the Government Restrictions Index (based on several factors) held steady in 2022 at 3.0 out of 10, the number of countries with “high” or “very high” levels of government religious restrictions rose to 59, which accounts for 30% of the 198 countries and territories Pew Research Center studied.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Technology, AI and social media have been developed for the common good, to make our lives easier, one way or another. However, they can also be abused — and this is precisely what we have seen across contemporary cases of genocide.
Read MoreThe mission didn’t go as planned.
Twenty years ago, a team of Freed-Hardeman University graduates moved to the capital of this South American nation of 6.8 million people. Trained by Great Cities Missions, they followed a time-tested blueprint used by the 48-year-old ministry, which seeks to establish lighthouses — strong, thriving churches — in major cities across Latin America.
Read More(ANALYSIS) An estimated 18 million Americans are invested in cryptocurrency, according to the Federal Reserve. And the United States just elected a pro-crypto president. But is cryptocurrency a good ethical investment?
Read More(ANALYSIS) The creative economy is about translating the inspiration of culture and ideas into high-value businesses and enterprises. For billions of people around the world their faith is a big source of inspiration and creativity. Artificial intelligence will be a major disruptor of our economy. It will also allow many people to join the ranks of the creative economy like never before. In essence, faith has a role to play in the unfurling of the next chapter in humanity’s economic story.
Read MoreFreedom of religion or belief, a right that speaks to something so deep-seated in each of us that it practically defines what it is to be human, is under attack in many parts of the world. Repressive laws, exclusion, deportation, imprisonment and out-and-out genocide threaten the liberty of far too many religious communities in far too many places.
Read MoreAddressing the Synod Assembly on Saturday evening, Pope Francis highlighted how the Final Document, written over the course of the 2nd Session of the Synod on Synodality that began on Oct. 2 following a process of listening and dialogue, is the fruit of over three years of listening to the People of God.
Read MoreThe Vatican’s doctrinal summit opened this week with one issue deemed to be out of bounds: female deacons. Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernandez, the Vatican’s prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, said that the church was not “rushing” on the issue.
Read MoreA new survey of Catholics in the United States and across six Latin American countries found that majorities want the church to allow for the use of birth control and letting women become priests. The Pew Research Center study also found that public opinion was more divided on whether the church should allow priests to marry and the recognition of same-sex marriages.
Read More“Our small Cessna bobbled lower and lower until its wheels made contact with the gravel runway, slicing through its many puddles,” Devon Faulkner wrote in a blog entry. After deplaning, Faulkner and his partner walked off the landing strip and into the jungle. Faulkner serves as a Project 3000 missionary explorer with the International Mission Board.
Read More(REVIEW) Is subjugation and oppression central to the life of a Muslim woman? What roles do Islamophobia and white supremacy have in this misogyny? And where do the biggest threats to Muslim women’s freedom and safety really come from? These are some of the many pertinent questions that Samia Rahman answers in her new book, “Muslim Women and Misogyny: Myths and Misunderstandings.”
Read MoreDr. Nina Balmaceda recently finished a project focused on uncovering the story of Peace and Hope International over its first 25 years, emphasizing the spiritual dimensions of social and political renewal in Latin America. Her research has focused on the organization's spiritual understanding of love — deeply rooted in its Christian tradition — through political and social responsibility.
Read MoreAs Hurricane Beryl made its way toward Mexico on July 4, Christians across the Caribbean began the long task of damage assessment and recovery. Two days earlier, the Category 4 hurricane devastated the island of Carriacou, population 9,600, which is part of the nation of Grenada.
Read MoreJews are a tiny minority in Mexico’s population of 130 million: 60,000, according to the latest national census. Those connected to the tight-knit Jewish community clustered in suburbs around Mexico City are estimated to be around 45,000. On the face of it, those small numbers make it remarkable that a Jewish woman, Claudia Sheinbaum, won the recent presidential election in a landslide.
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