(ANALYSIS) It seemed inevitable that the first encyclical from the first American pope, the forward-looking and worldly-wise Leo XIV, would focus on the growing furor over artificial intelligence. The pope’s encyclical comes as the culmination of various articles during recent weeks about the implications of AI on faith, ethics and morals.
Read More(ANALYSIS) President Donald Trump had a really interesting idea: Identify the 250 greatest Americans of all time on the 250th anniversary of the United States. There could have been a lively nationwide discussion, perhaps with a festival of varied experts and online balloting. Instead, some unknown process produced Trump’s designation of 192 men and 52 women.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Across American history, many colleges have attenuated or dropped their original religious purposes. Harvard University stripped down its 17th-century Latin motto, “Veritas Christo et Ecclesiae” (Truth for Christ and the Church) to simply “Veritas.” However, Baylor still proclaims “integrating academic excellence and Christian commitment” as its core mission.
Read More(ANALYSIS) American religion has rarely, if ever, seen anything quite like these past weeks. Start with President Donald Trump’s profane Easter Sunday message to Iran. Making matters worse, the president then took on Pope Leo, saying the pontiff is a “very liberal person” who is “weak on crime” and “terrible on foreign policy.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) Christianity is growing globally, especially in the Global South and parts of Europe, with record adult conversions in Monaco, France, Austria, Belgium and rising U.S. Catholic baptisms. But earlier claims of a British revival were debunked, and U.S. secularism, though temporarily declining, remains high among younger generations, suggesting long-term Western decline.
Read MoreBefore the war broke out, knowledgeable observers agreed that a vast majority of long-suffering Iranians despised the ruling theocracy’s incompetence and oppression. So a revolution now might seem as likely as in 1979, when such widespread revulsion brought down one dictator, only to be replaced by another one.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Our polarized era features unique and quasi-religious devotion toward President Donald Trump from his MAGA base, set against profound hostility from foes of his words and deeds. Church leaders in that second camp, mostly mainline and liberal Protestants, have issued a new plea worth noting for the extent of its supporters and a markedly fierce denunciation of America’s “cruel and oppressive government.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) An intriguing religious issue is raised by an odd space-age colloquy in mid-February between Barack Obama and Donald Trump. Out of the blue, political podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen asked Obama, “Are aliens real?” He immediately replied, “They’re real, but I haven’t seen them” and he knows of no proof that extraterrestrials exist.
Read More(ANALYSIS) After 188 years of illustrious efforts worldwide, the PCUSA’s foreign mission agency is disbanding. The denomination said it would no longer dispatch a corps of career missionaries overseas, though it will continue to aid international partners.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Former Irish President Mary McAleese argues that infant baptism violates children’s human rights by imposing church membership without consent. Critics respond that parents possess religious freedom in child-rearing, note historical and biblical defenses of infant baptism, and compare similar birth rituals across Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism.
Read More(ANALYSIS) President Trump’s deportation drive is reshaping the 2026 battle for Congress, but celebrity protests and mass demonstrations show little evidence of moving voters. The real test may come in churches, especially among Catholics, whose leaders condemn mass deportations and whose increasingly fluid voting patterns could decide close races.
Read More(ANALYSIS) As the complexities in Venezuela continue to evolve, President Donald Trump held his first face-to-face meeting with democratic opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. Universal consensus says her party won the 2024 presidential vote by two-thirds or better, whereupon dictator Nicolás Maduro, now imprisoned in New York City, stole the office.
Read More(ANALYSIS) You’ve seen the headlines about Iran’s uprising, but there is a deeper story: Two-thirds of the nation’s mosques, 50,000 out of 75,000, have been closed due to declining worship attendance, according to a high-ranking cleric. What does that mean for Iran and for Islam?
Read More(ANALYSIS) Lots. And no expert is better equipped to portray the turbulence than Washington University political scientist Ryan Burge.
Read More(ANALYSIS) How should Christians honor the Virgin Mary’s unique status as the mother of Jesus Christ? How speak of her? What believe about her?
Read More(ANALYSIS) A widespread populist rebellion against the well-educated and well-paid “elite” that has ruled culture provides the framework for actions that would have been inconceivable not long ago. Religious elites, too, face resistance and a weakened ability to overcome such disillusionment across society, and also within their own ranks.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The 2025 Story of the Year in religion is obviously the surprise May 8 election of the first Pope from the United States, Leo XIV. The second-place story, less publicized but important, is the Oct. 16 proclamation of a planned split among the world’s 97 million Anglican Christians over their anguishing dispute on the Bible and sexual morality.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Mamdani is America’s first high-profile Muslim office-holder. The campaign’s competing accusations of “antisemitism” versus “Islamophobia” raise obvious concerns for Muslims, and for Jews, for whom New York has long been the most important town west of Tel Aviv. Signals are mixed on whether the Mamdani era will improve, or worsen, relations between these communities.
Read More(ANALYSIS) As media pundits over-interpret the nationwide impact of elections in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia and California, let’s contemplate this: What do the data on religious dynamics say about prospects for a rather demoralized Democratic Party in 2026-2032, and whether a more centrist strategy might help?
Read More(ANALYSIS) With its pending case of Christian psychological counselor Kaley Chiles, the U.S. Supreme Court faces a potentially momentous choice between her claim of free speech during therapy, over against Colorado’s professional licensing standards that forbid so-called “conversion therapy” regarding homosexual orientation and transgender transitions.
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