Posts tagged Zenger News
Rising Wedding Costs Drive Ugandan Men Away From Marriage

The rising price of weddings are discouraging men in Uganda from marrying, raising significant concern among religious and political leaders. Leaders said they worry the trend may undermine family stability.  A Ugandan Demographics and Health Survey report from 2011 found that 38% of men ages 15 to 49 have never been married, compared with 24% of women in the same age group. The report noted that men tend to marry at much older ages than women.

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Not So Holy Ghost: Tour The UK’s Spookiest Churches And Sacred Sites

From ghostly monks and spectral nuns to unexplained footsteps and phantom screams, Britain’s ancient religious sites are steeped in supernatural folklore. Discover how centuries of faith, conflict, burial traditions and architectural grandeur have inspired haunting legends that continue to captivate ghost hunters and Halloween enthusiasts alike.

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US Religious Attendance Holds Steady, With Mixed Results For Young Adults

Religious participation in the United States is showing signs of stability following years of decline, but new research from Pew also suggests that reports of a religious revival among young adults may tell only part of the story. For now, these latest findings point to a recovery in religious attendance alongside continued long-term uncertainty about faith in America.

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On Many College Campuses, Some Students Are Turning to Catholicism

Over the last few years, young educated adults are finding Catholicism more attractive than other forms of Christianity. Even at secular universities, these young men and women have settled on the Catholic Church, drawn in by its 2000-year-old intellectual tradition and beauty. Data from the prayer app Hallow shows that colleges saw students involved with Catholicism jump 115%.

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Japan’s Christians Confront A New Rising Tide Of Nationalism

Christians make up roughly 1% of Japan’s population, and churches are increasingly multicultural, welcoming immigrants from neighboring countries. However, national politics have taken a decidedly nationalistic turn in recent years — worrying Christians that they will once again be ostracized and even face persecution.

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National Fund Awards Over $9 Million To 30 Congregations For Historic Preservation

The latest grant round drew 466 applicants and includes the program’s first recipient in Arkansas, as historic houses of worship seek funding to preserve their buildings and community services.

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‘2-Church Families’ Highlight Africa’s Growing Christian Diversity

There used to be only a few regionalized mainline churches to choose from and husbands were once in total control of family decisions. When the African continent started to rapidly urbanize, family dynamics changed and it has become common for marriages to form across different church denominations, sparking a trend called “two-church families.”

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Vatican Says Pope Leo XIV Diagnosed With Lung Cancer

Pope Leo XIV underwent surgery on Tuesday in Rome that confirmed he has lung cancer. Doctor’s removed the lower lobe of the pope’s right lung after tests confirmed the diagnosis. A Vatican statement made no mention of treatment going forward. The Vatican, however, said doctors were not currently speaking of chemotherapy or other therapies.

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UFOs, Demons Or Something Else?: Mystery Grows Around Sacred African Mountain

The highest peak in Zimbabwe, standing at 2,592 meters above sea level, has been the source of local intrigue for decades: People have gone missing, strange natural phenomena have created inexplicable mystical experiences, and now, some are even claiming the mountain is home to UFOs. Whatever the case, it has attracted curious travelers from around the world.

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‘Sowing And Growing’: UK Churches Bring Back Community Gardens

More than 9,000 Anglican churches and chapels across the United Kingdom participate in the A Rocha U.K. Eco-Church movement, which encourages congregations to care for the environment around their buildings. This has become a bigger part of church outreach, especially in the six years since the pandemic.

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How A Michigan Church Embraces Its Muslim Neighbors

An anti-Islam rally promoted as a “Christian Crusader March” drew hundreds of demonstrators and counterdemonstrators to this majority Arab American city of Dearborn, Michigan. A few participants carried assault rifles as police in riot gear patrolled. The Sunday after the recent protest, minister Wayne Beason felt compelled to speak up for his Muslim neighbors.

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Blessing The Beasts: How Animals Are Finding Their Place In Church

Puppies in the pews? Churches worldwide are gearing up to celebrate St. Francis, patron saint of animals, by inviting pets, including goats, cats, tortoises and more into their buildings to receive a special blessing — chaotic comedy often ensues.

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A Nun And Composer Team Up To Tell St. Francis Of Assisi’s Story: ‘He Continues To Speak’

St. Francis has inspired people for generations — and now, on the 800th anniversary of his death, he will inspire people once more, though a moving composition about his life.

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In Red Texas, Talarico Makes Faith Part Of His Democratic Appeal

A private Christian college in a historically red state isn’t usually a campaign stop for a Democratic candidate. But James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Texas, did just that, making it a priority to recently visit Baylor University, the largest Baptist university in the nation. Talarico’s Christian faith — combined with his progressive agenda — has made him an appealing candidate.

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Under Taliban Rule, Afghan Women Face Renewed Persecution

Experts said that the Taliban is using women’s own Muslim faith to “dehumanize” them. “The very religion that gives them strength is being used against them,” one expert said. In a country where only Sunni Muslims are considered citizens, religious minorities increasingly face danger, imprisonment and even death.

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How American Muslims Are Responding To Rising Hate

Twenty-five years after 9/11, American Muslim communities face record levels of anti-Islamic bias, attacks and political hostility. From Michigan’s police partnerships to Texas’s legal battles, mosques are strengthening security and grassroots vigilance, seeking to protect worshippers while preserving spaces of faith, fellowship and belonging.

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Mormons Becoming A Bit More Liberal, Less Religious

In Hulu’s “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” half of the show’s reality TV cast are unceremoniously disinvited from their friend’s baby blessing party. Their alleged transgression? Not being Mormon enough. The episode hits on a larger cultural trend: Mormons appear to have grown less religious, according to a new study.

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Sikh Temples Help Tackle India’s Environmental Crisis

Farmers were not burning fields out of ignorance about the harm it caused — they were burning because it was what they had always seen done. The answer? The connecting of agricultural lessons with spiritual truths. For Delhi, whose winter air quality crisis is inseparable from what happens in Punjab’s fields each October, that lesson carries direct and urgent relevance.

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Pope Leo’s Adopted Hometown To Take Center Stage During Tour

The pope’s upcoming South America trip will temporarily double the population of his adopted hometown in Peru. With limited hotel capacity compared to Lima or Cusco, the Chiclayo government is preparing the residents to have rooms available for the visitors who will arrive to see Leo. As part of Leo’s first apostolic journey to South America, he will visit 10 cities in Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.

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La Ciudad Adoptada Del Papa Será El Centro De Atención Durante Su Próxima Visita

The pope’s upcoming South America trip will temporarily double the population of his adopted hometown in Peru. With limited hotel capacity compared to Lima or Cusco, the Chiclayo government is preparing the residents to have rooms available for the visitors who will arrive to see Leo.

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