Finding chaplains on-site at a National Trust heritage property is not something visitors usually expect. But at Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire, in the north of England, it has become a regular occurrence. The Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII marked the end of Fountains Abbey as a Cistercian monastery.
Read MoreWhile only 20% of U.S. adults currently identify as Catholic by religion, millions more hold cultural, familial or historical ties to the church. Among those who identify as Catholic by religion, levels of observance differ. Only 13% reported never or rarely engaging in any of the faith’s core practices. The vast majority — 74% — fall somewhere in between, the report said.
Read MoreAfter a half-decade marked by upheaval, many Christian communities across the United States are showing signs not only of recovery but of renewed vitality, a new study released on Monday revealed. The report looks at a large and diverse sample of American churchgoers say their faith is stronger, their churches more vibrant and their involvement more consistent than at any point.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Compared to Europe, where many sainthood causes benefit from institutional support, funding and access to the Vatican, Africa faces unique challenges. Canonization is a complex and costly process. It requires documentation, verification of miracles and years of advocacy. Local dioceses may lack the resources to keep these causes moving forward. In the end, many African Catholics feel like their voices and stories have been left on the margins.
Read MoreAs African migration — driven largely by economic hardship and the search for better opportunities — continues to grow, churches are becoming more than just places of worship. In fact, churches have evolved into spiritual lifelines and vital community hubs that help preserve cultural identity, reinforce moral values and provide a sense of belonging far from home.
Read MoreFor the first time in centuries, public access to the Knock has been denied. Although the hill is widely acknowledged to be used publicly, it’s technically private land. After a group went to the summit for a winter solstice ceremony last year — honoring what many believe to be the hill’s ancient role in sun worship — they received a letter from the landowner warning they were trespassing.
Read MoreBetween 2010 and 2020, global religious affiliation shifted significantly, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis. While Christianity remains the world’s largest religion, its growth lagged behind overall population growth. Christians increased by 122 million to 2.3 billion, but their share of the global population fell. At the same time, Islam saw a global surge.
Read MoreExploring interfaith dialogue using knitting is the surprising theme of a new touring event taking place around the United Kingdom. It all started when Canadian actor and artist Kirk Dunn developed a passion for knitting. The result is an interfaith look at society, how faith can bring people together for a unique show and the “commonalities and conflicts between the three Abrahamic faiths.”
Read MoreMany Jews are outraged that while the war in Gaza has been raging since Oct. 7, 2023 and they have suffered many casualties and interruptions to their civilian life in response to repeated reserve duty call-ups, their able-bodied ultra-Orthodox fellow citizens have not shared the defense burden. The IDF faces shortages, needing approximately 12,000 new recruits, including 7,000 combat soldiers.
Read MoreThe Ahmadiyya community in Pakistan has long experienced significant constraints on its religious practices. From not being allowed to call their places of worship “mosques” or use Islamic terms such as “Azan” (call to prayer) to not being able to vote because Ahmadis must either renounce their faith or agree to be placed on a separate electoral list categorizing them as “non-Muslim.”
Read MoreBerlin faces growing intolerance of immigrants and their religions, especially Muslim Arabs from countries like Turkey and Syria. right-wing extremist political parties like the Alternative for Germany echo Nazi talking points and pine for a homogenous, white and Christian society. History, however, shows that such a time never existed.
Read MoreYour view of the health of American Christian congregations and of their clergy may very much depends on the angle taken: Up from the orchestra or looking down from the balcony. One thing seems evident: In a country in which Christian affiliation has declined (though there are signs it has stabilized) many Catholic and Protestant clergy face significant challenges.
Read MoreThroughout the 19th and 20th centuries, Christianity flowed from Europe and North America to Africa, often carried by missionaries. But in the 21st century, the pattern has reversed. African-led churches are now sending their own missionaries abroad, and many are planting churches in many former colonial capitals.
Read MoreZachariah Fufeyin, a priest hailing from the Catholic Diocese of Bomadi in southern Nigeria, had only one mission when he started livestock farming at Our Lady of the Waters Farm in November 2019: To help the poor and provide animal protein to low-income families.
Read MoreNearly one in three U.S. adults say they consult astrology, tarot cards or fortune tellers at least once a year — though most do so for entertainment rather than a form of religious guidance, according to a new survey. The Pew Research Center study found that 30% engage with at least one form of metaphysical or mystical insight annually. However, Pew researchers noted that few Americans report making major life decisions based on what they learn from these practices.
Read MoreIn India, caste oppression is a persistent and insidious reality that continues to affect millions, even in communities that formally reject caste divisions. The Christian community, which upholds the belief in equality before God, is not exempt from this social inequality. Dalit Christians, in particular, face discrimination and exclusion — even within church spaces. However, a growing number of Dalit Christians are challenging this oppression.
Read MoreA week doesn’t go by without President Donald Trump talking about “needing” to acquire Greenland. As reporters rush to cover this mysterious territory, much has been said the island’s politics and melting ice — but nothing about the island’s eclectic religious mix of Lutherans, Pentecostals, Baptists, Baha’is and Catholics.
Read MoreTwo years after gaining political independence from Britain in 1980, Zimbabwe plunged into another dark era. The government sanctioned a military operation named “Gukurahundi,” which means “the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains.” More than 20,000 civilians were murdered in the 1980s — and now churches are being called on to help with the reckoning.
Read MoreA day after being chosen the first U.S.-born pontiff, Pope Leo XIV said on Friday that his election was both a blessing and a cross to bear. The Chicago-born Augustinian missionary Robert Prevost surprised the world on Thursday when the conclave elected him pope, overcoming the traditional prohibition against a pontiff from the United States.
Read MoreIt was the white plume of smoke that ushered in a new pope — and the reaction that the head of the Catholic Church is an American sparked reaction across the nation. Everyone had something to say about Cardinal Robert Prevost, now known as Pope Leo XIV. The pope, who hails from Chicago’s South Side, had made history as the first U.S.-born pontiff in the church’s 2,000-year history.
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