(ANALYSIS) Prediction markets are rapidly transforming betting from sports into wagers on politics, disasters, wars, celebrities and virtually anything imaginable. Their explosive growth raises questions about gambling, addiction, market manipulation, insider information, public trust and morality, while regulators, lawmakers, religious leaders and ethics experts struggle to respond.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Throughout his life, Berry, who died on Aug. 31, was a leading advocate of environmental stewardship. You might recognize his belief system in what’s known as creation care today. It embraces a responsibility to care for the Earth and all its creatures. Berry increasingly saw that ethic violated by the industrialization of agriculture and ignored by a dominionist theology, preached by some prominent American Christians, which holds that humans have a God-given right to exploit the Earth’s resources.
Read More(ESSAY) For millions, 9/11 divided life into a “before” and an “after.” From a Christian perspective, looking back on that day reminds us of the fragility of life. The events of 9/11 changed the world, but they did not change the character of God. He remains the God who sees the brokenhearted, strengthens the weary and promises that one day suffering will end.
Read More(ANALYSIS) I learned she had died while gazing around inside an airplane approaching the Rocky Mountains. Someone with the funds to buy on-board WiFi had a news program playing on his tablet and I saw the headline. I was stunned, even though I have been following her health struggles for several months. She managed to hide any information that pointed to cancer.
Read More(ANALYSIS) For New York, 25 years is enough time for a new generation to grow up knowing of the attacks only as history. It is enough time for neighborhoods to change, buildings to rise, children to become parents and memories to begin to fade around the edges.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Texas politicians, however, portray sharia as a threat to American law. That suspicion has now produced official action against the Islamic Tribunal, a Dallas-based organization that offers religious arbitration, a process where parties agree to submit disputes to a religious panel, the way any two businesses might agree to skip court and use a private arbitrator instead. Much of the tribunal’s caseload is Muslim women seeking religious divorces.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The Paris Grand Mosque — a cultural landmark located in the heart of the city — is celebrating its centenary. Built as a war memorial to honor Muslim soldiers killed during World War I, it was the first permanent mosque in the French capital and remains its only mosque built with a minaret and a dome.
Read MoreSome billionaires buy yachts, rocket ships or art. The owners of Hobby Lobby bought something else entirely: Biblical artifacts and manuscripts.
Read More(ANALYSIS) As the situation in the country continues to deteriorate, important questions must be asked about where to go from here. What is the future of Afghanistan for women and religious minorities?
Read More(ANALYSIS) Members of the Christian community arrived at the protest site in New Delhi alongside Hindu, Muslim and Sikh groups. The participation of religious groups and leaders is part of a broader, interfaith effort to show solidarity with youth and students demonstrating against the Indian government.
Read MoreScience and religion need not conflict. Baháʼí teachings show how together they help humanity understand both the physical world and its deeper meaning through reason, observation and faith.
Read More(ANALYSIS) As Israel enters its third year of war on multiple fronts, the question of whether ultra-Orthodox men should be exempt from mandatory military service has become a much larger argument about citizenship itself: Who bears responsibility for defending the Jewish state?
Read More(ANALYSIS) Celebrating the country music legend is an honor “mixed with absolute pride and great sadness,” stressed Bryan Seaver, the son of Parton's sister Cassie Parton, in the family’s announcement of her death.
Read MoreEven at the height of his extraordinary 2025 season at Indiana — when he won the Heisman Trophy and transformed himself from an overlooked prospect into the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft — Mendoza repeatedly pointed somewhere beyond the gridiron: God. He enters the NFL this season as a top-rated rookie quarterback not afraid to talk about his faith.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Hundreds of pilgrims traveling to Mount Kailash were among those affected by devastating floods that struck the Nepal–Tibet border on Aug. 26. The floods destroyed the border crossing most commonly used to reach what is arguably the most revered holy mountain in the world, which sits in the Tibet autonomous region of China.
Read MoreThis week’s podcast argues that Dolly Parton’s songs, philanthropy and Appalachian roots reveal far more about her faith, character and worldview than her polished public image. By examining songs like “Coat of Many Colors,” “I Am Ready” and “Horns and Halos,” it challenges conventional obituaries to listen more closely.
Read MoreSince the news broke Tuesday that Dolly Parton “is in the arms of Jesus,” Weekend Plug-in columnist Bobby Ross Jr. has joined countless millions of fans in reflecting on her life, her legacy — and yes, her faith.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Let me start by stating a fact that seems incomprehensible to even type out, but it undergirds almost every single graph that I produce: We don’t actually know the religious composition of the United States with any real precision. I know that sounds bizarre. The truth is that we are relying on a whole bunch of “best guesses” based on sound methodology and replication.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has brought Homer’s epic tale back to the big screen. The film is the latest retelling of a story that is almost 3,000 years old. But why do these ancient Greek stories continue to captivate new generations? Nolan aside, Stephen Fry’s retelling of Greek myths in 2017 and Disney’s “Hercules” film, for example, are part of a much longer tradition of repackaging the ancient world for contemporary audiences.
Read More(ANALYSIS) After watching Christopher Nolan's take on “The Odyssey,” Father Dwight Longenecker remembered a comment Steven Spielberg made in a commentary while discussing how viewers react to symbolism. The director was responding to comments that crosses in the “Saving Private Ryan” cemetery scenes suggested the hero was a Christ figure who suffered to save a lost soul.
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