As always, the annual U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom report focused on trends in nations known for bitter religious conflicts and the persecution of religious minorities, including Christians. The list of offenders of “particular concern” included China, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia and others. The commission pushed to add Afghanistan, India, Nigeria and Vietnam to that list.
Read MoreReligion Unplugged’s readers see Clemente Lisi’s stories all the time. Here are seven facts to help the audience get to know him better.
Read More(OPINION) At a professor’s nudge, I first attended a conference in the early 2000s. I don’t remember what city it was in, or even the exact year. I do remember how awkward it felt. I stood shyly by myself — away from the religion reporters I admired so much — when I should have been networking.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The bottom line: Religion events and trends draw intense news coverage when they are directly or indirectly linked to politics. This is especially true during tense elections.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Zenger Prizes each year come from a Christian foundation, Zenger House, that honors feature stories based in on-the-ground reporting. I’m the chairman and one of the five judges, all veteran journalists. We like Christian journalism but give awards to journalists of any religion from around the world who write deeply reported stories consistent with a biblical ethic.
Read MoreWriting a news feature about the life and work of historian Martin E. Marty requires two things — lots of numbers about what he accomplished and stories about how he managed to get so much done, as a scholar, teacher, colleague, mentor and friend.
Read More(OPINION) Marty died on Feb. 25 at the age of 97, a quarter of a century after retiring from teaching at the University of Chicago Divinity School. The research center he launched in 1979 was then rebranded as the Martin Marty Center for the Public Understanding of Religion. He received numerous other awards, including more than 80 honorary degrees.
Read More(OPINION) For several years now, it’s felt like the whole world has gone mad. Trying to keep track of, much less digest, the daily flood of outrageous news stories and hair-on-fire op-ed pieces curdles my mind, steals my joy and leaves me staring gape-mouthed into a tsunami of chaos. But I happened across two articles that helped me rethink my news avoidance.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The date was October 4, 1997, and the MSNBC producers on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., had a problem. Actually, they had several problems. The main problem was that the million or so Promise Keepers men (D.C. crowd estimates were already a highly politicized affair) gathered for the Stand in the Gap rally keep singing, praying, reading their Bibles, listening to sermons and confessing their sins.
Read MoreDepending on the source, Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement that Meta platforms will jettison fact-checking protocols in favor of community notes is either a threat to democracy or a return to the spirit of free speech from when he co-founded Facebook in 2004.
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 MoreIn a special year-end edition, Weekend Plug-in counts down the Top 10 most popular ReligionUnplugged.com stories from the past 12 months.
Read MoreIt’s the best of the Godbeat, 2024 version. Many of the nation’s top religion journalists pick their top piece of the year.
Read MoreThis is a big time of year at Religion Unplugged. Nov. 1 marked the official launch of the annual NewsMatch campaign — one of our biggest fundraisers of the year. It’s now gotten even bigger thanks to The Media Project’s support.
Read MoreGiving Tuesday that takes place this year on Dec. 2. Thanks to our NewsMatch campaign, we have the opportunity to make your donation go even further this holiday season. Through Dec. 31, our partnership with INN will match your monthly, tax-deductible donation 12 times or double your one-time gift — all up to $1,000.
Read MoreThe scandals surrounding the life and work of the former (and now disgraced) cardinal Theodore McCarrick rumbled in the background of Roman Catholic life for decades — starting in the early 1980s. Insiders whispered, but nothing was done.
Read MoreThis is a big time of year at Religion Unplugged. Nov. 1 marks the official launch of the annual NewsMatch campaign — one of our biggest fundraisers of the year.
Read MoreOne by one, Catholic dioceses in key presidential swing states are putting out unusual statements: Newspapers whose titles include the word Catholic that are showing up in people’s mailboxes aren’t what they seem and aren’t connected to the church. With a classic typeface and traditional newspaper design, the mass-mailed Catholic Tribune newspapers carry signposts of legitimacy.
Read MoreThe pontiff reflected on his own memories of playing soccer as a child in Argentina. Francis also described sports as an experience of the “sense of fraternity,” because friends would play “knowing only opponents on the field, never enemies.” Sports offer lessons in life, he added, as players learn from the highs of winning, the effort it takes to win, and the loss of defeat.
Read MoreWeekend Plug-in columnist Bobby Ross Jr. recounts his adventures as a roving religion reporter. Ross has covered news and features in all 50 states and 18 countries.
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