Posts tagged politics and religion
ChinaAid Petitions For Trump’s Help In Bringing Detained Pastor Home To US

ChinaAid is seeking 100,000 signatures petitioning President Donald Trump to urge Pastor John Cao’s safe passage to the U.S. when President Xi Jinping visits Washington in September.

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Why Nepal’s Political Mood Has Become Religiously Charged

(ANALYSIS) Nepal underwent major political upheaval just a year ago, toppling the government in a fashion few could have imagined. An even more dramatic development followed. Voters handed a near-supermajority to the Rastriya Swatantra Party, which was founded only four years earlier. Its senior leader, Balendra Shah, became the youngest prime minister in Nepal’s history.

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Birmingham Bombing Wasn’t Isolated: Black Churches Were Attacked Across The South

(ANALYSIS) This Sept. 15 marks the anniversary of an infamous terror attack: The 1963 bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. On that Sunday morning, members of the Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist group, planted dynamite on the east side of the brown brick building. The bomb went off in the midst of Sunday school, at 10:22 a.m., murdering four girls.

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‘A Sacred Land’: India’s Religious Pluralism Has Deep Historical Roots

(ANALYSIS) India’s religious diversity has deep historical roots, reflected in the experiences of Hindu soldier Sitaram Pande and Muslim poet Mirza Ghalib. Their writings portray sacred landscapes shaped by multiple traditions while revealing identities that crossed religious boundaries, challenging contemporary claims that religious purity justifies anti-minority rhetoric or violence.

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Japan’s Emerging Anti‑Immigration Sentiment Obscures Its Islamic History

(ANALYSIS) Today, amid Japan’s shrinking population and anti-immigrant sentiment, it might be jarring to remember that there once were hopes that the island nation would be the anti-colonial leader of the world’s Muslims and that some of Asia’s Muslims dreamed of an “Islamic Republic of Japan.”

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Crossroads Podcast: The Missing Faith Angle In The WNBA’s Culture War Debate

To say the least, Indiana Fever star Sophie (“Do the Sophie”) Cunningham’s quotes about trans athletes and women’s sports has ignited a firestorm in sports, politics, social media and the elite press. In this case, the sports world includes the small, struggling WNBA.

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Australians Increasingly Saying They Have ‘No Religion’ In Every Census

(ANALYSIS) Religion looks different in Australia. The first option for religious affiliation on the census is “no religion”, before Catholic, Anglican, Islam, Hinduism, other options, and a free-text field.

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Why The Pentagon’s Count Of Religious Groups Plunged From 216 to Just 31

(ANALYSIS) The Pentagon needs to define America’s religious categories due to chaplains’ responsibility to handle the spiritual needs of soldiers as effectively as possible. The problem is that Americans’ religious choices are pretty much uncountable.

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For Christians, Humanity’s Place In Creation Demands Faithful Stewardship

(ANALYSIS) From polluted rivers to disappearing forests, the modern world bears the scars of human greed. Christians cannot simply point fingers at secular culture or blame industrialization while ignoring our own failures. If we believe the world is God's creation, then neglecting it goes beyond environmental policies.

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Crossroads Podcast: Democrats Run Mainline Protestants In Midterms

The political time machine has now landed in similar journalism terrain. During this week’s “Crossroads” podcast, we discussed several important news reports, including this Religion News Service feature: “‘They’re not real pastors’: As clergy run as Democrats, Republicans question their faith.”

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WNBA Star Sophie Cunningham’s Faith Bigger Than The Culture War

(ANALYSIS) For Christians working in sports, the challenge becomes even greater. Faith calls believers to engage culture without allowing society to define them. Identity comes not from applause, criticism or trending hashtags, but from Christ.

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Did Ann Widdecombe Die A Political And Catholic Martyr?

(ANALYSIS) In her student days, Ann Widdecombe's first Oxford Union presentation was an attack on censorship, even if practicing free speech turned out to be risky or painful. A half-century later, the former Conservative MP and outspoken Catholic returned to the legendary debate club to address the same subject, at one point explaining why she once agreed to share a speaker's platform with an Irish Republican Army activist.

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The Mainline Political Divide: Does Education Change the Story?

(ANALYSIS) Back in November, I wrote a post that I knew was going to cause a stir because it answered one of the most burning questions in my mind: “How Big is the Political Divide Between Mainline Clergy and Laity?”

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Lawyer Who Defended China’s Persecuted Christians Released From ICE Custody

Christian Chinese human rights lawyer Wu Shaoping, who represented persecuted religious believers and other victims of government repression before fleeing China, was released on bond July 24. He had spent nine days in federal immigration custody despite having been granted asylum in the U.S.

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Crossroads Podcast: Politics And The Cultural Catholicism Of UK’s New Prime Minister

The new prime minister will almost certainly have a short political honeymoon. How will he handle his first public meeting with Pope Leo XIV? In terms of symbolism, will he seek a blessing?

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Justice Without Partisanship: A Call To Iranian Christians

(OPINION) The problem is not that Christians care about justice or participate in public life. The problem arises when Christianity becomes a vehicle for advancing political agendas.

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Dropping Native American Religious Code Hides Military Needs

(ANALYSIS) The military's decision to eliminate a distinct religious code for Native American service members has sparked concern that their unique spiritual traditions and accommodation needs will become harder to identify, potentially undermining religious liberty protections, access to appropriate support and accurate representation within the armed forces.

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‘Integrating Sports And Fellowship’: Soccer Is Bringing Singapore’s Churches Together

(ANALYSIS) Singapore’s national soccer team made it to the second round of qualifiers, but fell short of making it to the FIFA World Cup again this year. Nonetheless, the spirit of the game still very runs strong through the help of church congregations. Many parishes and congregations organize games and leagues open to their members, friends and the wider public.

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Mahmoud Khalil Sues Feds, Alleges Conspiracy With Pro-Israel Groups

The complaint alleges there had been a “conspiracy” among private pro-Israel entities, including the Heritage Foundation, Canary Mission and Betar USA, and senior Trump administration officials to target and prosecute pro-Palestinian activists. The lawsuit names Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller, former DHS secretary Kristi Noem and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.

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Political Identity Drove Americans Away From Christianity — And Why It’s No Longer True

(ANALYSIS) The share of Americans who indicate that their current religious tradition is the one in which they were raised is 66%. Most people living in the United States will die with the same faith into which they were born, and that’s been true for decades. But how people switch and why they switch may be changing.

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