In an attempt to better understand Mercy Culture’s approach to recruiting candidates, two journalists from the Fort Worth Report purchased and completed the more than five-hour Campaign University course and listened to hours of the For Liberty & Justice podcast. What became clear in the course is For Liberty & Justice’s mission to push Christian conservative values beyond church doors and into the public sphere.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The Oversight Board, a body making precedent-setting content moderation decisions on the social media platforms Facebook, Instagram and Threads, issued a decision calling on Meta to mitigate information asymmetries in armed conflicts. The Oversight Board is a body examining whether Meta’s decisions are in line with its policies, values and human rights commitments.
Read More(ANALYSIS) President Trump recently designated Nigeria as a "Country of Particular Concern" under the International Religious Freedom Act. Like most of his acts, this ignited major controversy, much of it reflecting longstanding and now renewed disputes about what is really happening in that country.
Read MoreIn the last decade, more than a dozen coups have shaken West Africa and the Sahel. Amid this turmoil, religious leaders are emerging as stabilizers who are guiding dialogue and providing a moral compass in societies caught between soldiers and fractured civilian states.
Read More(ANALYSIS) In recent years, litigation on certain types of religious freedom lawsuits have been practically run of the mill: prayer on school premises, for example, and government funding for students at faith-based schools.
Read MoreThe uproar over Tucker Carlson’s decision to host Nick Fuentes, a notorious Holocaust denier and white nationalist, for a friendly chat on his popular online talk show last week focused on the need to maintain a firewall between mainstream conservatives and antisemites such as Fuentes.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Street protests spill into riots. Universities host intimidation campaigns. Digital mobs savage anyone who dares step outside the script. Across America, political anger is spilling into the open, and on the left it increasingly takes a violent shape. What begins as dissent can tip quickly into destruction.
Read MorePresident Donald Trump designated Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) Oct. 31 for tolerating religious freedom violations especially against Christians, and threatened sanctions and military force to discourage such persecution.
Read More(ANALYSIS) As media pundits over-interpret the nationwide impact of elections in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia and California, let’s contemplate this: What do the data on religious dynamics say about prospects for a rather demoralized Democratic Party in 2026-2032, and whether a more centrist strategy might help?
Read MoreThe World Council of Churches’ Faith and Order Conference, held in Egypt to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, brought together a wide range of Christian leaders over five days in search of renewed unity. Yet, as inspiring as the goal may have been, the path toward visible Christian unity remains fraught with challenges — theological, historical, cultural and even practical.
Read More(ANALYSIS) I’ve always found survey questions about prayer in public schools somewhat difficult to interpret because the context matters so much. For example, what if a local school district simply offers a quiet time for students to meditate or read? Students could choose to pray during this period, but it wouldn’t be mandatory. Or what if the teacher guides the class in a moment of self-reflection, encouraging students to set their intentions for the day?
Read MoreWhile Vance emphasized “partnership” with Israel and pushed back on the notion that the Jewish state had become a “protectorate” of the United States, the underlying tensions in this evolving post-Gaza war framework reveals that the alliance has entered a new phase.
Read More(ANALYSIS) In Myanmar, when the military has a hard time conscripting enough residents into their ranks, they turn to monks for help. The religious leaders — many of whom have been well-connected to the government — are backing the recruitment drive. The regime has been targeting men across all segments of society — including the urban poor, displaced populations and ethnic and religious minorities.
Read MoreWhen fans of the soccer team Maccabi Tel Aviv were assaulted in the streets of Amsterdam after a game last November, the violence drew comparisons to pogroms. It even prompted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dispatch rescue planes to evacuate Israeli citizens. Once again there are fears of a repeat outbreak of violence, this time over a match in Birmingham, England.
Read MoreFor thousands of devotees, the journey across the border is not just a trip; it is a reclamation of history, heritage and faith. As Prakash Purab approaches, the pilgrimage carries more than spiritual meaning. It represents the enduring resilience of a community whose beliefs and traditions transcend the walls of politics and conflict.
Read MoreIn 2006, I was able to travel to Israel for the first time. Even as a child, I had learned from my father about the spiritual legacy of the Jewish people, the land God had given them, and how He had protected them. And, best of all, during that amazing year, I was able to set foot on the land myself. There I began to meet and come to know Israelis as friends and allies, and to see with my own eyes the biblical heritage I had inherited as a Christian believer.
Read MoreZohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo clashed sharply over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Thursday night, in the first televised debate for New York City mayor, their first major showdown since the young democratic socialist stunned the former governor in the Democratic primary.
Read MoreIf the president of the United States boards Air Force One for a dramatic trip to Israel — in the larger symbolic region often called the “Holy Land” — please consider putting at least one or two skilled religion-beat specialists on the airplane.
Read MoreThe defeat of socialism in the first round of Bolivia's presidential elections on Aug. 17 marked a turning point for the Catholic Church. Bolivia has been governed by the Movement Toward Socialism party, known as MAS in Spanish, since 2006 — a period only interrupted by the interim government of Jeanine Áñez between November 2019 and November 2020.
Read More(ANALYSIS) What’s striking about this ceasefire is not just how tentative it is, but how deeply entwined the experiences of Jews and Muslims have become — not in harmony, but in suffering. Both communities claim moral righteousness. Both grieve their dead. And both are trapped in narratives of fear and survival that often leave little room for compassion or compromise.
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