(ANALYSIS) Another week and yet another headline about Pope Francis feuding with a doctrinally conservative American prelate. It’s become an all-too-common story and one that the legacy media often can’t resist.
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(ANALYSIS) Nearly 30% of Americans say they have no religious affiliation. Today the so-called “nones” represent about 30% of Democrats and 12% of Republicans — and they are making their voices heard. Organizations lobby on behalf of atheists, agnostics, secular humanists and other nonreligious people.
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(ANALYSIS) The data indicates that the relationship between regular religious attendance and education is a positive one. The more educated, the more likely to attend church/synagogue/mosque. That’s true in every wave of the Cooperative Election Study. And, the effect is not a small one. In many years, someone with a graduate degree is 50% more likely to be a weekly attender than someone without a high school diploma.
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(ANALYSIS) The upshot, according to Pew demographer Conrad Hackett, is that by available measures, China is — on the surface — “the least religious country in the world.” That’s not surprising when media and public meetings are restricted and the government forbids religious education while subjecting children to intensive atheistic propaganda at school.
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(ANALYSIS) On Sept. 13, 1993, the world watched as Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands on the White House lawn. It was a stunning moment. The famous handshake between adversaries marked the beginning of what became known as the Oslo Accords, a framework for talks between Israeli and Palestinian representatives, mediated by U.S. diplomats.
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(ANALYSIS) Last month, United Nations experts published a statement of concern about the situation in the northeast state of Manipur in India. As they indicated, they are concerned about the alleged acts of sexual violence, extrajudicial killings, home destruction, forced displacement, torture and ill treatment perpetrated in Manipur.
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(ANALYSIS) What’s the state of interpersonal trust in the United States over the last five decades, and what role does religion play? If you look at the results from the 2010s, it’s clear that at a minimum, there’s no more positive association between religious attendance and trust. If anything, it may be a slightly negative relationship now.
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(ANALYSIS) Move aside, Southern Baptists and their drive to restrict women’s pastoral ministry in church. Women will be just one of many contested topics when Pope Francis presides Oct. 4–29 over his Synod of Bishops at the Vatican, already in line to become the religion story of the year, even though final decisions await a second session in October 2024.
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This week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights new survey findings concerning post-pandemic worship attendance and giving. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read More(TRAVEL) In addition to its charming architecture, close proximity to nature and signature miniature canals, the city is known for the well-respected University of Freiburg. During my exchange program, I spent quite a bit of time in the university’s energy-efficient, futuristic-looking library.
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(ANALYSIS) In the past few months, we’ve reported on the closures or de-accreditation of The King’s College, Alderson Broaddus University and Alliance University. The industry publication Higher Ed Dive reports that 96 colleges and universities (not all of them Christian schools) have either shut down or been absorbed by other organizations since 2016. That’s more than one per month. There’s every reason to believe this trend will continue, and possibly accelerate.
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(ANALYSIS) It’s been quite some time since a story involving a major figure or incident in the Catholic Church was covered by both the mainstream and religious press. The story in question at the moment involves disgraced ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, one of the most influential Catholic prelates of the past half century on both sides of the Atlantic.
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This week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights the return of a high school football coach who won a U.S. Supreme Court case, allowing him to pray on the field. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
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(ANALYSIS) I was talking to someone who works in the nursing home industry a couple of weeks ago, and she said a term that I had never heard: “the silver tsunami.” It’s the demographic reality facing the United States and most other industrialized countries — that the population is getting a heck of a lot older.
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(REVIEW) In less than 40 pages, Margaret Sayers outlines a few helpful remedies for a host of challenges that come with old age, frailty and conditions such as dementia. The recommendations are meant primarily for caregivers or those who often interact with a family member in such conditions, for instance.
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This week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights religion angles at the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
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(ANALYSIS) While machines have yet to replace all writers, the threat is real. This isn’t just limited to journalists. AI has impacted Hollywood (look at the current writers strike), education (from grade school to college) and the retail industry. And yes, journalism is up there to when it comes to an industry seen as under threat.
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(ANALYSIS) What emerged from the eight candidates (Trump did not attend) on stage at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee was an often-heated two-hour debate in which they weren’t afraid to bring up faith and family as a reason why Biden’s America has been a failure.
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(ANALYSIS) While this pontiff has been a divisive figure in the Catholic Church (especially in the United States and Western Europe), Francis’ popularity in his homeland is also waning. It’s a departure from the fervor of a decade ago when Jorge Bergoglio, the cardinal of Buenos Aires, was elected pope. Much of the country celebrated. These days, Francis generates divided opinions.
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(ANALYSIS) Anyone who thinks mental health is not a key issue for churches and ministries is simply not paying attention. But could our smartphones really be responsible for all this carnage and suffering?
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