(ANALYSIS) In cultures linked to centuries of Christian tradition, the feast of Christmas — the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ or Christ Mass — was on Dec. 25, the start of a festive 12-day season that ended with the Feast of the Epiphany. Many Eastern Orthodox churches continue to use the ancient Julian calendar, celebrating Christmas on Jan. 7.
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(ANALYSIS) There are lots of theories as to why the Christmas classic died. Perhaps it simply takes time to become a Christmas classic with culture-wide acceptance. And yet, that wasn’t true of the Christmas movies that came out in the 1990s and early 2000s. Perhaps streaming is to blame, where movies would become classics had they come out in theaters.
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(ANALYSIS) In November 2023, British media reported on the use of sexual violence in the recent wave of violence in Manipur, India. This follows a conflict that erupted in May 2023, described by the U.N. as a “community conflict between the predominantly Hindu Meitei and the predominantly Christian Kuki ethnic communities.”
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(ANALYSIS) Catholics are living in a post-Synod on Synodality church where the debates from the month-long meeting that took place at the Vatican last month continue to reverberate, even with the efforts by Pope Francis to put a lid on news coverage of the discussions and speeches that took place during that event. Europe, in particular, has been the epicenter of the action since that meeting of bishops wrapped up on Oct. 29.
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(ANALYSIS) The composition of never attenders has also changed as that group has grown so much larger. What I really wanted to do is help readers better conceptualize this group — especially when it comes to politics. One of my hobby horses recently has been trying to convince people that they need to stop thinking about Republicans as incredibly religiously active and Democrats as the ones who have nothing to do with religion.
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(ANALYSIS) November is Native American Heritage Month, an interesting if not complex time to celebrate Indigenous people. Many Indigenous people complain about November being selected for the celebration — to many Native people, Thanksgiving is a reminder of the attempted genocide of many tribes by the settlers they helped, not to mention the theft of homelands and children stolen for boarding schools.
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(ANALYSIS) Among the many spooky events happening last month was the biannual “Haunting of Impalas” at Family Business Brewing, a 15-acre brewery in Dripping Springs, Texas, owned by actor and musician Jensen Ackles. Along with Jared Padalecki, Ackles is the star of “Supernatural,” a television series that ran from 2005 to 2020.
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(ANALYSIS) Each year on the fourth Thursday of November, when many people start to take stock of the marathon day of cooking ahead, Indigenous people from diverse tribes and nations gather at sunrise in San Francisco Bay. Their gathering is meant to mark a different occasion — the Indigenous People’s Thanksgiving Sunrise Ceremony
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This week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights Pope Francis’ removal of a conservative bishop in East Texas. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
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(ANALYSIS) Here’s the purpose of this post: figuring out just how many Americans have shed that label in the last several years. The CES asks every single respondent, do you consider yourself a born-again or evangelical Christian or not? Only two response options — yes and no. It’s about as simple and straightforward as you can get. So, let’s get to it.
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(ANALYSIS) The name Sabrina Carpenter may not mean anything to anyone over 25, but she was at the center of a major religion story involving the Catholic church. A new video shows Carpenter in an outfit not suitable for church as several men fight over her. It also shows her attending their funerals at a New York church with candy-colored coffins.
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(ANALYSIS) With all-important developments in the Middle East and Ukraine, it seems off-kilter to state that another major international story is being severely neglected and has long been so. But such is The Guy’s opinion about mainstream media neglect of the waves of evidence for ongoing global persecution of Christians, on which we now have a Nov. 1 news peg.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Marvel continues its trend of wrestling with the goodness of God — but now has started to tilt toward believing that the Almighty may be good after all. Why the change and what led them to this newfound realization is rooted in both faith and power.
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(ANALYSIS) A conspiracy theory held widely in the Middle East is that Israel is planning to destroy the site of Al-Aqsa complex in Jerusalem, which includes the Muslim holy sites of the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Some add this is part of a project to clear the buildings from the Temple Mount in order to build the Third Temple. A key part of this scheme is believed to be efforts to breed a flawless red heifer.
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(ANALYSIS) In October 2023, the Clooney Foundation for Justice, a nongovernmental organization founded by Amal and George Clooney, filed three cases with the German Federal Prosecutor’s Office, requesting an investigation into crimes committed in Ukraine.
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This week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights the religion takeaways from this week’s Election Day and the GOP presidential debate. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
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(ANALYSIS) Journalists should be aware that 2023 turns out to be big for the much-discussed “secularization theory” framed by the 19th century founders of sociology. The nub of theory claims that economically advancing societies with improved education inevitably become more secular, largely because modern science explains matters formerly left to the religious realm.
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(ANALYSIS) Three men have filed a lawsuit against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – also known as the LDS or Mormon church – and its investment arm, Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc. The men, at least one of whom remains an active member of the church, according to the lawsuit, allege that the church had fraudulently induced them into making donations.
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(ANALYSIS) American religion is shifting rapidly now. The nones are climbing every single year. Mainline Protestants are losing ground day by day. And evangelicals are still having a huge impact on American culture, religion and politics. The purpose of this post is to give a broad overview of just how much the parties have shifted from the 1970s through today.
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(ANALYSIS) The group that is the most likely to attend services are not the poor, nor the wealthy. Instead, it’s people who are smack in the middle of the income distribution. This analysis points to the following conclusion: The people who are the most likely to attend services this weekend are those with college degrees. In other words, middle class professionals.
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