As Holocaust survivors age, organizations are turning to AI-powered avatars to preserve their testimony. An interactive version of survivor Sonia Warshawski, created with StoryFile, allows students to ask questions about her life and experiences. Supporters call it the future of Holocaust education, while critics question its ethical and emotional limits.
Read More(ANALYSIS) People love to talk about “profound” philosophers. Socrates with his questions. Nietzsche with his hammer. Marx with his systems. But George Santayana rarely gets the same reverence, despite the unsettling precision of his view of modern life. Santayana is hard to place, which may be why he is often skipped.
Read MoreThe Rev. Jesse Jackson, a civil rights icon and a protege of Martin Luther King, Jr., died Tuesday at the age of 84 following a long fight with a rare brain disorder known as progressive supranuclear palsy. Jackson, a Baptist minister, was seen as the primary leader of the Civil Rights Movement following King’s murder in 1968 and was known for using his Christian faith to fuel his political protests.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Once again, Muslims across the globe are nearing the arrival of Ramadan — a sacred month in which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. Ramadan is a time of strengthening our faith, cleansing both body and soul, counting our blessings and giving whatever we can to those less fortunate.
Read MoreThe Anglican denomination continues to reject gay marriage, a decision it affirmed in 2023 while instead voting to pursue blessings. The vote to end the pursuit closed three years of work in the broader Living in Love and Faith initiative regarding identity, sexuality, relationships and marriage, that the church launched nine years ago.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Former Irish President Mary McAleese argues that infant baptism violates children’s human rights by imposing church membership without consent. Critics respond that parents possess religious freedom in child-rearing, note historical and biblical defenses of infant baptism, and compare similar birth rituals across Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism.
Read MoreLunar New Year is a widely celebrated cultural and religious festival observed across Asia and worldwide. Marking the start of a new lunar cycle, it blends ancient traditions, spiritual practices and symbolic foods that express hopes for prosperity, health and happiness while emphasizing family unity, renewal and reflection.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Fifteen years ago, Egyptians from all walks of life took to the street to demand “bread, freedom, social justice.” They were protesting the oppressive 30-year rule of Hosni Mubarak. Egypt had been under martial law for 31 years. This meant that political opposition was silenced, and opponents were often imprisoned and tortured. Police brutality was the norm.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Love and hate seem like obvious opposites. Love, whether romantic or otherwise, involves a sense of warmth and affection for others. Hate involves feelings of disdain. Love builds up, whereas hate destroys. However, this description of love and hate treats them as merely emotions.
Read MoreThe Pew study measured diversity by dividing the global population into seven categories — Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, followers of other religions and people with no religious affiliation — and assessing how evenly those groups are distributed within each country.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The ecological and environmental crisis is undeniable. Discussions around political action, however, quickly fragment into a rivalry of socio-economic interests that result in seemingly inescapable deadlocks. Religious traditions still play rather marginal roles in ecological thought, which often reflects narratives that seek liberation from religion.
Read More(ANALYSIS) In recent weeks, Catholic leaders have been increasingly outspoken in their criticism of the Trump administration’s foreign policy, especially its military intervention in Venezuela and saber-rattling over Greenland. Last month, the three cardinals heading U.S. archdioceses issued a rare joint statement of rebuke.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Religious traditions across cultures have often treated menstruation and childbirth as sources of ritual impurity. In Chinese Buddhism, the “Blood Bowl Scripture” condemned women to “Blood Pond Hell.” Today, women reinterpret these beliefs, emphasizing maternal sacrifice, agency and alternative understandings of female bodies.
Read MoreKarim Kaarar guides visitors through the church of Saint Augustine and the archaeological ruins of ancient Hippo Regius nearly every day, tracing the footsteps of Augustine, one of Christianity's most influential thinkers. But the Algerian Christian knows that in 2026, this small community will host its most significant visitor yet: Pope Leo XIV.
Read More(ANALYSIS) When we’re asked, “Are you religious?” There are a number of different ways someone might justify an affirmative answer. It could be that they attend a house of worship regularly or pray frequently. It could be that they hold specific beliefs about Jesus Christ or Muhammad. Those would be behavior and belief measures of religion. But there’s a third dimension that often gets overlooked: Belonging.
Read More(ANALYSIS) A Roman basilica’s removal of a cherub resembling Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reveals how quickly sacred art can become political symbolism. The controversy highlighted tensions between church and state, revealing how religious spaces amplify power when contemporary political figures become a part of devotional imagery.
Read MoreBehind the medals and records, some Olympians say faith and spirituality play a meaningful role in how they train and compete. Faith can offer athletes a framework for resilience, especially in a world defined by so much pressure and scrutiny. This year’s Winter Games in Milan/Cortina will conclude on Feb. 22.
Read MoreA group of people living in India claims to be Israel’s long-lost tribe of Manasseh. After centuries of displacement, they finally have their chance to migrate back to Israel and eventually claim citizenship status. But it remains unclear if the Jewish state will become the accepting, stable home they’ve always wanted.
Read MoreBorn enslaved, rejected by U.S. seminaries and ordained in Rome, Augustus Tolton became the first publicly recognized Black Catholic priest in America. His life exposes the Church’s history of racial exclusion while offering a powerful example of perseverance, faith, and legacy — one now recognized in his path toward sainthood.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Beyond the debate over who is polarized in the U.S., there’s an adjacent, and perhaps more critical, discussion I want to tackle today: What drives polarized views? There is ample reason to think that religiosity impacts views on topics like abortion, same-sex marriage, and gender identity.
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