Posts in North America
Secretary Blinken: The Rights Of Religious Minorities Are Under Threat In Communities Around The World

(OPINION) On June 2, the U.S. State Department delivered its annual report to Congress on international religious freedom. The report identifies the numerous challenges to the right to freedom of religion or belief worldwide. Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized some of the main findings of this in-depth research into the situation around the world.

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Canada Awaits Pope Francis Visit As Pontiff Aims At Reconciliation With Indigenous Peoples

Pope Francis’ trip to Canada next month will have a rather dour feel. The pope will make the transatlantic trip so he can apologize in person for past abuses suffered by Indigenous people at the hands of the Catholic Church. The pope will be in Canada from July 24 to 29 with stops in Edmonton, Quebec City and the small town of Iqaluit, where nearly half the population of 8,000 is Inuit.

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Southern Baptist Leaders Respond to Guidepost Solutions Pride Tweet After Abuse Investigation

Guidepost Solutions, the firm leading the Southern Baptist Convention investigation into sexual misconduct allegations, tweeted support for the LGBTQ movement June 6 as part of Pride Month. Several SBC leaders have responded with criticism, calling for the church to cut ties with the firm.

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Pro-Abortion Rights Protesters Interrupt Joel Osteen Church Service

Three activists with a Texas pro-abortion rights group interrupted a service at Joel Osteen’s Houston megachurch last weekend by stripping to their underwear and shouting, “My body, my choice,” “Overturn Roe,” “Hell no” and other epithet-laced slogans.

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Overflowing Cups Of Joy: Discovering Pathways Leading To The Fullness Of Salvation

(OPINION) Everyone’s cup of joy is full in heaven. So why concern ourselves whether the paths we are taking will bring us into the fullness of salvation? Our cups will be full. Yes, but not everyone’s cup of joy will be the same size, “for the measure you give will be the measure you get.”

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After Yet Another Mass Shooting, Church Prays, Reflects: Is There A Solution?

On the heels of a May 14 supermarket barrage in which 10 people died in Buffalo, New York, and a May 24 school massacre that claimed 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, a gunman opened fire last week in a medical office in Oklahoma’s second-largest city. How do Christians respond?

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Korean Covenant Fellowship Church Halts Investigation Into Sexual Misconduct Allegations

A Korean church located near the Champaign-Urbana campus of the University of Illinois that came under fire last year for allegations of ongoing sexual misconduct has terminated an independent investigation before its completion.

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‘We Must Pray With Actions’: Latino Church Leaders Offer More Than Prayers After Uvalde Shooting

Pastor Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, the world’s largest Hispanic Christian organization with more than 42,000 churches in the U.S., responded to recent mass shootings in America by preaching a message of hope and insisting that Christians “pray with actions.”

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The Oldest Church In Philadelphia Is Swedish, Anti-Racist And Holds Together Brick By Historical Brick

Swedish Lutherans built the Gloria Dei church between 1698 and 1700 and worshipped along the Delaware River for several generations before it became part of the Episcopal Church in 1845. The church’s story and presence symbolize a unique chapter in American religious history and valuable contributions that Swedes made to religious freedom and tolerance in America.

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As Uvalde Mourns 21 School Shooting Victims, Church Members Offer Support

In the Uvalde, Texas, community of 16,000, everybody knows someone who was directly affected by the Robb Elementary School shooting. The Potters’ postman delivers mail to four families who lost children. A church custodian lost two cousins. An elder’s assistant manager lost his son and niece. But as the town collectively grieves, residents’ ties to each other only strengthen.

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Pro-Life Speaker Jennifer Christie’s Career Unravels Over Unverified Sexual Assault Claim

Jennifer Christie’s story of giving birth to a child conceived through rape was set to be published in a book from Focus on the Family and Tyndale House, and she signed a contract with Ambassador Speakers Bureau. Now, the book and speaking contract have been canceled amid concerns of the veracity of her story.

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News Coverage Of Pelosi Communion Ban Mangled Catholic Doctrine

(OPINION) National news coverage regarding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi being banned by San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone from taking Holy Communion because of her continued support — in words and deeds — for abortion rights spanned from very good to baffling and very poor.

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Church Near Uvalde, Texas, School Shooting Scene Conducts Prayer Vigil

Tuesday night was supposed to be Adult Game Night at the Getty Street Church of Christ in Uvalde, Texas. But then a gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School, less than a mile from the church building. Leaders of the South Texas congregation, about 85 miles west of San Antonio, canceled the scheduled event and planned a special prayer vigil.

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Growing Haredi Numbers Poised To Alter Global Judaism

(OPINION) The most strictly religious Jews — the mystical-oriented Hasidic followers of historic rabbinic lineages and the “mitnagdim,” Hasidism’s more intellectually focused religious critics — suffered some of the worst losses in the Holocaust. But a new survey says that by 2040, if their current growth rate persists, about a quarter of the world’s Jews will likely be Haredi.

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‘He’s Just A Salesman’: Former Morningside Band Director Talks Bakker’s Ministry Tactics

Mark Dowdy was a band director at Morningside, the community where televangelist Jim Bakker broadcasts tapings of his show, in 2011. When he began, he hoped he would be able to do good through Bakker’s ministry — but his view quickly changed. He talked to ReligionUnplugged about his time at Morningside and what he thinks of Bakker.

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