Posts in North America
Some Notes On The Great Southern California Mass Baptism of 2023

(ANALYSIS) On the Sunday before Memorial Day, which was also the day of Pentecost, Christians inspired by “Jesus Revolution” decided that they ought to do a mass baptism at Pirates Cove, the same place a lot of the baptisms had taken place in the Jesus movement 50 years before.

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Explainer: Why Incorruptibility Is Important To Catholics

(EXPLAINER) Thousands of people have spent the past few weeks waiting in line for hours in a small Missouri town to see a nun whose body has barely decomposed since she died in 2019 at age 95. Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster’s body was exhumed in April, according to the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, in Gower, Missouri. What it all means is rooted in Catholic belief that something supernatural has taken place.

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How Secular Is Europe Compared To The United States?

(ANALYSIS) The countries in Europe that are more likely to attend religious services than the American average are Poland, Slovakia, Cyprus, Ireland and Italy. The rest have attendance rates that are much lower than the overall American attendance mark.

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Pastor Rick Warren Tackles Southern Baptist Church’s Mass Decline in New Video Series

Warren’s video series, named “SBC at the Crossroads,” aims to state the problems plaguing the Baptist denomination and examine a biblical path to revive and revitalize the hearts of Baptist Church congregants, and thereby the entire denomination. 

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Judge Rules Observant Sikhs Can Wear Beards, Turbans And Serve In The US Marines

The issue is one that not only impacts Sikhs but Jews, Muslims and some members of neo-Nordic faiths that prescribe facial hair for men. The U.S. Army in 2017 and the Air Force in 2020 enacted new uniform policies respectively to allow beards, hijabs, turbans and other articles of faith to be worn while in military uniform. The U.S. Navy and Marines still only provide limited religious accommodations for sailors or marines who would like to practice their faith.

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'Flamin’ Hot' Gives Refreshing Hispanic Representation In Sadly Underwhelming Biopic

(REVIEW) “Flamin’ Hot” portrays faith as a central part of Richard Montanez’s life and depicts his faith as real and important. Whether it’s his abusive father clinging to faith to cover up his previous alcoholism, or the strength that his wife gains from her faith, or Richard eventually acknowledging God’s hand in the good that has happened to them and praying together with his wife, Richard’s faith matters. 

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How A Deaf Elder And His Wife Are Bridging Cultural And Language Barriers

To a visitor, Dennis and Cindi Cesone’s friendliness and welcoming smiles are evident immediately. The fact both were born deaf is not. For years, the Cesones — each of whom learned to speak and read lips as children — have worked to bridge the cultural gap between hearing and deaf Christians.

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Hulu Series Shows The Gravity Of Hillsong’s High And Low Notes

(REVIEW) “The Secrets of Hillsong” uncovers Hillsong culture, abuse and Carl Lentz. The four-part documentary dropped on May 19th. Since Carl Lentz’s fall from grace due to his affair with Ranin Karim, many celebrity gossip and media voices have chimed in to tell Lentz’s story. For the first time since the scandals, both Carl and Laura Lentz tell their own stories in the documentary. 

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The Past Is Dead? Time For News Analysis Of America's Scrambled Protestant Marketplace

(OPINION) Starting with a band of Anglicans landing at Jamestown in 1607 and then Pilgrim dissenters at Plymouth in 1620, various forms of Protestantism collectively dominated what became the United States. But the Religious Landscape Study from the Pew Research Center tells us the U.S. population is now only 46.6% Protestant.

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A Quest For Lutefisk, Lutheran Churches And Garrison Keillor’s Upper Midwest

Lutefisk is a tradition I found out, but it’s reserved for the late fall and early winter celebrations. You cannot get it over July 4th weekend, sorry to say. Nevertheless, I pressed on to learn about the culture of lutefisk, Lutheranism and other elements of the faith-inflected Scandinavian ways of the upper Midwest.

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What Canst Thou Say? A 17th Century Quaker Cry For Modern Deconstructionists

(OPINION) Because a key tenet of Quakerism is continuing revelation, Quakerism has become a safe place to explore spiritual journeys and learn what your own Inner Light is saying to you. It was the echo I saw between the early Quakers and the current seekers and the need I saw for an in-flesh community that led me to advocate for a workshop to explore those ideas.

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Pastor And Bestselling Author Dr. Timothy Keller Dies At 72

Once a seminary professor, Pastor Tim Keller planted Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City in the early 1990s and ministered to the, arguably, unchurched elite of Manhattan in New York City. In rented auditoriums, Keller preached in professorial style to thousands of young professionals and families.

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LGBTQ+ Dreams By Some In Today’s American Catholic Church

(OPINION) Referring to the “wedding banquet at Cana,” when Jesus turned water into wine, the Jesuit theologian called for a changed church in which “people of all races, genders and sexualities rejoice at the presence of love” and a world in which “spiritual wounds will be healed, where faith-based violence will be no more, where fear and intolerance are relics of history.”

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Latter-day Saints Whistleblower Gives First National TV Interview

A former employee of a $100 billion investment fund owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gave an interview on national TV program “60 Minutes” about his experience working at the Salt Lake City-based Ensign Peak Advisors Inc. and what drove him to file a whistleblower complaint with the IRS and other government entities.

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The Inside Story Of The King’s College Death Spiral Of 2023

The perilous state of The King’s College in New York City developed over decades, hit turbulence in the past two years, then turned into a stunning death spiral in the spring 2023 semester. 

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War At Home: Former Army Officer Aids Texas Massacre Victims, Seeks God’s Healing

Steven Spainhouer arrived before most first responders to the scene of the nation’s latest mass shooting. The massacre lasted less than four minutes but left eight dead, including three children, and seven wounded.

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Prayer And Protest: Nation’s Latest Mass Shooting Highlights Competing Messages

Clashing messages about God and guns came a day after an assailant opened fire at a Dallas-area outlet mall, killing eight people — including three children — and wounding seven.

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Did The Election of Donald Trump Drive People from the Pews?

(ANALYSIS) There is no doubt in my mind that politics is one of the main culprits for the emptying out of American religion. That was my starting point for this piece. What follows is a peek inside how I think through a problem like that.

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