Faith nights at MLB ballparks across the nation feature Christian music, player testimonials and prayers. The theme events are part of marketing efforts to boost baseball’s ticket sales.
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Religion Unplugged contributor Kenneth Ethan Frantz interviewed Schiess about her new book, the role the Bible played in the past and present in American politics, and what it all means ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
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The Rev. Evans Omollo has been installed as the provost of Kenya’s oldest Anglican house of worship. As the new head of All Saints’ Cathedral in Nairobi, the 45 year old takes over from the Rev. Sammy Wainaina, who is moving to the global Anglican Church headquarters in the United Kingdom as an advisor.
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After four years of excavation, archaeological preservation, extensive engineering work and construction — and just in time for the sweltering heat wave now baking Jerusalem — an indoor swimming pool was inaugurated July 3 at the Terra Sancta School in the Old City’s Christian Quarter.
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(REVIEW) Jimmy Lai wasn’t terribly interested in Christianity for most of his life, but his wife was passionate about it, so he went to church for her. Yet, when he embraced it, he found its ability to give comfort and meaning in his fight against the evil in the world to be something he valued.
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Some Muslims, Jews and other religious minorities in Thessaloniki also believe the city has found harmony between Abrahamic faiths in the past and can do so again. And one such olive branch toward religious understanding is taking root at the School of Theology in the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, which is the first Greek university to implement an academic program on Islamic studies.
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Nikhil Mandalaparthy is the advocacy director with Hindus for Human Rights, a human rights nonprofit that advocates for pluralism and civil and human rights in South Asia and North America. He spoke with Jody Hassett Sanchez in Washington during Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi’s state visit.
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The disappearance of the 15-year-old Italian, who lived at the Vatican, has sparked a series of investigations and unanswered questions that continue to baffle investigators and the public alike. Indeed, 40 years later, the Orlandi case remains perplexing and accusations that high-ranking members of the church know what happened to her.
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(ANALYSIS) The mainline is just a bloodbath. Five traditions are down by at least 30%. The ELCA is down 41%. The United Church of Christ is less than half the size it was in the late 1980s. The United Methodists are already down 31%, but with over 15% of their churches disaffiliating just this year, I wouldn’t be surprised in membership is down 40% or more by this time next year.
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(ANALYSIS) The presidential race is just starting to heat up. Among those seeking to dislodge the early favorite — polling shows that to be former President Donald Trump — is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. This is the same man who has become something of a conservative darling in recent years for relentlessly going after “woke” ideology.
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(ANALYSIS) There’s nothing like walking down Via della Conciliazione in Rome. It’s a very long street, bustling with cars and tourists, that feeds into St. Peter’s Square. It’s a reminder of how imposing the Vatican can be, at least physically, in an increasingly secular West. Italy, however, remains a Catholic nation, at least culturally, with reminders everywhere.
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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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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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A Texas congregation responds to nation’s latest mass shooting with prayer, tears — and discussion of solutions.
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(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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(ANALYSIS) The mainstream press likes the sensational — news that gets clicks — on the late Pope John Paul II and accusations that he was not the saint the church makes him out to be. The tarnished halo story is one they cannot resist.
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Islam is one of the fastest-growing religions in the world. Some notable American athletes have converted to Islam starting in the 1960s, a trend that continues to this day. For some, the belief provides a chance to emphasize personal responsibility and social justice.
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(ANALYSIS) The inability for certain types of stories to register with the secular press — especially legacy media — is yet another sign of the political, cultural and moral divisions in our society and the dying notion of an objective press.
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(ANALYSIS) The Catholic press operates differently compared to mainstream media. Catholic media, depending where the publication or TV station falls on the doctrinal spectrum, aren’t governed by objectivity but by church teachings. This is where the conflict arises and when culture war battles within the church — and society — manifest themselves.
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Washington, D.C.’s Museum of the Bible is fascinating for Christians of all denominations and even for people who identify with another faith tradition. The museum — in addition to highlighting Hebrew texts and the time Jesus lived — also integrates how the Bible and Christianity have influenced American culture and society since the early 1600s to the present.
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