Please rise, for the hymn of the day: “Take me out to the ball game, Take me out with the crowd; Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack, I don’t care if I never get back. Let me root, root, root for the home team, If they don’t win, it’s a shame. For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out, At the old ball game.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) Actor Chris Pratt says his faith has guided him through personal struggles, Hollywood pressures and family life. Reflecting on fame, success and public scrutiny, Pratt also argues that lasting joy comes from God — not wealth, power, celebrity or cultural influence.
Read MoreThe multicultural excitement around soccer’s World Cup feels palpable in host cities across the nation and a recent survey shows that most Americans want the U.S. to be multicultural. But the celebrations at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey stand in stark contrast with the alleged inhumane conditions at the ICE facility just a few miles away.
Read MoreAs the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, half of Protestant pastors say their churches should mark the occasion with special celebrations, according to Lifeway Research. While support for patriotic elements in worship continues to decline, most churches still recognize veterans, military families, or America’s heritage around Independence Day.
Read More(ESSAY) As an anthropologist who studies social bonding during times of crisis, I now understand how cultural religious traditions — even when they seem different — can create unexpected connections. Many years after my military service, during the final days of my father’s life, my large family kept vigil beside him. Sitting with my siblings, mother and dozens of nieces and nephews, I told them this story.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Democrats hope Texas state legislator and Presbyterian seminarian James Talarico can win a U.S. Senate seat by appealing to religious voters. Republicans are highlighting his progressive positions on gender, sexuality, abortion, and church-state issues as evidence he is out of step with Texas conservatives.
Read MoreA new Pew Research Center study found religious hostilities increased sharply around the world in 2023, driven by harassment of religious minorities and fallout from the Israel-Hamas war. Government restrictions on religion remained near record highs, an issue affecting billions of people across dozens of countries.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The amount of cynicism in the world is sometimes hard for my mind to grasp. I really struggle watching TV shows and movies that have a really bleak view of the world. I don’t want to watch ”The Golden Girls” all the time (although it is a really great thing to put on the TV right before bed), but I just can’t spend a lot of my time meditating on the evilness of the human experience over and over again. I think it’s bad for my soul, to be honest.
Read MoreTexas Senate candidate James Talarico's theological views are drawing attention as he campaigns while preparing for Presbyterian ordination. Questions about the resurrection, abortion, sexuality, gender identity and denominational controversies could test whether his blend of progressive politics and Christianity resonates with voters.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Ten years after “Hillbilly Elegy” catapulted its author into public view, JD Vance is publishing a new memoir, “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith.” The vice president explains the book as a sort of self-help guide for the spiritually lost: “… by sharing my journey I might be helpful to others — Catholic, Protestant, or otherwise — who are seeking reconciliation with God.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) This World Cup held in the United States, Canada and Mexico — with its unprecedented global outreach — offers a unique opportunity to observe the values, beliefs and relationships that soccer players choose to display on their bodies. In some ways, tattoos can be seen as a small window into the players’ souls.
Read MoreChristians and Muslims used to fight over food at this internally displaced refugee camp in Nigeria. Following a key change by the camp’s leadership more than a decade ago, the families now live peacefully, befriending each other, eating meals together and raising their kids as a single community.
Read MoreIn Christianity, Buddhism and Judaism, religious teachings consistently emphasize caring for others — whether through love of neighbor, generosity as spiritual practice or the moral obligation to give. In fact, charity is one of the Five Pillars of the faith but potentially the least discussed. It’s the Third Pillar and is called zakat (Arabic for “almsgiving”) — an annual obligation to give a portion of one’s wealth to those in need.
Read MoreThe St. Paul city attorney declined to file state charges against protesters who disrupted a Southern Baptist church service in January, citing insufficient evidence. Pastor Jonathan Parnell and legal advocates criticized the decision as a failure to protect religious freedom.
Read MoreOn Jan. 18, a cell of anti-ICE demonstrators crashed a Sunday service at the Cities Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in St. Paul, Minnesota. Debates about the legality of this protest have been defined by the Red vs. Blue divide in American politics, which has dominated the Donald Trump era. On the cultural right, this protest was seen as a violation of the First Amendment religious-liberty rights of the worshippers. On the left, efforts to prosecute the activists were seen as a violation of their First Amendment free-speech rights.
Read MoreA grassroots movement to designate June as “Fidelity Month” is gaining support from faith leaders, public officials and advocates who say it promotes faithfulness to God, family, community and country, encouraging Americans to reclaim values they believe are foundational to a thriving society.
Read More(ANALYSIS) It seemed inevitable that the first encyclical from the first American pope, the forward-looking and worldly-wise Leo XIV, would focus on the growing furor over artificial intelligence. The pope’s encyclical comes as the culmination of various articles during recent weeks about the implications of AI on faith, ethics and morals.
Read MoreSoccer’s global reach and emotional intensity have long invited comparisons to religion. Both scholars and fans testify that the analogy is more than just a metaphor. From local club loyalties to the sweeping unity of the World Cup, the game functions in ways that closely resemble systems of shared belief, ritual and identity.
Read MoreOnline sports gambling is sweeping the nation, luring Americans with promises of harmless fun, easy money, and community. And Christians are not immune — many have embraced it as morally acceptable. But as addiction rates climb, few ministries or churches appear to be stepping in to help.
Read MoreGuns to Gardens has been turning unwanted firearms into garden tools and art for over a decade. Since 2013, this faith-based safe disposal movement has destroyed and repurposed an estimated 13,000-plus guns across the country. The guns are clamped to a table, cut apart and transformed into a pick mattock — a hand tool for loosening soil.
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