Gen Zers Are Religious, And Their Mental Health Depends On It

(ANALYSIS) A new study from Springtide Research Institute not only suggests that popular narratives about Gen Z’s abandonment of religion aren’t the full story but also that religion and spirituality can contribute to flourishing mental health among this generation.

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The Persecution Of Christians Keeps Surging Around The World

(OPINION) The 2022 report from the Open Doors organization says “persecution of Christians has reached the highest levels” since it began accumulating data for its annual “World Watch List” three decades ago. Hostile incidents have increased by 20% since just 2014, and some 360 million Christians, or 14% of the worldwide total, are said to have faced persecution, harassment or discrimination.

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Unheralded Voice of the Truth Celebrates Half Century of Arabic-Language Ministry

After a recent 50th anniversary dinner for about 250 workers, partners, friends and donors, the Voice of the Truth ministry offered to share some of its achievements

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Despite Daily Missile Attacks, Christian Family Keeps Serving At-Risk Ukrainians

An eastern Ukrainian family traveled 760 miles from their home in Zaporizhzhia, where they worship with a Church of Christ and work with Program for Humanitarian Aid, a nonprofit that, before the war, served primarily orphans and at-risk youths. Now, all Ukrainians are at risk. So the ministry has become one of relief, support and, on occasion, evacuation.

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Women Earn Unique Master’s In Ministry Behind Tennessee Prison Bars

Thirteen women walked across the gymnasium stage at Nashville’s Debra Johnson Rehabilitation Center in mid-December to receive a Master of Arts in Christian ministry, the first graduate degree Lipscomb University has bestowed behind the chain-link and razor wire of the correctional facility formerly called the Tennessee Prison for Women.

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Prison Art From China's Ming Dynasty Reflects A Restriction Of Religious Freedom

Ying Zhang, associate professor of history at Ohio State University, is exploring the connections among prison, art and religion in a unique and meaningful way. Her lecture at The American Academy in Berlin accompanies her new book and discusses the way incarceration limits religious freedom.

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🚀 Launching The New And Improved Weekend Plug-in 🔌

This week we launch a new and improved version of Weekend Plug-in, the best roundup of religion news you’ll find anywhere. The death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is our big story.

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Tens Of Thousands Mourn Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI At Vatican Funeral Mass

Pope Francis joined tens of thousands of pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square on Thursday at a funeral Mass for Benedict XVI, an unusual gathering for a dead pontiff presided by a living one. The Vatican, enveloped in a thick fog, featured heads of state and bishops from around the world who came to Rome to mourn Benedict’s death and remember his papacy.

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Evangelical Publishing Still Going Strong In Post-Communist Romania

Romanian evangelicals hid their faith during communist rule, but the Eastern European country now ranks as the most religious in Europe. Some evangelical magazine publishers, like Eugenia Rosian, never stopped creating and distributing religious materials.

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Animal Chaplaincy Has Become A Growing Profession

Animal chaplains can help clients prepare for a pet’s passing and run animal loss support groups. They partner with clients to develop rituals, from memorial events to a welcome for a new animal companion. They may also lead “blessing of the animals” services at houses of worship, or comfort families who have lost an animal following a natural disaster.

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NFL Players Turn To Prayer After Buffalo Bills Safety Damar Hamlin Suffers Cardiac Arrest During Game

When Damar Hamlin of the Buffalo Bills suffered a cardiac arrest Monday night on the football field, many of his teammates and NFL players at the stadium — some of the toughest men on the planet — broke into a prayer meeting and tears on live TV. The expression of emotion, spiritual care and request for prayer rippled across Twitter and other platforms, igniting both debate and intrigue.

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Faint Signs of Faith Part 7: An Interview About ‘Seekers and Dwellers’ In the City of Prague

Regardless of one's religious affiliation, Prague’s Church of Our Lady Victorious’ breathtaking architecture and rich history make the church an irresistible attraction for travelers. While most can find this to be a unique spiritual experience, locals of Prague have a rather interesting relationship with the church.

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Retired Pope Benedict XVI, First Pontiff To Resign Papacy In Six Centuries, Dies At 95

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who served as head of the Roman Catholic Church from 2005 until his surprise resignation in 2013, was a theologian known for his writings and defense of traditional values to counter the increased secularization of the West.

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No. 1 US Religion News Story? The Fall Of Roe V. Wade

(OPINION) Churches were always active in abortion debates, with some embracing centuries of doctrine on the sanctity of human life and others becoming strategic abortion-rights supporters. Thus journalists in the Religion News Association named the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade as the year’s top American religion-news story.

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The Best Of Religion Unplugged 2022: Our Top Stories Of The Year

This week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights ReligionUnplugged.com’s best stories and projects of 2022, as selected by the senior editors. Plus, check out the Top 10 most-shared editions of Plug-in from this past. year.

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Faint Signs of Faith Part 6: Czech Quandaries And An Endless Quest For Answers

Although the Czech Republic is the most atheist country in the world, people still practice religious traditions today. Simultaneously, there are many factors contributing to the change of religious food culture in the Czech Republic, like globalization, tourism and immigration.

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Faint Signs Of Faith Part 5: Muslims Can Find Halal-Friendly Tourism, Lifestyle And Community In Prague

Muslim tourists and locals in Prague find solace in their accessibility to Middle Eastern, halal food along with tourist hot spots. What’s special about such accessibility is that digital media now promotes “halal tripping” or “halal tourism.” 

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5 Catholic Storylines You Need To Follow Closely In 2023

(ANALYSIS) There are only a few days left to go in 2022. It was a busy news year for the Catholic Church — loaded with stories with strong religion angles. As we prepare to ring in 2023, here are five big storylines and trends to watch for over the next 12 months.

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Faint Signs Of Faith Part 4: Maintaining An Age-old Jewish Community In The Czech Republic

Old Prague’s Jewish quarter was once a walled-off ghetto where the bulk of Bohemia’s Jewish community resided apart from the Christian majority, partly for their own protection. It is now little more than an open-air museum.

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Faint Signs Of Faith Part 3: Does The Media Cover Religion Enough In The Czech Republic?

As I researched media content, it became quite clear to me that churches find their place in the news primarily (if not only) when the subject is business or economics related — church properties and estates — as if shaking away the communist past; political and/or financial correlations. Looking at the local religious life — it barely ever is a subject of media focus.

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