Rick Warrenâs 2002 book âThe Purpose Driven Lifeâ has sold more than 50-million copies, making it one of the best-selling books of all time. But his work as a pastor and author are just the beginning. Warren Cole Smith had this conversation with Rick Warren at his office in southern California.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Stellar attractions slated to open in 2025 promise to jump-start tourism in Jerusalem afflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Unresolved is how the masses of visitors and pilgrims will reach them.
Read MoreFive women in California have filed a lawsuit alleging that the International Churches of Christ perpetrated a âsystemic scheme of abuseâ that included the sexual abuse of children as young as three years old and financial abuse of its members.
Read MoreThis weekâs Weekend Plug-in highlights a new report on rising antisemitism in the U.S. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read More(OPINION) In a rite before the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, Vatican officials placed unique symbols of his pontificate inside his cypress casket, along with a scroll in Latin describing his ascent to the Chair of St. Peter. Old tensions surfaced during Pope Benedictâs funeral and the events â or the lack thereof â surrounding it.
Read More(ANALYSIS) One of my five things to watch for in 2023 included media speculation over Pope Francisâ health and speculation over his possible retirement. Within three days of that post â and prompted by the death on Dec. 31 of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at the age of 95 â speculation increased once again.
Read More(ANALYSIS) A new study from Springtide Research Institute not only suggests that popular narratives about Gen Zâs abandonment of religion arenât the full story but also that religion and spirituality can contribute to flourishing mental health among this generation.
Read More(OPINION) The 2022 report from the Open Doors organization says âpersecution of Christians has reached the highest levelsâ since it began accumulating data for its annual âWorld Watch Listâ 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.
Read MoreAfter 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
Read MoreAn 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.
Read MoreThirteen women walked across the gymnasium stage at Nashvilleâs 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.
Read MoreYing 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.
Read MoreThis week we launch a new and improved version of Weekend Plug-in, the best roundup of religion news youâll find anywhere. The death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is our big story.
Read MorePope Francis joined tens of thousands of pilgrims in St. Peterâs 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 Benedictâs death and remember his papacy.
Read MoreRomanian 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.
Read MoreAnimal chaplains can help clients prepare for a petâs 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 âblessing of the animalsâ services at houses of worship, or comfort families who have lost an animal following a natural disaster.
Read MoreWhen 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 â some of the toughest men on the planet â 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.
Read MoreRegardless of one's religious affiliation, Pragueâs Church of Our Lady Victoriousâ 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.
Read MorePope 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.
Read More(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 yearâs top American religion-news story.
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