Patheos’ Sacred Spaces Initiative: Showcasing The 100 Most Holy Places On Earth

Patheos, a website focused on religion and spirituality, recently launched the Sacred Spaces Initiative, which explores the 100 most holy sites on earth, providing valuable insights about each site.

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‘Children of the Inquisition’: A Riveting Exploration Of The Jewish Diaspora

(REVIEW) Joseph Lovett’s “Children of the Inquisition” is a feature length documentary exploring the worldwide Sephardic diaspora and recounting the history of various Jewish families seeking refuge during the Spanish Inquisition. 

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Some Don’t Like Thinking Of God As Their Heavenly Father

(OPINION) I think the main problem with Christianity specifically and the whole world generally is that many people seem not to ever have comprehended how radically and unconditionally they are loved by the Lord. Musing afterward on my conversations with a young woman, it struck me we’d both arrived at our different images of God from our differing experiences with our earthly fathers.

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Yes, Protestants Disagree With The Ancient Churches On The Status Of The Siblings Of Jesus

(OPINION) On the age-old but ever-debated topic of whether Jesus had brothers and sisters, The Guy would answer that — as is often the case — it depends on what church is fielding the question. From ancient times, Catholicism and Orthodoxy have said no. But virtually all Protestants since Martin Luther’s time have said yes.

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Tatmadaw Targets Religious And Ethnic Communities In Myanmar Yet Again

(ANALYSIS) A new report suggests that the Tatmadaw continues to target religious and ethnic communities. This comes years after the Tatmadaw specifically targeted the Rohingya for annihilation.

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Alliance University’s Closure Is A Major Loss For Minority Students In New York

Alliance University, a Christian college in lower Manhattan that primarily served minority students, announced it will close this year after losing its accreditation amid other hurdles.

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Religious Liter-AI-cy: An Interview With ChatGPT On Eastern Religions And Yoga Part 3

This week on our Talking to Tech series, we interviewed ChatGPT on some of the Eastern religions. Like last time, the aim of the interview was to compare and contrast the core tenets and practices of each one. ChatGPT also shared a few of its “thoughts” on yoga and how it related to Hinduism.

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A Business Can Decline Service Based On Its Beliefs, But What Will This Look Like In Practice?

(ANALYSIS) As a professor of law who pays particular attention to First Amendment issues involving freedom of religion and speech, I see 303 Creative v. Elenis highlighting tension between two competing fundamental interests — ones that clash routinely in 21st century America.

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Anglican Church Of Uganda Nullifies Election Of New Bishop Over Infidelity

KAMPALA, Uganda — The House of Bishops of the Anglican Church of Uganda has nullified the election of the fourth bishop of Luweero Diocese in the central region and canceled his consecration that had been slated for July 16 over allegations of infidelity. He’s the latest in a line of clergy to be removed for such hypocrisy.

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The Bible Doesn’t Say Life Begins At Conception

(OPINION) I don’t take abortion any more lightly than I take lightly the indiscriminate nature of promiscuity that appears to have infested our culture. But I still cannot find it in me, or in Holy Scripture, to support a trigger law or pretend that the removal of 12 cells not a nanosecond following conception could justly be deemed “murder.” Yet anti-abortion adherents often tout the slogan “abortion is murder.”

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‘The Hong Konger’: A Candid Look At Jimmy Lai's Struggle Against Chinese Totalitarianism

(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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The Unsolved Mystery: Aleppo’s Missing Bishops Haunt the Middle East

(OPINION) The bishops of Aleppo, Syria — Metropolitan Paul Yazigi and Metropolitan Yohanna Ibrahim of the Syriac Orthodox Church — disappeared 10 years ago while seeking the release of two kidnapped priests. Their car was surrounded by a pack of armed men as they maneuvered through risky checkpoints west of Aleppo. Their driver died in the gunfire, but a survivor later testified that the kidnappers were not speaking Arabic and appeared to be from Chechnya.

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Refugees from Putin’s War with Ukraine Find Refuge and Faith in The Hague

As the Netherlands celebrated a day 2,000-plus years ago when people of many nations became the first Christian church, a multinational, multiethnic mix of believers from from Ukraine, from Western Europe, from Africa — even from Russia — gathered to praise God.

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Two Documentaries Portray Religious Groups Capitalizing On Fear And Shame

(OPINION) Two recent documentary series offer distressing portraits of Christian organizations that, although unrelated, appear eerily similar. Both movements gained prominence in part by instilling fear and shame in their members. Both have reaped abuse, scandal and decline.

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Fostering Community Through Food: Inside the Only Halal Store in Southeastern Washington

Sandwiched between a laundromat and an appliance shop, is the only halal store in the southeastern Washington state and central Idaho area known as The Palouse. Until June, PNW Halal Meats, LLC had been hidden away on the northeast side of town in Pullman, Washington, close to the Washington State University campus. The store was cramped with a confined parking lot, easy to miss if one wasn’t looking for it.

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Supreme Court Declines Christian College’s Challenge To Biden Transgender Policy

The Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from a Missouri Christian college seeking to halt a Biden administration policy the college believes may force it to allow biological males in women’s dormitories.

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Elevation Megachurch Withdraws From The Southern Baptist Convention

North Carolina megachurch Elevation — known for its popular music and charismatic pastor — is withdrawing its affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention effective immediately, according to a letter sent to the SBC’s Executive Committee and the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina.

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July 4, 2023: Thoughts About Our Divided United States And Potential For A ‘Civil War’

(OPINION) What ails the United States of America? Why have some serious thinkers even talked about a second civil war? Both journalists and religious leaders should be pondering that on July 4. Consider some recent media coverage.

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