A massive earthquake struck Morocco the night of Sept. 8, killing some 2,800 people and destroying many old buildings and mud brick homes. Over the next few days, “DONATE” buttons were added to websites of numerous ministries seeking donations to aid victims.
Read More(REVIEW) “A Haunting In Venice” is fun for people who like whodunnits and Kenneth Branagh’s interpretation of Hercule Poirot — but it can’t pay off the themes of faith versus reason that it sets up. The film once again features Branagh’s return as both director and star in his third outing of movies based on Agatha Christie’s novels. The movies have had lukewarm reception from both critics and audiences, but have made enough money and been enjoyable enough for Branagh to make another one.
Read More(OPINION) A friend asked what I thought about the recent “dust up,” as she called it, at Pine Mountain Settlement School in Harlan County, Kentucky, deep in the Appalachian mountains. There, The Waymakers Collective turned a chapel into a “healing space,” decorating it “with pillows, mats, a table of aromatic oils and an ‘om’ symbol, which symbolizes the universe in the Hindu religion.”
Read MoreIn the serene landscapes of Punjab’s Barnala district in the northern part of India, the melodious Muslim call to prayer resounds throughout the day. While communal tensions and clashes occasionally make headlines, a different narrative unfolds in the villages of Kutba Bamaniya and beyond. Amid this backdrop, a pre-partition mosque stands tall as a symbol of history, resilience and a shared commitment to coexistence.
Read MoreChurches of Christ in Accra, Ghana, are growing at such a rate that their members will account for 10% of the city’s population … in 1,273 years. That number may come as a shock to Western Christians who routinely hear reports of hundreds, even thousands of baptisms from evangelists in Africa — especially Ghana, considered to be an epicenter of Churches of Christ on the continent.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The data indicates that the relationship between regular religious attendance and education is a positive one. The more educated, the more likely to attend church/synagogue/mosque. That’s true in every wave of the Cooperative Election Study. And, the effect is not a small one. In many years, someone with a graduate degree is 50% more likely to be a weekly attender than someone without a high school diploma.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The upshot, according to Pew demographer Conrad Hackett, is that by available measures, China is — on the surface — “the least religious country in the world.” That’s not surprising when media and public meetings are restricted and the government forbids religious education while subjecting children to intensive atheistic propaganda at school.
Read More(OPINION) Consider a sobering new study — “The Great Dechurching. Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back” — by researchers Jim Davis, Michel Graham and Ryan Burge. Their numbers indicate that evangelicalism has backslid to where it was 50 years ago.
Read More(OPINION) Starting on Friday evening — and again the evening of Sept. 24 — Jews around the world will be filing into synagogues to mark their “Days of Awe” — the High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. For many who observe these holidays in the United States, the Days of Awe will be the only time that they visit a synagogue this year. Only 1 in 5 American Jews attend services once a month or more.
Read More(ANALYSIS) On Sept. 13, 1993, the world watched as Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands on the White House lawn. It was a stunning moment. The famous handshake between adversaries marked the beginning of what became known as the Oslo Accords, a framework for talks between Israeli and Palestinian representatives, mediated by U.S. diplomats.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Last month, United Nations experts published a statement of concern about the situation in the northeast state of Manipur in India. As they indicated, they are concerned about the alleged acts of sexual violence, extrajudicial killings, home destruction, forced displacement, torture and ill treatment perpetrated in Manipur.
Read MoreThrough 16 days of round-the-clock, continuous worship, participants recalled an extraordinary sense of the nearness of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There was no performance with celebrities or polished musicians and no comfortable, spacious venue. Yet an estimated 50,000 to 70,000 pilgrims came from at least 40 states, 286 campuses, and 40 countries. This work explores a spontaneous revival whose impact through social media continues to reverberate around the world.
Read MoreMany Americans may think Buddhism is a philosophy tied to mindfulness and yoga — but across much of Southeast Asia, being Buddhist is an important part of national identity, a new study reveals. The same is also true of the region’s Muslim-majority nations.
Read More(OPINION) In a divided America, music is just another means of dividing based on political affiliation and race. While country music has the image of being “All-American,” hip-hop often sheds light on the social injustices to minority people. When listening to music, it can seem as if there is no unity among people from different backgrounds. However, Gangstagrass is fighting back against that narrative by bringing people from two different genres together.
Read MoreThe crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, or “MBS,” is bringing a new vision of a “moderate, balanced” Saudi Islam by minimizing the role of Saudi religious institutions once seen as critical to the monarchy.
Read MoreIn the devastating Himalayan floods in India’s Himachal Pradesh, Sikh temples have emerged as bastions of support and assistance for those affected by the calamity. As nature unleashes its fury, gurdwaras — places of assembly and worship for Sikhs — across regions hit by flooding have opened their doors, hearts and kitchens to provide essential services.
Read More(OPINION) The famed writer Ernest Hemingway was not necessarily a religious man — but he was a deep thinker and realized that human beings crave long-term satisfaction. In his famous book “The Sun Also Rises,” he understood that the pursuit of meaning in life is frustrating and intricate.
Read More(ANALYSIS) What’s the state of interpersonal trust in the United States over the last five decades, and what role does religion play? If you look at the results from the 2010s, it’s clear that at a minimum, there’s no more positive association between religious attendance and trust. If anything, it may be a slightly negative relationship now.
Read MoreDhanak of Humanity was founded in 2004 by Asif Iqbal, who started it as a support group for interfaith couples in India, aimed at providing guidance and assistance to those facing challenges due to societal prejudices surrounding interreligious unions.
Read More(REVIEW) “The Nun II” has little to show for itself except for its repetitive jump scares — but could it also be a danger to your soul? Christians have a complicated relationship with the horror genre. On the one hand, horror films are one of the few types of Hollywood films that unapologetically treat Christianity (particularly Catholicism) as good.
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