What ‘Mother Teresa & Me’ Gets Wrong About Faith and Doubt

(REVIEW) The film follows two parallel stories: One of Mother Teresa’s mission from God to serve the poor and needy in India; the other a young Indian-British woman named Kavita with a secret connection to Mother Teresa whose life is turned upside down when she finds out she’s pregnant. Mother Teresa’s story is so powerful that there is still stuff of value for those who do watch it. This film fails, however, because it tries to make her more relevant to modern audiences, but is too burdened by a mountain of cliches and bad theology to truly succeed.

Christianity, Catholicism, Film & TVJoseph HolmesOctober 2, 2023Joseph Holmes, movies, Film & TV, Mother TeresaComment

Mark Driscoll’s Safe Space: How The Embattled Pastor Built A New Church

After the implosion of Mars Hill Church, Mark Driscoll started a new congregation in Arizona, but former attendees say problems still persist.

The Story Of Ohio’s Ancient Native Complex And Its Journey As A World Heritage Site

(ANALYSIS) Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks in Ohio was added to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage sites on Sept. 19, 2023. The eight mound complexes that received this designation are spread across central and southern Ohio and were built between the beginning of the common era and the 12th century.

AI Won’t Be Replacing Your Priest, Minister, Rabbi Or Imam Any Time Soon

(ANALYSIS) The growing use of AI may prompt more churches to debut AI-generated worship services. A church in Austin, Texas, for example, has put a banner out advertising a service with an AI-generated sermon. The church worship will also include an AI-generated call to worship and pastoral prayer. Yet this use of AI has prompted concerns, as these technologies are believed to disrupt authentic human presence and leadership in religious life.

World Vision Responds To Inquiry, Denies Accusations of Aiding Terrorism

World Vision, the $1.4 billion Christian relief ministry, has told U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley that it denies claims it aided terrorists in Gaza. In August, the senator from Iowa sent a series of questions to the ministry, a major beneficiary of federal funding that has long denied its work in Gaza supports terrorists

Everything You Need to Know About The Synod on Synodality

(EXPLAINER) The next phase in the high-anticipated Vatican gathering of bishops known as the Synod of Synodality starts on Oct. 4. The first phase of this global gathering is the culmination of two years of preparation. Over the past two years, much has been said about synodality and what it aims to do for Catholicism.

✝️ The Big Synod Starts Soon: It’s The ‘Catholic Equivalent Of The Super Bowl’ 🔌

This week’s Weekend Plug-in previews the Catholic Church’s upcoming synod on synodality in Rome. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.

New Survey Offers Insight Into College Students’ Gender, Sexual Orientation and Religion

(ANALYSIS) The religious group that is the most likely to be straight is Muslims at 85%, followed closely by a whole bunch of other groups such as Protestants, Catholics, “just Christians” and Hindus. But here’s a really big surprise to me — only 78% of Latter-day Saints in college say that they are straight.

Zimbabwe’s Clergy Shirk Charges Of Complicity In Plunder

(ANALYSIS) In a troubled country where violence and rigging win elections and the resultant political leadership promotes lawlessness, corruption and general misrule, a compromised church leadership stands accused of siding with the oppressors, a charge that these “men of God” deny.

Africa, Christianity, NewsCyril ZendaSeptember 29, 2023Cyril Zenda, clergy, Africa, Zimbabwe, Primary featureComment

Here’s One Thing Preachers Need To Avoid When Delivering Sermons

(OPINION) Kids do say the darndest things, and with decades of pulpit experience, the Rev. Joe McKeever has learned that these revelatory remarks often happen just after church. In one case, a parent shared a question from a perplexed child who struggled with a complex McKeever sermon. Thus, the 7-year-old asked: “Why does Pastor Joe think we need this information?”

Opinion, ChristianityTerry MattinglySeptember 29, 2023Terry Mattingly, Christianity, preachers, opinionComment

Tinmel – Morocco’s Medieval Shrine And Mosque – One Of Earthquake’s Casualties

The damage from the earthquake that struck Morocco on Sept. 8, 2023, is still being assessed. Moroccans are grappling not just with the loss of thousands of lives, but also with the widespread destruction of their cultural heritage and historical sites. Among them is a 12th-century mosque in the village of Tinmel, about 4 miles from the epicenter of the quake that flattened many of the villages in the Atlas Mountains.

NewsAbbey StockstillSeptember 28, 2023The Conversation, Abbey Stockstill, Tinmel Mosque, Morocco, Morocco earthquake, Islam, Secondary featureComment

The Westgate Mall Attack 10 Years Later: How It Changed Ways Kenyans Worship

(ANALYSIS) It was an attack that not only exposed Kenya’s lackluster security in public places — but changed the way Kenya’s churches handled worship services. For the first time ever, churchgoers were subjected to metal detectors, sniffer dogs and armed policemen camped outside buildings while services went on.

Analysis, Anglican, News, AfricaTom OsanjoSeptember 28, 2023Tom Osanjo, Kenya, Westgate Mall attack, terrorism, Africa, church, Christianity, Zenger, Zenger News, ZengerNews, Primary featureComment

The Kind Of Leadership The Church Needs Now

(OPINION) My father, who recently died at age 92, often said, “The older we get, the better we were.” This expression is a succinct, if folksy, way of describing the common practice of historical revisionism. But Christians tend to engage in revisionism, too. If progressives denigrate the past, many Christians and conservatives sentimentalize the past.

OpinionWarren Cole SmithSeptember 28, 2023MinistryWatch, Warren Cole Smith, Christianity, Revisionism, Religion and politics, Polarization, TruthComment

What Israelis Think About An Independent Palestinian State

Only 35% of Israelis, a new report found, think “a way can be found for Israel and an independent Palestinian state to coexist peacefully.” The latest Pew Research Center survey, which was conducted in March and April of this year, represents a decline of nine percentage points since 2017 and 15 points since 2013.

Judaism, Islam, News, Middle EastClemente LisiSeptember 27, 2023Clemente Lisi, Israel, Palestine, Islam, Muslims, Jews, Judaism, Zenger, Zenger News, ZengerNews, Secondary feature, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, recharge, RechargeComment

Methodist Community In Religious Liberty Fight Regarding Sunday Beach Access

A Christian group that has called the seaside town of Ocean Grove in New Jersey home for over 150 years is in a battle with state officials over beach access on Sundays. The town has kept its beach closed on Sundays from 9 a.m to noon — a total of 45 hours a year — each summer so that residents can attend church services. But New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection has issued a violation letter stating the town is disobeying the law by cutting off access to the ocean.

Rosh Hashanah Reflections And The Need for Genuine Support

(OPINION) Distress and hopelessness are typically met not with plans of action or offers of assistance, but with a pat on the head and 15 different versions of ‘You can do it” or “You’ll survive.” But not everyone can do it, and people die. There are horrors beyond our control. No amount of cute and sweet clichés will save the heartbroken and the hopeless. Such phrases may, however, make them feel isolated and even more vulnerable.

OpinionHyphen ParentSeptember 27, 2023Spokane FaVS, Hyphen Parent, Mental health, Judaism, Rosh Hashanah, Jewish holidays, JewsComment

5 Things Faith-Based Films Get Right

(ANALYSIS) Often panned both by secular and Christian film critics, faith-based films have been criticized for many things, whether it’s for the writing, acting or for perceived problematic messages. And yet, with all of the criticism, much of it valid (including much of it by me), it can get lost what good things there are in what we call “faith-based films” — movies made by people of faith for people of faith — that cause them to resonate so strongly with so many people.

Analysis, Film & TVJoseph HolmesSeptember 27, 2023Joseph Holmes, movies, film, faith-based films, Christianity, religion, faith, Hollywood Comments

Dispatches From Nagorno-Karabakh: Armenian Christians Flee Another Genocide

(ANALYSIS) The small Armenian Christian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh — locally known as Artsakh — has long been part of historical Armenia. Since December 2022, Artsakh has been under siege by neighboring Azerbaijan, and the world has largely ignored a prolonged assault on that peaceful community of 120,000 souls.

West Side Story: Diverse NY Church Represents 5 Continents

The Upper West Manhattan Church of Christ worships God in rented space at Hostelling International’s Victorian-style building at the corner of West 103rd Street and Amsterdam Avenue. The 25-year-old congregation began meeting in a small karate studio in 1998 — in the community that, four decades earlier, inspired the Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim musical “West Side Story.”

Jail Ministry Coordinator Emily Cortina Talks Spiritual Needs And ‘God’s Merciful Love’

Chicago, like many American urban centers, has a troubled jail. Inmates and advocates have drawn attention to violence, overcrowding, a lack of access to hygiene products, a lack of medical services and other issues beleaguering Chicago's Cook County Jail. These circumstances make it difficult for inmates to maintain their physical and mental health, let alone nourish their spiritual needs.

NewsIain CarlosSeptember 26, 2023Iain Carlos, jails, Catholic church, Zenger, Zenger News, ZengerNews, ministry, prison reform, recharge, RechargeComment

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