As tensions between Moscow and Washington, D.C. rise along the Ukrainian border, an officer responsible for some of the most powerful weapons in the U.S. arsenal tells his men that he knows how to respond to the situation because he has seen it all before — in the Book of Revelation. While the scenario sounds like the plot of a Tom Clancy novel, this is no work of fiction.
Read More(OPINION) It’s not in any way trivializing the ongoing horrors in the Middle East to point out that all of us are equally vulnerable to our own private apocalypses. What does good religion say to us at times such as this — and at all times? Plenty, actually.
Read More(OPINION) The Washington Post recently featured an unusually lengthy newspaper essay by Kate Cohen, a contributing columnist. Cohen’s takeaways are that religion is irrational, there are a lot more atheists out there than you’d imagine, that they should share their beliefs widely and that atheists make demonstrably better citizens than do the religious. But for me, Cohen’s essay is also misleading.
Read MoreA bitter disagreement erupted this month in Uganda’s Parliament between the office of the speaker and opposition legislators over the violation of freedom of worship by security forces in the country.
Read More(REVIEW) In his new book, “Heartbeat: An American Cardiologist in Kenya,” Dr. David Silverstein, who is Jewish, recounts the highs and lows of being Moi’s personal physician. It meant that he was privy to some of the biggest secrets and decisions ever made in Kenya.
Read MoreA blast went off at a building located on the campus of St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church in Gaza City, a place where scores of Palestinians had been sheltering from Israeli air strikes. Some 500 Muslims and Christians had been staying on the church grounds following the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israeli civilians.
Read MoreThis week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights the crucial religion angles related to the Israel-Hamas war. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read More(ANALYSIS) As a scholar of global Islam, I teach an introduction to Islam course and include a discussion about Al-Aqsa as part of the syllabus. That’s because Al-Aqsa has deep religious significance for Muslims around the world. But it is also important to highlight its remarkable political relevance for Palestinians.
Read More(REVIEW) Now, Angel Studios is trying to stake its claim in the documentary space with this year’s “After Death” and its upcoming adaptation of the book “Live Not By Lies.” “After Death” is a rewarding — if imperfect — exploration of near-death experiences for the faithful and the curious, and a hopeful step forward for faith-based documentaries.
Read MorePope Francis led a prayer vigil at the Vatican to recall the plight of migrants and refugees, saying everyone is “called to be neighbors.” The service took place during the Synod on Synodality, a gathering of bishops and laypeople, and comes as large numbers of people have been forced to flee the Global South to places like the U.S. and Europe.
Read MoreThe heated discourse about the deadly rocket explosion at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza is rooted in the centuries-old religious hatred underlying the current war in Gaza. Immediately after the blast, journalists accepted Hamas’ account blaming the Israel Defense Forces for the deadly attack.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Particularly in the West, people tend to think about religion in terms of belief in a higher power, such as God. For many nones, however, spirituality does not need a god or the supernatural to address questions of purpose, meaning, belonging and well-being. While abandoning mainstream religious affiliation, many turn to alternative expressions, including secular, atheist and psychedelic churches.
Read More(OPINION) The most urgent action needed is the return of the hostages and the provision of assistance to all those affected. It is also crucial to protect civilians from further harm. Furthermore, justice and accountability are key. This raises the question in relation to the involvement of the International Criminal Court.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Many in the media continue to get this story wrong. For many, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is treated like a political story. It was a story about land. It was about colonization. It was about human rights. It may be about all those things, depending on whom you ask, but it’s also a story about Jews, Muslims and sacred sites in the Holy Lands. In other words, it’s a religion story.
Read More(OPINION) During the 1990s, legions of kids could quote chapter and verse from “The X-Files,” the adventures of FBI special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully. Scully was the skeptic who put her faith in science, while Mulder plunged headfirst into the supernatural. But in one case, Scully experienced mysterious visions that helped her save a life. Stunned, she returned to church. Confessing to a priest, she asked why she witnessed a miracle but her partner did not.
Read More(ANALYSIS) What with Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine raging unabated and now Israel’s retaliation after extensive Hamas terror attacks from Gaza, it’s understandable that journalists, their audiences and politicians have paid little attention to a massive ongoing humanitarian crisis in interior Asia, where Western media lack observers on the ground.
Read MoreNetivyah serves a network of Messianic Jewish congregations, one of which lost the son of its minister in the fighting, said Joseph Shulam, Netivyah’s founder. In a video posted from Nashville, Shulam and his son, Barry, asked for prayers and for support. In addition to its feeding programs and “Houses for Healing,” Netivyah supplies Israeli soldiers with headlamps, cell phone chargers and utility kits.
Read More(OPINION) The savagery of Hamas terrorists this past week stands in sharp contrast to the snowflakes at Harvard.
Read MoreThe Palestinian community that lives just outside of Chicago remains in mourning a day after a funeral service was held for 6-year-old Wadea Al-Fayoume. Crowds gathered in Bridgeview — home to a large Palestinian community — to say goodbye to the boy killed in what authorities have called a hate crime fueled by the Israel-Hamas war.
Read More(OPINION) As an artist and as a person of faith, Clara Maria Goldstein is difficult to pigeonhole. Raised as a Roman Catholic in her native Nicaragua, she moved to the United States with a 1 year-old daughter, Alejandra, in the 1980s at age 21.
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