(ANALYSIS) Churches have been targeted in the United States and around the world in what has easily been one of the most underreported (in some cases not reported at all) stories of the last decade. The problem? When it comes to press coverage, not all religious sanctuaries are created equal.
Read MoreChaplaincy remains common in both private and state schools in Australia despite the decreasing Christian demographic. Often included on schools’ well-being teams, chaplains offer spiritual guidance alongside counselors and social workers.
Read MorePalestinians celebrated the country’s national team after qualifying for the knockout stage at the AFC Asian Cup. The historic win, a 3-0 victory against Hong Kong to close out the group stage, allowed Palestine to reach the round of 16 for the first time in the tournament’s 68-year history. It also brought some comfort amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
Read MoreThis week’s Weekend Plug-in features a retrospective from columnist Bobby Ross Jr. on his 25 years on the Godbeat. Plus, a major new study on ‘nones’ — and, as always, all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read MoreLast week, much of the U.S. experienced dangerously cold temperatures. In these conditions, what happens to the unhoused? Many churches were stepping up to provide overnight warming shelters for those experiencing homelessness in their cities.
Read More(ESSAY) For veteran religion writer Bobby Ross Jr., an unexpected assignment to cover Pope John Paul’s 1999 visit to St. Louis planted a seed. Twenty-five years later, Ross reflects on that experience as the spark that launched the most important phase of his journalism career.
Read MoreCru, the $811 million international ministry formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ International, announced Monday that President Steve Sellers will step down in July. Sellers explained the move in a video posted Monday night, saying that God had led him to his post and is now leading him to leave it.
Read More(OPINION) It seems to me that the pro-life movement has lost its way. Sure, there are outward signs of success. Roe v. Wade was overturned. Roe was a bad decision, and overturning it was a good thing. But — as I have written elsewhere — we are now discovering that how one wins is as important as what one wins.
Read MoreTemitope Balogun Joshua (better known as T.B. Joshua) was a Nigerian charismatic pastor and televangelist whose ministry was dogged by one controversy after another until his death on June 5, 2021. Now it seems controversy has followed the man to grave. A BBC expose has former church members accusing the pastor of all sorts of wrongdoing.
Read More(OPINION) With its digital homage to the late Paul Harvey's “So God Made a Farmer” soliloquy, the “God Made Trump” video drew roars of support at key Iowa rallies for Donald Trump. “And on June 14, 1946, God looked down on his planned paradise and said, ‘I need a caretaker,’ so God gave us Trump,” said the majestic voice.
Read MoreA new report on “nones” — one of the largest ever conducted on this fast-growing demographic — attempts to drill down into what these Americans believe, their feelings towards organized religion and politics. The decades-long rise of the “nones” has been one of the most talked about phenomena in the United States.
Read More(OPINION) When it comes to the term “evangelical,” it is not so much that it is a potentially ambiguous term (like “Christian”) as it is a misleading term — a term that has become cultural and political more than spiritual.
Read More(REVIEW) The book establishes a sober and compelling framework for living in a changing world for American Christians that deserves to be read and wrestled with for anyone who wants to understand the age we live in.
Read MoreJada Electra Black has a big dream. The Christian teen would like to serve as prime minister of Australia. “That’s my goal,” said Black, who attends Redlands College, a K-12 school associated with Churches of Christ. “I want to study law and justice. I want to be a lawyer. But ultimately, I really want to be a politician.”
Read MoreJoel Osteen, the longtime pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, was brought to tears last Sunday (Jan. 14) as he announced the church had paid off its nearly 20-year debt of $100 million.
Read More(OPINION) The teachings of most religions and denominations encourage, if not command, followers to care for God’s creation. Since the first Earth Day in 1970, many houses of worship have taken the message of environmental sustainability to heart. They tend to start with improving the day-to-day behaviors of their congregations.
Read More(OPINION) An article by Kelsey Dallas in the Deseret News asks, “Can you be a Christian and play a sinful character on TV?” Dallas then notes that, “Alan Ritchson, the star of ‘Reacher,’ says you certainly can, and he’s unhappy with ‘supposed Christians’ who have a problem with him taking on a “morally ambiguous” role.”
Read MoreEvery year in mid-January, Livia Gao arrives at Mahayana Buddhist Temple in New York’s Chinatown at dawn to prepare 2,000 batches of congee, a soupy rice mixture, for the community. This special service is more commonly known as the “Laba Festival” by Mahayana Chinese Buddhists and celebrated by immigrants around the world.
Read MoreThe opening on Monday of a Hindu temple — a consecration ceremony considered a crowning moment for Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist movement — took place just months before the prime minister seeks to win a third term. The opening of the Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir, a temple built on the ruins of a historic mosque, is located in the Indian city of Ayodhya.
Read More(OPINION) If you ever get a wild hair to try something really spiritual, try this. Think of the people who’ve done you dirty. We tend to keep a long list somewhere in our heads of people who’ve royally messed us over, bad guys we’d love to see get theirs.
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