(RNS) Beliefs about circumcision will not be easy to change, but questioning circumcision is already happening for Jews. A proposed law in Germany to ban circumcision on young boys offers a chance to expand the debate and move the conversation forward. By Ronald Goldman.

WILMINGTON, N.C. (RNS) With 10 percent unemployment in this corner of North Carolina, the search-for-work story of Gerry Murphy and Andrea Kanelopoulos-Murphy could be a common one. But the couple believe their unique marriage -- he's a former Catholic priest -- sometimes makes it harder to find the right workplace. By Amanda Greene.

SALT LAKE CITY (RNS) Maybe now, reporters, bloggers, outsiders and even many Mormons will accept that the Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not forbid drinking cola. By Peggy Fletcher Stack.

(RNS) Following attacks on seven mosques in the last two weeks, many Muslim Americans will mark the end of Ramadan this weekend under a cloud of fear. Their leaders aren't sure how to promote safety without provoking panic. By Omar Sacirbey.

NEW ORLEANS (RNS) The Archdiocese of New Orleans has launched a kind of halfway house where a woman considering a vocation can live while giving the matter thought and prayer, the first in the nation that gives would-be nuns the same environment as would-be priests. By Bruce Nolan.

(RNS) A new report draws on 38,000 face-to-face interviews in 39 countries to find that Muslims differ sharply over questions of faith like who counts as a Muslim and what spiritual practices are acceptable. By Christopher Lisee.

Billed as the largest celebration of shared Jewish learning in history, some 90,000 Orthodox Jews crowded into a New Jersey stadium to read portions of the Talmud’s 2,711th — and final — page. By Mark Mueller and Jason Grant.

(RNS) As 150,000 Orthodox Jews in North America celebrate the completion of a seven-year Talmud study program August 1, it’s easier than ever to study scripture, with the advent of websites, podcasts and smartphone apps. By Chris Lisee.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (RNS) Episcopal Bishop Kee Sloan of Alabama voted in favor of his church's new ritual for blessing same-sex unions - but he won't allow priests in his diocese to perform it. By Greg Garrison. 

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (RNS) Could a Virgin Mary statue under a pine tree in the middle of a cow pasture in rural Alabama one day become an officially recognized international pilgrimage site of the Roman Catholic Church? By Greg Garrison.

(RNS) Gay and lesbian Episcopalians are celebrating their church’s approval on Tuesday (July 10) of a liturgical rite for blessing same-sex couples. But conservatives are threatening to take “drastic” steps to distance themselves from the Episcopal Church. By Daniel Burke. 

WARRENTON, Mo. (RNS) "Ask at what age a Christian formed a relationship with Jesus Christ, and 85 percent will say before their 15th birthday," says Reese Kauffman, president of Child Evangelism Fellowship. The Missouri-based group spends $5 million on its international missions, focusing especially on children. By Tim Townsend.

(RNS/ENInews) The Church of England voted to postpone draft legislation that would have allowed women to become bishops. By Trevor Grundy.

SALT LAKE CITY (RNS) Gay Mormon men who are married to women don't claim that their path is the right one for all Mormon gays, and the LDS Church has stopped officially recommending it as a "cure" for homosexuality. Still, as support group numbers indicate, many devoutly religious members still see it as the way to go. By Peggy Fletcher Stack.

(RNS) If a person looks at faith like a string of Christmas lights, if one junction along the string is flawed, then the whole string is dysfunctional. The problem, though, is that such a view of faith is too easily manufactured and too easily broken. By Melissa Inouye.