(RNS) — A network of five humanitarian organizations is working to convince American faith-based donors to shift their support away from funding for orphanages to focus on family-strengthening initiatives.

NEW YORK (RNS) — Union, a private, ecumenical school that serves as Columbia University’s faculty of theology but maintains a separate endowment, is the first U.S. institute of higher education known to divest from the war in Gaza.

(RNS) — Both the new and the traditional are served in the Jewish cooking expert’s new dishes.

(RNS) — ‘I still think of myself as Christian, in the sense that that’s my family of origin,’ Eck said. ‘There are other families that I feel I belong to as well.’

(RNS) — Eck said she hopes the Pluralism Project, which has been a model for affiliates and organizations across the country, will continue to foster dialogue and engagement.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Vatican announced the appointment in its Tuesday noon bulletin. As is usual, the announcement made no mention of his predecessor or the circumstances under which he left the post.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The school said Billard wasn’t invited back as a substitute teacher because of his “advocacy in favor of a position that is opposed to what the church teaches about marriage,” a court document said.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Luke Terpstra was charged in western Michigan with two felonies: transportation of an explosive and possession of an unregistered explosive.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis will preside over a ceremony in St. Peter’s Basilica for the formal reading of the papal bull, or official edict, that lays out the spiritual theme of hope for the year.

Rich Villodas on the unique pressures pastors face today and how congregants can offer true support.