Adelle M. Banks

Adelle M. Banks, production editor and a national reporter, joined RNS in 1995. An award-winning journalist, she previously was the religion reporter at the Orlando Sentinel and a reporter at The Providence Journal and newspapers in the upstate New York communities of Syracuse and Binghamton.

All Stories by Adelle M. Banks

Raphael Warnock honored with Four Freedoms award in ‘extra step’ for racial justice

By Adelle M. Banks — October 15, 2021

(RNS) — FDR’s granddaughter said of Warnock: ‘his voice is consistently counseling, teaching, making himself vulnerable in order to help the rest of us make sense of the world.’

White Christian progressives can be nationalists too, ecumenical panel says

By Adelle M. Banks — October 14, 2021

(RNS) — ‘Liberal Christians are just as complicit with white nationalism that the Trumpites were that we saw on Jan. 6,’ a speaker said.

National Council of Churches elects all-female officers, approves NRSV update

By Adelle M. Banks — October 14, 2021

(RNS) — ‘At this pivotal time in the life of the church in the United States, it is noteworthy that the NCC is modeling inclusiveness in selecting its leaders,’ said its new chair.

Families of different faiths swap houses, lives in Ava DuVernay’s ‘Home Sweet Home’

By Emily McFarlan Miller — October 11, 2021

(RNS) — In the unscripted TV series, 16 families from different religious, racial and economic backgrounds or sexual orientations trade homes for a week.

Remnant of one of the oldest Black churches in US is unveiled in Virginia

By Adelle M. Banks — October 7, 2021

(RNS) — ‘We always hoped this is what we’d find,’ an archaeology director said. ‘Now we can move forward to better understand the footprint of the building.’

Fisk Jubilee Singers continue to sing spirituals 150 years later

By Adelle M. Banks — October 6, 2021

(RNS) — ‘Fisk Jubilee Singers are artists and do not limit themselves to just Negro spirituals,’ its director said. ‘There’s versatility in our choice of music when we have celebrations.’

Faith, endurance of civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer revealed in new biography

By Adelle M. Banks — October 5, 2021

(RNS) — ‘She used the Bible in many different ways,’ said Hamer’s biographer. ‘She used it to shame her white oppressors who claimed also to be Christians.’

‘COVID has been harder on us’: Some Black churches remain hesitant to reopen

By Adelle M. Banks — October 4, 2021

(RNS) — Black churches reflect a cautious approach on the part of ministers, reopening task forces and the average people currently not in the pews.

National Baptist Convention USA president questions ‘hypocritical’ mandate views

By Adelle M. Banks — September 29, 2021

(RNS) — The leader of the Black denomination preached about the need to ‘confront our faults in this country,’ pointing to the Jan. 6 insurrection as an example.

Kirk Franklin rereleases ‘Lean on Me’ with virtual global children’s choir

By Adelle M. Banks — September 28, 2021

(RNS) — ‘You have hundreds of kids that are living in marginalized situations,' Franklin said, 'that this song is giving them an opportunity to have a voice.’

Albert Raboteau, expert on African American religious history, dead at 78

By Adelle M. Banks — September 24, 2021

(RNS) — The scholar ‘was the Godfather of Afro-American Religious Studies & the North Star of deep Christian political sensibilities!’ said colleague Cornel West.

Timothy Stewart, Progressive National Baptists’ international president, dead at 64

By Adelle M. Banks — September 23, 2021

(RNS) — ‘He was the first President from the International Region in Progressive’s 60 year history,’ his denomination said.

Cathedral to replace Confederate windows with stained glass reflecting Black life

By Adelle M. Banks — September 23, 2021

(RNS) — ‘This will be one of the first Confederate icons that has come down and been replaced with something else,’ said a cathedral official.

Religious artifacts in new Reconstruction exhibit depict resilience, racism

By Adelle M. Banks — September 22, 2021

(RNS) — ‘Because the church is an engine of so much civically and spiritually and educationally, it’s recognized as a target,’ a museum curator said of Black congregations.

Women making strides in leadership of Black denominations amid hesitancy