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
Public theologian Yolanda Pierce named next dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School
By Adelle M. Banks — March 24, 2023
(RNS) — ‘I look forward to building on the strong foundation that Emilie Townes and others have established to form this treasured community,’ Pierce said.
Princeton Theological Seminary students, alumni seek ouster of trustee chair
By Adelle M. Banks — March 21, 2023
(RNS) — ‘The seminary needs a deeper reckoning,’ they wrote, ‘with its current relationship to and investment in modern systems of enslavement.’
Baptist Joint Committee gains faith and justice center, grows religious liberty work
By Adelle M. Banks — March 6, 2023
(RNS) — ‘One of the things that we prioritized in our work was really reimagining religious freedom through the experiences of marginalized communities,’ said Sabrina E. Dent, the center’s president.
Biden administration seeks to rescind Trump-era rule about faith on campus
By Adelle M. Banks — March 3, 2023
(RNS) — An Education Department spokesperson said the more than 600 comments that had been received as of Friday (March 3) will be reviewed before a final rule is issued.
Faith leaders urge Biden to sign executive order for reparations study by Juneteenth
By Adelle M. Banks — March 1, 2023
(RNS) — They urged Biden to base an order on the structure of H.R. 40, legislation proposed for decades that has yet to pass on Capitol Hill.
Steven Curtis Chapman first contemporary Christian artist to earn 50th No. 1 song
By Adelle M. Banks — February 28, 2023
(RNS) — Chapman’s ‘Don’t Lose Heart’ was released in 2022 as a part of ‘Still,’ his latest album, and addressed the loss and grief his family has experienced.
‘Holy Queer’ author seeks Black church inclusion beyond singing with choir
By Adelle M. Banks — February 27, 2023
(RNS) — ‘I focus on the Black church in my criticism because I love it,’ said the Rev. Karmen Michael Smith, author of ‘Holy Queer.’
At Maryland church, it’s ‘Caribbean Sabbath,’ not just Black History Month
By Adelle M. Banks — February 23, 2023
HYATTSVILLE, Md. (RNS) — ‘It's a space where our members and their family and friends can feel celebrated, can feel affirmed,’ said Pastor Trevor Kinlock.
Southern Baptists oust Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church for naming a female pastor
By Adelle M. Banks — February 21, 2023
(RNS) — Stacie Wood, wife of Andy Wood, who replaced Warren as lead pastor last summer, has the title of ‘teaching pastor.’
Harvard, National Council of Churches, Reform Jews seeking reparations blueprint
By Adelle M. Banks — February 20, 2023
(RNS) — ‘This is not a mere research paper,’ said the Rev. Cornell William Brooks, a Kennedy School professor and former president of the NAACP.
Library of Congress to highlight Muslim slave and scholar with $2.5 million grant
By Adelle M. Banks — February 14, 2023
(RNS) — The project, which will aid other library programs, is one of 16 to receive grants from the Lilly Endowment’s Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative.
Docuseries on Black church highlights history, links to biblical orthodoxy
By Adelle M. Banks — February 13, 2023
(RNS) — 'We wanted to show the substantive differences between the denominations but also show that the primary arguments were not about orthodoxy,' said producer Justin Giboney.
In bitter wartime winter, missionary warms Ukrainians with stoves, blankets
By Adelle M. Banks — February 7, 2023
(RNS) — Ken Ward’s ministry colleagues compare the missionary, who has spent the equivalent of more than two months in Ukraine, to well-traveled biblical figures.
Biden tells dueling prayer breakfasts that ‘diversity is one of our greatest strengths’
By Adelle M. Banks — February 2, 2023
(RNS) — Biden’s remarks occurred on the day when there were two events instead of one to mark the tradition of prayer gatherings of Congress and the U.S. president.
At Tyre Nichols’ funeral, VP Harris and Sharpton among those praying and promising reform
By Adelle M. Banks — February 1, 2023
(RNS) — ‘When we talk about public safety, let us understand what it means in its truest form: Tyre Nichols should have been safe,’ the vice president said.
