Arts & Culture

Leave Amy Grant alone
By Tyler Huckabee — December 22, 2022
(RNS) — There is nothing left to kick her out of. She’s free.

The most intriguing books on religion we read in 2022
By RNS staff — December 21, 2022
(RNS) — Pushing the boundaries of what faith can and should be, this year’s best religion and spirituality reads offer everything except predictability.

How sacred music enchants the secular world
By Jacob Lupfer — December 16, 2022
(RNS) — We may notice it more at Christmastime or at the movies, but sacred choral music has the power to move all of us, religious or secular, just about any time.

The alienation of Eliot’s ‘The Waste Land,’ at 100, has come to feel like home
By Karen Swallow Prior — December 13, 2022
(RNS) — The December birthday ‘The Waste Land’ shares with Christmas foreshadows the Easter that is to come.

Mormon TikTok star debunks Bible conspiracies, misinformation
By Jana Riess — December 9, 2022
(RNS) — More than a quarter-million TikTok followers enjoy Dan McClellan's unusual combination of deadpan humor and solid biblical scholarship.

‘You put the baby in the manger?’: New podcast looks at sacred and profane in the Gospels
By Bob Smietana — December 7, 2022
(RNS) — A ‘biblical backstager,’ the new audio drama ‘Almelem’ features ‘a small group of con artists and true disciples fumbling toward the greatest story ever told.’

Bob Dylan’s new book is a Jewish masterpiece
By Jeffrey Salkin — December 7, 2022
(RNS) — ‘How does it feel?’ Bob Dylan actually tells us, in 66 songs.

Antisemitism isn’t just ‘Jew-hatred’ – it’s anti-Jewish racism
By Dov Waxman — December 7, 2022
(The Conversation) — Combatting antisemitism isn’t just about ‘calling it out’ – it’s about helping people understand what antisemitism is in the first place.

HBO’s ‘Unveiled: Surviving La Luz Del Mundo’ centers victims in ‘cult’ sex abuse scandal
By Alejandra Molina — December 6, 2022
(RNS) — The new three-part series delves into the history and growth of La Luz del Mundo and focuses on the former members coping with the trauma of the church.

Faith in the spotlight on Kennedy Center red carpet and stage at annual Honors gala
By Adelle M. Banks — December 5, 2022
(RNS) — Singer Ellie Holcomb said Amy Grant taught her to be a ‘there you are person’ rather than a ‘here I am person.’

Amy Grant, ‘queen of Christian pop,’ feted at Kennedy Center Honors
By Adelle M. Banks — December 5, 2022
(RNS) — ‘There was only one person who could really fulfill that requirement, and that was Amy,’ Kennedy Center's board chair, in an interview, said of ‘long overdue’ recognition.

‘Everyone gets their love story’: How Christmas rom-coms have taken over the season
By Emily McFarlan Miller and Adelle M. Banks — December 2, 2022
(RNS) — Move over, Hallmark. Other channels and streaming services are premiering holiday originals, too, hoping to capture the magic of the Christmas rom-com for their audiences.

In Philadelphia, artwork brings Catholic Church’s synod to life
By Kyle Desrosiers — November 30, 2022
(RNS) — Artwork reflecting the thoughts of young Catholics in Philadelphia pointed up the contentious issues swirling as the continental phase of the Synod on Synodality begins.

Spielberg tells his — and Hollywood’s — Jewish story
By Jeffrey Salkin — November 30, 2022
(RNS) — Understanding his new film as a history of Jews and the entertainment business.

‘The Chosen’ triggers Hollywood upset
By Kathryn Post — November 22, 2022
(RNS) — Creators of the show, which hit No. 3 at the box office, also announced a new nonprofit to support production and marketing.