Coronavirus
DHS official Marcus Coleman offers security tips for houses of faith marking holidays
By Adelle M. Banks — April 14, 2022
(RNS) — Coleman advises congregations to keep a watchful eye as they open their doors for in-person gatherings marking special occasions, traditional worship and everyday work.
Middle Church to begin meeting in synagogue on Easter as it awaits restored building
By Adelle M. Banks — April 7, 2022
(RNS) — The Rev. Jacqui Lewis said East End Temple displays ‘an incredible act of generosity and trust to make space in their community for us to tabernacle with them.’
Author Lee Strobel, after brush with death, explores ‘Case for Heaven’ in film
By Adelle M. Banks — March 31, 2022
(RNS) — ‘The topic of what does indeed happen after we leave this world is more relevant to a lot of people today than it was a couple of years ago,’ Strobel said.
Fortitude through faith: The Muslim pandemic experience
By Omar Suleiman, Rania Awaad, and Taimur Kouser — March 31, 2022
(RNS) — Mental health increasingly — and erroneously — operates under the umbrella of secularism.
Navy barred from acting against religious vaccine refusers
By Jessica Gresko — March 29, 2022
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin last year made vaccinations mandatory for service members.
Jehovah’s Witnesses to resume in-person gatherings, door knocking still on hold
By Alejandra Molina — March 18, 2022
(RNS) — Kingdom Halls will, as of April 1, reopen for in-person worship as long as there are no pandemic-related government restrictions forbidding them from doing so. Virtual services will still be available.
Lessons of pandemic can endure, says editor of National Cathedral sermon compilation
By Adelle M. Banks — March 15, 2022
(RNS) — Editor of book of sermons preached during the pandemic at Washington National Cathedral: ‘People have been so isolated, alone, afraid. They just need to connect.’
Priest who balked at COVID-19 precautions removed from Vermont parish
By Associated Press — March 14, 2022
SPRINGFIELD, Vt. (AP) — Williams' bishop determined that “his serious disobedience and disrespect shown to the office of the bishop” merited removal.
Doug Emhoff highlights Black interfaith contributions as new project launches
By Adelle M. Banks — February 24, 2022
(RNS) — As the Black Interfaith Project launches, Emhoff said his interfaith marriage with Kamala Harris followed the discovery that their joint values were rooted in their different faiths.
Justin Bieber’s new tour offers incentives for fans to do good, support nonprofits
By Kathryn Post and Adelle M. Banks — February 22, 2022
(RNS) — Live Free USA, a criminal justice reform organization, is holding ‘justice and belonging’ training sessions ahead of the concert dates in cities where Bieber is scheduled to perform.
Could Novavax win over some religious vaccine skeptics?
By Jack Jenkins — February 18, 2022
(RNS) — Novavax's CEO has framed his company's vaccine as an alternative for those who object to the use of fetal cell lines in the development of existing popular vaccines.
Unvaccinated medical workers turn to religious exemptions
By Heather Hollingsworth — February 15, 2022
(AP) — Religious exemptions are increasingly becoming a workaround for unvaccinated hospital and nursing home workers who want to keep their jobs in the face of federal mandates.
Houses of worship grapple with the future of their online services
By Diana Kruzman — February 14, 2022
(RNS) — Two years into the pandemic, more religious institutions are asking themselves what a hybrid approach can and should look like.
Missouri governor’s ‘Christian values’ statement questioned
By Jim Salter — February 4, 2022
(AP) — Gov. Mike Parson indicated earlier in the week he would only nominate a state health director who shared his “Christian values.”
Francis Collins on COVID-19 politics: ‘The culture war is literally killing people’
By Adelle M. Banks — February 3, 2022
(RNS) — Many white evangelicals, said the former head of the National Institutes of Health, have been ‘victimized by the misinformation and lies and conspiracies that are floating around, particularly on social media and some of it in cable news.’
