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Alternative Faiths

In sacred Brazil dunes, critics see evangelical encroachment
By David Biller — September 29, 2022
(AP) — Afro Brazilian religious groups see a public works project at the Abaete dunes as an attempt to Christianize yet another public space, part of evangelicals’ rising influence in the country’s halls of power.

Ojibwe author Patty Krawec writes about Indigenous peoples, Christians ‘Becoming Kin’
By Emily McFarlan Miller — September 27, 2022

Terrifying dragons have long been a part of many religions, and there is a reason for their appeal
By Emily Zarka — September 23, 2022
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As pagans celebrate autumn equinox, some question why Mabon is its symbolic deity
By Heather Greene — September 22, 2022
(RNS) — While the Mabon, like the other seven sabbats on the Wheel, is informed by older agricultural practices, its name is not so old.

Brittany Muller combines Christianity and the cards in ‘The Contemplative Tarot’
By Emily McFarlan Miller — September 13, 2022
(RNS) — ‘The Contemplative Tarot’ explains the history of tarot and gives some examples of how Christians can incorporate the cards into their spiritual practice.

Pushed online in pandemic, women of color find safe spaces for faith and healing
By Kathryn Post — September 8, 2022
(RNS) — ‘There’s really no space in the nonprofit world, racial justice world or the ministry world that is just for women of color.’

The most recognizable work at the Whitney Museum’s new modernism exhibit may be a tarot deck
By Heather Greene — September 8, 2022
(RNS) — Artist Pamela Colman-Smith dismissed it as ‘a big job for very little cash.’ Now the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot deck is her legacy — and has brought her renewed recognition.

Psychedelic salon looks to the possibility of sacred healing
By Kathryn Post — August 29, 2022
(RNS) — Against a backdrop of incense and multicolored lights, speakers shared how their lives had been transformed by plant medicine.

Chile hospital integrates Native medicine, birth to death
By Giovanna Dell'orto — August 29, 2022
OSORNO, Chile (AP) — The largest public hospital in the southern Chilean city of Osorno is finding new ways to incorporate Indigenous health practices, a move they say is restoring a crucial spiritual component to health care.

Hare Krishna movement draws ever more diverse set of spiritual seekers in NYC
By Richa Karmarkar — August 24, 2022
(RNS) — Once known for its popularity among white hippies, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness has found both popularity and legitimacy among an ever growing Hindu diaspora.

Christian groups step up harassment of pagan festivals
By Heather Greene — August 22, 2022
(RNS) — American pagans and witches depend heavily on assemblies with names like Pagan Pride and Between the Worlds to share information and camaraderie.

Studies suggest spiritual practices may prompt people to get off the mat and engage
By Yonat Shimron — August 18, 2022
(RNS) — Criticism of spirituality as inherently selfish may be overblown, according to two new studies that suggest people who are spiritual but not religious are civically and politically engaged.

Christianity was a major part of Indigenous boarding schools – a historian whose family survived them explains
By Brenda J. Child — August 2, 2022
(The Conversation) — A historian of the residential schools explains how religion played a key role in assimilationist systems for Indigenous children in Canada and the United States.

Lúnasa, paganism’s August harvest holiday, becomes a moveable feast
By Heather Greene — August 1, 2022
(RNS) — A loose combination of Irish harvest customs, Lúnasa has been adapted to match the calendar around the world.

Abortion doulas look to spiritual rituals as they brace for increased demand
By Kathryn Post — July 12, 2022
(RNS) — Abortion doulas who draw on spirituality challenge the abortion debate’s religious/secular divide.
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