News
African faith leaders call for debt forgiveness in 2025 Jubilee year
By Fredrick Nzwili — July 24, 2024
(RNS) — ‘We urgently need a new debt jubilee to bring hope to humankind, and to bring the planet back from the brink of becoming uninhabitable,’ said 27 religious leaders from 13 countries.
Robert Jeffress pledges to rebuild historic Dallas sanctuary after fire
By James Russell — July 23, 2024
(RNS) — Jeffress pledged to 'rebuild and re-create that sanctuary as a standing symbol of truth.'
As Netanyahu arrives in DC, hundreds of Jews protest for arms embargo against Israel
By Jack Jenkins — July 23, 2024
WASHINGTON (RNS) — The protesters wore red shirts reading ‘Jews say stop arming Israel.’
Road to Majority conference showed how Trump plans to keep the Christian right close
By Katherine Stewart — July 23, 2024
WASHINGTON (RNS) — As the GOP pivots to an unpredictable general election season, the party is doubling down on its commitment to religious nationalism.
More than 200 Christian leaders sign letter calling for cease-fire in Gaza
By Chloë-Arizona Fodor and Jack Jenkins — July 23, 2024
WASHINGTON (RNS) — The letter comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the U.S., where he is expected to address Congress on Wednesday and meet with President Joe Biden on Thursday.
Amos Brown, pastor to Kamala Harris, known for civil rights, reparations activism
By Jack Jenkins and Adelle M. Banks — July 23, 2024
(RNS) — Vice President Kamala Harris has praised Brown, ‘my pastor,’ as a man who also has long been her mentor.
ERLC reverses course, now says Brent Leatherwood was not fired
By Bob Smietana — July 23, 2024
(RNS) — The kerfuffle over Leatherwood’s status, which played out in competing press releases from ERLC leaders, is the latest controversy for the SBC’s public policy arm.
Brent Leatherwood, ERLC president, fired a day after praising Biden
By Bob Smietana — July 22, 2024
(RNS) — Leatherwood had been criticized for other recent positions on topics of key interest to Southern Baptists, such as not supporting legislation that would have jailed women who chose abortions.
In small-town Illinois, a little church says goodbye
By Bob Smietana — July 22, 2024
MOUNT VERNON, Ill. (RNS) — Ryan Burge, pastor and sociologist, has documented church decline for years. This Sunday, after 150 years, his own church held its final service.
Bishops close National Eucharistic Congress with challenge to ‘change our society’
By Aleja Hertzler-McCain — July 22, 2024
INDIANAPOLIS (RNS) — Minnesota Bishop Robert Barron told attendees, 'This great revival will have been a failure if we don't change our society.'
Kamala Harris’ multi-religious identity is a map of the future
By Yonat Shimron — July 22, 2024
(RNS) — She would be the first presidential candidate with a diverse personal religious and spiritual history that is now far more representative of America’s multi-faith makeup.
Mosque with ties to Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali receives historic preservation funds
By Adelle M. Banks — July 22, 2024
(RNS) — Masjid Muhammad in Washington, DC, is the first African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund awardee connected to the Islamic faith.
Top UN court says Israel’s presence in occupied Palestinian territories is illegal and should end
By Mike Corder — July 22, 2024
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly denounced the nonbinding opinion issued by the 15-judge panel of the International Court of Justice, saying the territories are part of the Jewish people's historic homeland.
Appeals court hears Christian homeless shelter’s challenge to Washington anti-discrimination law
By Janie Har — July 22, 2024
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Lawyers for a Christian homeless shelter were in a federal appeals court Friday to challenge a Washington state anti-discrimination law that would require the charity to hire LGBTQ+ people and others who do not share its religious beliefs, including those on sexuality and marriage.
Single Catholics talk struggles of dating at National Eucharistic Congress event
By Aleja Hertzler-McCain — July 21, 2024
INDIANAPOLIS (RNS) — Dating while discerning religious vocations was just one topic discussed at an event that also included conversations about the best place to meet other single Catholics and today’s gender dynamics.
