News
Jewish women to march in abortion rights rally
By Yonat Shimron — October 1, 2021
(RNS) — The National Council for Jewish Women will host a special Shabbat morning service at the site of the Washington march Saturday in Freedom Plaza.
‘We’re all interconnected’: Pagan, Christian clergy urge interfaith understanding
By Emily McFarlan Miller — October 1, 2021
(RNS) — The Rev. Ethan Stark and the Rev. Andy Behrendt hosted “A Pagan and a Pastor: A Necessary Conversation” to address some frequently asked questions about their faiths and misperceptions each tradition has about the other.
‘Jesus Christ Superstar’: The controversial musical phenomenon turns 50
By Kathryn Post — October 1, 2021
(RNS) — Once banned from BBC Radio for being sacrilegious, the hit musical has now become a brand in and of itself.
Where Serra statues once stood, a chance to honor California’s Indigenous people
By Alejandra Molina — October 1, 2021
LOS ANGELES (RNS) — A year after protesters across California toppled monuments to Serra, Indigenous leaders, artists and others are seeking to activate those sites in a way that would memorialize the state’s Indigenous people.
Faith leaders, including Francis, to present joint appeal for COP26 climate summit
By Claire Giangravé — October 1, 2021
(RNS) — Pope Francis will join about 40 faith leaders to promote climate awareness among world leaders at the COP26 environmental summit.
Dubai’s Expo opens, bringing first world’s fair to Mideast
By Isabel Debre and Aya Batrawy — October 1, 2021
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — After eight years of planning and billions of dollars in spending, the Middle East’s first world’s fair opened Friday in Dubai, with hopes that the months-long extravaganza will draw both visitors and global attention to this desert-turned-dreamscape. The coronavirus pandemic pushed Expo 2020 back a year and may affect […]
Pat Robertson steps down from ‘700 Club’
By Yonat Shimron — October 1, 2021
(RNS) — The 91-year-old televangelist, pioneer Christian media mogul and one-time Republican presidential candidate made the announcement Friday (Oct. 1) on the 60th anniversary of CBN’s first broadcast.
‘Anti-feminist’ vandals in Israel deface images of women
By Laurie Kellman — October 1, 2021
JERUSALEM (AP) — The joyful glint in Peggy Parnass’ eyes is so sharp it can be seen from the walls of Jerusalem’s bustling Old City. Posted across the street at the gateway to City Hall, twin images of the Holocaust survivor and activist gaze out at the ancient warren of holy monuments of Christianity, Judaism […]
Switzerland to set up a dedicated embassy to the Vatican
By Associated Press — October 1, 2021
GENEVA (AP) — The Swiss government decided Friday to set up a dedicated embassy to the Vatican, for which Switzerland’s ambassador to Slovenia is currently responsible. Switzerland’s governing Federal Council determined the current arrangement “no longer allows all the work entailed by Switzerland’s diplomatic relations with the Holy See to be accomplished efficiently,” a government […]
Florida death row chaplain given Guardian of Life Award from Pontifical Academy
By Jessica Mundie — September 30, 2021
(RNS) — For more than two decades, Dale Recinella had been offering pastoral care and religious education to inmates in solitary confinement at Florida State Prison, which houses the second-largest death row population in the United States.
On day of remembrance, churches confront their role in Indigenous boarding schools
By Emily McFarlan Miller — September 30, 2021
CHICAGO (RNS) — Several US mainline denominations — including the Episcopal Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the United Methodist Church — encouraged their members to observe a day of remembrance for US Indian boarding schools on Sept. 30.
Southern Baptist seminary heads join chorus of critics as leaders balk on abuse probe
By Yonat Shimron and Bob Smietana — September 30, 2021
(RNS) — The presidents of all six Southern Baptist seminaries have issued statements or tweets expressing their dismay at the Executive Committee’s unwillingness to act at the convention’s direction. Many pastors agree.
Rural chaplains support communities facing hate groups, isolation and labor shortages
By Kathryn Post — September 30, 2021
(RNS) — 'It’s not everybody’s cup of tea. We get our wellies muddy ... We don’t wait for them to come to us, we go to them,' said a rural chaplain in Suffolk, England.
Congressional members share own abortion stories at hearing
By Jim Salter — September 30, 2021
Three Democratic members of Congress on Thursday offered deeply personal testimony about their own abortions as a congressional committee examined how to respond to conservative states that are passing laws limiting abortion access. Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri said she was raped on a church youth trip. Rep. Barbara Lee of California said she received […]
University of Colorado faces COVID religious exemption suit
By Patty Nieberg — September 30, 2021
The U.S. District Court lawsuit filed by the Thomas More Society is the latest clash over a growing number of private- and public-sector vaccine mandates nationwide to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
