Columns

Mormons make strides in discussing mental illness. Is it enough?

By Jana Riess — October 4, 2021

(RNS) — When we emphasize that the Lord can’t abide any unclean thing and his acceptance of us is predicated on all the dazzling feats of self-improvement we’re going to perform, we’re hurting those who struggle with mental illness.

How VP Kamala Harris blew it

By Jeffrey Salkin — September 30, 2021

(RNS) — VP Harris gave a nod to intellectual relativism. This helps no one and hurts us all.

Outgrowing your religion

By Jana Riess — September 29, 2021

(RNS) — 'If God is really God-sized, as we say God is, then God is OK with our vacillation and our doubt and our inconsistencies,' says North Carolina pastor John Pavlovitz. 'So we should be, too.'

Why our preferred pronoun for God should be ‘they’

By Mark Silk — September 29, 2021

(RNS) — Grammatically, if you can say 'you are,' you can say 'they is.'

Beauty is the extravagance that makes us human

By Karen Swallow Prior — September 28, 2021

(RNS) — Humans' ability to appreciate beauty reflects our nature as beings made in the image of God.

Catholic lawmakers can’t justify a vote for the Women’s Health Protection Act

By Charles C. Camosy — September 28, 2021

(RNS) — Catholics can debate many abortion measures in good faith. Some are beyond the pale.

Resettling Afghan evacuees will be a mammoth job. Churches will be essential.

By Mark Silk — September 27, 2021

(RNS) — A model from Connecticut may be the answer.

Five rules for disagreeing with the pope

By Thomas Reese — September 27, 2021

(RNS) — We are all cafeteria Catholics. The real question is how we avoid a food fight in the cafeteria.

When I became Jewishly woke

By Jeffrey Salkin — September 23, 2021

(RNS) — Jewish rights. Human rights. They go together like Russian on corned beef.

We owe it to the vulnerable to get vaccinated

By Jana Riess — September 21, 2021

(RNS) — Dr. Tyler Johnson says his Mormon religion ‘teaches me I have a moral obligation to seek out facts and to seek to understand the world as it is,’ which means rejecting vaccine conspiracy theories and misinformation.

Why Jonah is a prophet for our time

By Mark Silk — September 20, 2021

(RNS) — When the unwilling prophet blames God for his woes, God answers by trolling Jonah.

Should Pope Francis get a third COVID-19 vaccine shot?

By Thomas Reese — September 20, 2021

(RNS) — Personally, Francis is a prime candidate, but as pontiff he is more than his medical history.

I forgive you. Especially you.

By Jeffrey Salkin — September 17, 2021

Why I am a Jew. It is about forgiveness. My Yom Kippur sermon.

LuLaRoe and the shadow side of Mormon gender roles

By Jana Riess — September 16, 2021

(RNS) — A new docuseries shows how a Mormon couple recycled anti-feminist ideas to stay-at-home moms for profit.

Pope calls on world to welcome refugees and immigrants

By Thomas Reese — September 14, 2021

(RNS) — During his visit to Hungary and Slovakia, Pope Francis was at his prophetic best, standing up for refugees who have been bloodied by war, starved by famine and displaced by persecution.