Catholics ponder the Republican economic agenda. A Canadian mayor wraps a Sikh turban on his head. A United Methodist bishop says impatience is a good thing.

(RNS) A McDonald’s next to the Vatican will give free meals to the homeless. Activists say Trump must protect persecuted Christians. A pastor tells “Hidden Figures” actor gays are welcome at God’s table. Andrew Garfield on Jesuits and ‘Silence.’ Cardinal Dolan v. NY priests.

The outgoing president urges faith and political engagement. Court rules Muslim girls in Switzerland must take swim classes with boys. New York cop who famously forgave the 15-year-old who shot him dies.

At least 16 Jewish community centers received bomb threats Monday. A lesbian couple will lead a historic Baptist church. President Obama leaves a complicated legacy on matters of faith.

(RNS) The pope’s pick for New Jersey’s first cardinal seems cut from the same cloth. Religious literacy ­– ‘I do not think it means what you think it means.’ Is the Buddha diet more than just another fad diet?

Today is the feast of the Epiphany. Dylann Roof’s writings full of insults and racist stereotypes. A rabbi invited to the presidential inauguration has no regrets. An evangelical artist gets wider exposure thanks to his association with Martin Scorsese.

(RNS) Martin Luther commemorations trip over a Playmobil figurine. Italian priest under fire for supposed Virgin Mary in a burqa changes the scenery. ‘Star Wars’ returns to its religious roots. Mosque controversy, and Huston Smith’s legacy.

Surprise! Congress is overwhelmingly Christian. Only two Shakers left. A San Francisco hospice director seeks to change the way we die.

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir will perform at Trump’s inauguration, to the dismay of some Mormons. The sentencing phase of Dylann Roof’s trial begins, with Roof ruled competent to represent himself. India’s Supreme Court says that candidates can’t use religious appeals to voters.

Anis Amri’s death ended an international manhunt for the suspect who drove a truck into a teeming Christmas market. President-elect Trump will hold inaugural prayers at the National Cathedral. No Slingshot next week. Happy holidays! A note to readers from RNS Editor-in-Chief Jerome Socolovsky: Every morning, RNS journalists put together the Slingshot, an expertly curated collection of religion news stories from our site and around the web. We appreciate your interest in and your loyalty to our rapidly growing newsletter, which now has more than 10,000 readers. Everybody deserves a break though. So I am giving my hard-working staff off next week for the holidays. Hope to see you again, when we resume on Jan. 3.

Trump apparently hasn’t forgotten about his Muslim registry. N.C. lawmakers fail to repeal the ‘bathroom bill.’ And Francis buys himself a pair of orthopedic shoes.

Police search for suspect in Christmas market massacre. Pope frees Spanish priest. Mosques increasingly blocked by local ordinances.

(RNS) The latest on the ‘War on Christmas’ – in a poll, and in history. Marginalizing Russell Moore for opposing Donald Trump. Hanukkah sweaters? Conservative rabbi ousted over interfaith weddings. And Dominican friars play ice hockey. Because we needed that.

(RNS) Keep your Hanukkah, Christmas and other holidays from going up in smoke. Beware the grey side of the Force. Who will lead Share International after its founder’s death?

Dylann Roof awaits his fate. Religion news could use a bright spot. Brazil’s ‘people’s bishop’ dies. And Trump appoints a controversial envoy to Israel.