Photo by invisiblepower/Pixabay/Creative Commons
Need to know: Monday, December 16, 2019
The original ‘Blue Christmas’: New Advent resources focus on grief, justice before celebration
A number of new Advent resources available this year admit a bleak midwinter spirit, drawing attention to grief and injustice.
Reform Jews call for reparations for slavery
The resolution is the first such effort on the part of an American Jewish organization but has precedent among some Protestant groups.
‘You’ve got to call out evil,’ says pastor of church with Nativity scene separated in cages
Claremont United Methodist Church is taking security measures after its Nativity scene showing Jesus, Mary and Joseph as refugees in cages has garnered widespread attention.
Over 10,000 Christians petition Boston College to reject Koch grant
More than 10,080 Christians have signed a petition urging officials at the Jesuit university to reject a potential donation from the Koch Foundation toward the school's political science department.
Keeping the mystic, messianic faith of Star Wars’ Skywalkers
It’s time once more to tell the old familiar story, set on the outskirts of an ancient and powerful empire, of a child born of a virgin and destined to save the world, writes Bob Smietana.
Hasidic Jews moved to Jersey City for a nicer life. They became targets.
A deadly anti-Semitic attack on a Hasidic Jewish grocery store in New Jersey has pushed a tight-knit, deeply religious community into the national spotlight.
Latest news from RNS
Who are Black Hebrew Israelites?
On Tuesday (Dec. 10), two men opened fire on a kosher supermarket in Jersey City, New Jersey, ultimately leaving four dead and three wounded in the shooting spree. One of the shooters had ties with the Black Hebrew Israelite movement, which includes organizations labeled as hate groups, in part due to some members voicing anti-Semitic rhetoric.
Charlie Kirk, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove float debate on Jesus and socialism at Liberty University think tank
(RNS) — On Thursday (Dec. 12), the Twitter account of the newly created conservative think tank posted a challenge to the Rev. Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, a progressive faith leader in North Carolina, offering to host a debate over whether Jesus was a socialist.
China accuses US of double standards on anti-Muslim bigotry, counterterrorism
Chinese officials are seeking to turn the tables on the White House, accusing the U.S. of hypocrisy due to its own long history of anti-Muslim discrimination.
More views from RNS
The stubborn faithfulness of liberal Mormons
(RNS) — Liberal Mormons aren't clamoring for women's rights or LGBTQ equality because we oppose the church; we do so because we took the church at its word.
Dear Democrats: Four religion requests from non-religious Americans
(RNS) — While by no means our only matter of concern, toning down talk of faith in politics would show some respect to what is rapidly becoming the largest ‘religious’ group in the country.
How Christians of color in Colonial Virginia became ‘black’
Although the British settlers imported Africans from the first as slaves, the earliest Virginians had yet to establish many of the basic rules regarding slavery, write Alejandro de la Fuente and Ariela Gross.
