A Vatican spokesman has confirmed the first case of coronavirus at the city-state. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said Friday that nonemergency medical services at the Vatican have been closed so they can be sanitized after the positive test on Thursday. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Need to know: Monday, March 16, 2020
Faithful may be banned from Easter celebrations with Pope, says Vatican
Italy's coronavirus shutdown now threatens public Easter celebrations at the Vatican.
Bishop Barbara Harris, first woman bishop of Anglican Communion, dies at 89
‘She was larger than life because she lived it fully with her God and with us,’ said Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry.
Coronavirus shutdowns disrupt America’s soul, closing houses of worship
The coronavirus crisis has disrupted faith groups from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. — shuttering megachurches and forcing worship online.
Some Trump evangelical advisers offer tempered response to coronavirus
Pastors aligned with Trump seem to have run with the president's once-dismissive attitude toward the spread of COVID-19.
Spirituality in a time of quarantine
It is time to put the common good over our personal good; it is time to respect science not partisan spin masters; it is time to be our better selves, writes Thomas Reese.
Coronavirus forces mosques to reassess weekly prayers and Ramadan plans
With Ramadan only a month and a half away, Muslim Americans are having to rethink everything from Friday prayers to planning Hajj.
Latest news from RNS
New website offers resources for churches responding to coronavirus
(RNS) — A new website guiding churches and ministry leaders as they respond to the coronavirus pandemic was launched Thursday (March 12) as a partnership between two Wheaton College institutions — the Billy Graham Center and the Humanitarian Disaster Institute — as well as Saddleback Church in California, led by pastor Rick Warren.
A gift of photos from a papal coronation opens a path for Jewish-Catholic healing
CARY, N.C. (RNS) — Howard Shulman didn’t know it at the time, but his donation of the photographs came just as the Vatican was opening its archives into Pope Pius XII's wartime conduct.
Pray and wash: Religion joins with science amid virus crisis
NEW YORK (AP) — ‘Science is a wonderful arena of truth and understanding truth. It is an amazing tool that can help human flourishing. We just believe it can’t address all truth that exists,’ said D.J. Jenkins, pastor at Anthology Church in Studio City, California.
More views from RNS
Why white evangelicals are at odds with America
(RNS) — They are increasingly losing ground to the mainstream.
Six books to get you through a coronavirus shutdown
(RNS) — These classic and contemporary novels might offer helpful perspective on the state we find ourselves in — and are also terrific reads.
Preparing for COVID-19? Add caring for the vulnerable to your coronavirus checklist
(RNS) — If you do get physically involved in caring for someone with the COVID-19 illness, do so carefully and thoughtfully. Here’s how.
