Baker Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, manages his shop on June 4, 2018, in Lakewood, Colo. The Colorado baker is back in court again. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Need to know: Friday, December 21, 2018
A push for compromise on LGBTQ protections may tear evangelicals apart
The National Association of Evangelicals and the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities want protections for sexual orientation and gender identity as well as strong religious exemptions. But will evangelicals embrace such a compromise?
Native artisans fight to survive in ‘the town of the Nativities’
For 100 years, this central Mexican town has made Nativity sets and other religious figures by hand. Now foreign competition has put its future in doubt.
Yemeni mom overcomes travel ban to finally hold dying son
After battling U.S. immigration authorities for more than a year for the right to enter the country and flying halfway around the world, a Yemeni mother finally got to hold her dying 2-year-old son.
Have yourself a boozy little Christmas
From the Archives: The connection between Christmas and liquor has been institutionalized of late in 'carols and cocktails' events that, while concerning to some, are deeply consistent with the holiday’s history.
‘Hacking the good’ from religion at a secular solstice
A secular solstice celebration in wintertime is not for everyone. But attending one of these rituals for the religiously unaffiliated helps define our own ideas of 'sacred' and 'profane', writes Tara Isabella Burton.
After more than two decades of work, a new Hebrew Bible to rival the King James
The pre-eminent scholar Robert Alter has finally finished his own translation.
Latest news from RNS
Pakistani Christians face an uneasy Christmas in the wake of Asia Bibi’s release
LAHORE, Pakistan (RNS) — The fallout from the release of Bibi — whose death sentence for blasphemy was rescinded this year — has left Pakistan's Christians wary of a backlash this Christmas.
Illinois investigation finds 500 more clergy abuse cases
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says her office has found 500 more Catholic clergy accused of sexually abusing children than the state’s six archdioceses have publicly identified.
Religious leaders in Congo urge the country to go to the polls to replace Kabila
Two years after the country's Roman Catholic bishops brokered a deal to delay elections, they are framing the vote as a chance to reclaim the country for justice and peace.
More views from RNS
India’s conviction of a mass killer falls short of justice
(RNS) — How can people trust their own government when its leaders have been involved in mass atrocities and crimes against humanity?
Two cheers for the First Step Act
To continue to make progress in the next Congress, Republican-aligned groups will need to be as willing to work with liberal Democrats as they have with their own tribe, writes Jacob Lupfer.
Mormon podcaster Gina Colvin faces excommunication feeling “saddened and enraged”
Gina Colvin is about to be excommunicated, which she says is a "barbaric" practice that reveals the immaturity of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
