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An LDS youth group from Lenexa, Kan., tours the Temple Lot in Independence, Mo., on June 23, 2017. The Church of Christ (Temple Lot), left, owns the 2.5-acre field, with the Community of Christ Temple in the background. RNS photo by Kit Doyle
Need to know: Friday, August 11, 2017
Contested sacred space USA: Conflict and cooperation in the heartland
From Jerusalem to Ayodhya, the world has no shortage of contested religious sites. But here in the U.S., the three largest Mormon denominations have found a way to peacefully share places that all of them hold sacred.
Pope Francis to Belgian Catholics: Stop offering euthanasia
The Vatican is outraged after the Brothers of Charity group announced it would allow doctors to perform euthanasia on people with mental health diseases at its 15 psychiatric hospitals in Belgium.
Bomb threats against Jewish community centers and Israeli Embassy were for profit, feds say
The 19-year-old suspect behind the bomb threats may have been working for an online black market that was shut down in July after being targeted by law enforcement agencies in the U.S., Canada and Thailand. (May require subscription.)
On North Korea, Christians should dial back the bellicosity
“Whether or when to wage war is not typically a dogmatically theological question,” writes Mark Tooley. “It entails prudential judgments, primarily by lay people, especially persons in civil authority.”
Trump threatened ‘fire and fury.’ Here’s why to some that’s perfectly God-like
Views of God have become a fault line tearing through American religion, dividing people who emphasize God, and by extension morality, as being about authority and power from those who focus on God as loving and forgiving. (May require subscription.)
Latest news from RNS
New manual guides church leaders in sexual abuse policies and prevention
(RNS) — Unless church leaders are able to tailor the policies to their particular institutions and disseminate them widely among members, a generic sex abuse policy won't work, says Basyle 'Boz' Tchividjian, a former child abuse prosecutor.
40 years after his death, Elvis Presley’s trilogy of baptisms enhances his immortality
(USA Today) — Multiple baptisms aren't uncommon in the American South, where beliefs and practices vary widely, even within various Christian denominations.
North Korea releases Canadian pastor sentenced to life in prison
The Rev. Rim Hyon Su, also known as Hyeon Soo Lim, was accused by North Korea of using religion as a ruse to overthrow the Kim Jong Un regime, but was freed on humanitarian grounds.
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An open letter to my Mormon family and friends
Guest blogger Mette Harrison offers suggestions for orthodox Mormons on how to better get along with family members who have left the Church. Some rules: Honor boundaries, stop judging, and plan family events that don't revolve around church.
What is wrong with white Christians?
(RNS) — Too many white Christians sacrifice the gospel’s radical solidarity with the poor and oppressed with comfortable, self-serving ideologies, writes John Gehring.
Synagogues are not Kmart
Synagogues need money. Israel -- yes, Israel -- can help.
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Bonus tracks
- In a move away from tradition, cremations increase
- Seminaries reflect struggles of mainline churches
- Hypepriests: The grail-wearing pastors who dress like Justin Bieber
- Mother breastfeeding baby was ‘kicked out’ of Elevation Church sanctuary. Now, moms fight back
- Minnesota man claims he was mistaken for Sasquatch by Bigfoot 911 team
