Christian
The seven most provocative religious videos of 2012
By Daniel Burke — December 27, 2012
2012 might be dubbed the Year of YouTube - and that's especially true on the religion beat. Religious videos sparked international riots, stirred up the U.S. presidential campaign and called young believers to the front lines in battles over homosexuality and church culture. Here are seven religious videos that made news in 2012.
Jesus the Jew, Jesus the Palestinian
By Omid Safi — December 24, 2012
Jesus was Jewish, and Jesus was Palestinian. Both of these aspects are missing from today's Christmas celebration.
As bells toll, clergy push Congress on gun control
By Adelle M. Banks — December 21, 2012
WASHINGTON (RNS) As bells tolled across the country on Friday (Dec. 21) in memory of lives lost in Newtown, Conn., religious leaders gathered outside the Washington National Cathedral to push congregants and Congress to prevent further gun violence. By Adelle M. Banks.
Pope Paul VI inches one step closer to sainthood
By Alessandro Speciale — December 21, 2012
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Paul VI, who guided the Catholic Church through a tumultuous period of change in the 1960s and 70s, took a crucial first step toward possible sainthood when Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday (Dec. 20) recognized his predecessor's "heroic virtues." By Alessandro Speciale.
I pray for the apocalypse
By Omid Safi — December 21, 2012
I pray for the apocalypse, today. Here is one of the original meanings of Apocalypse: Old English, via Old French and ecclesiastical Latin from Greek apokalupsis, from apokaluptein ‘uncover, reveal’, from apo- ‘un-‘ + kaluptein ‘to cover’. So yes, I pray for the apocalypse. I pray for the uncovering of falsehood. I pray for the discovery […]
From nuns to ‘nones,’ 10 ways religion shaped the news in 2012
By Kevin Eckstrom — December 20, 2012
WASHINGTON (RNS) From the nuns to the nones, religion dominated the headlines throughout 2012. Questions of religious faith took center stage in the presidential race, and deep questions of morality and ethics played out in budget debates, mass killings and an unexpected focus on "religious freedom." Here are 10 ways religion played out in the news in 2012. By Kevin Eckstrom.
Jindal teaches the Catholic Church a lesson
By Mark Silk — December 20, 2012
Bobby Jindal, the conservative Catholic governor of Louisiana, attracted some attention last week for a Wall Street Journal op-ed in which he advocated making oral contraceptives available over the counter without a prescription. And for his pains, he received a slap on the wrist from his local archdiocese. Jindal made his case on libertarian and partisan grounds: […]
Gandalf and Goodness–today
By Omid Safi — December 19, 2012
I love spiritual mentors, wise old souls that see beyond, see that something in us that we don’t see in ourselves. I love Yoda, love Dumbledore, love Gandalf. The Gandalf character has grown on me, bit by bit. In the Hobbit movie, there is a line that really spoke to me. He disagrees with his […]
Contraception opponents hail DC court ruling
By Lauren Markoe — December 19, 2012
(RNS) Opponents of the federal contraception mandate are cheering an appeals court decision requiring the Obama administration to make good on a promise to exempt Christian colleges from the controversial rule. By Lauren Markoe.
Churches under fire for using gun classes as outreach
By Greg Horton — December 19, 2012
PRYOR CREEK, Okla. (RNS) A few dozen churches around the country offer gun classes as a way to reach out to non-Christians and attract new members. But after the massacre at Sandy Hook, such classes are facing fierce criticism. By Greg Horton.
European austerity measures reach the Vatican budget
By Alessandro Speciale — December 18, 2012
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican must adopt "effective" cost reduction measures in the wake of the global economic crisis, Pope Benedict XVI's No. 2 official warned on Tuesday (Dec. 18). By Alessandro Speciale
The `nones’ now form the world’s third-largest ‘religion’ *
By Kimberly Winston — December 18, 2012
(RNS) A new report on global religious identity shows that while Christians and Muslims make up the two largest groups, those with no religious affiliation — including atheists and agnostics — are now the third-largest “religious” group in the world. The study, released Tuesday (Dec. 18) by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, […]
Ambassador Michael Oren: The shared roots of Hanukkah and Christmas
By Ambassador Michael Oren — December 14, 2012
WASHINGTON (RNS) This holiday season, whether we and our families gather around a menorah or a Christmas tree, we celebrate our freedom to believe. We rejoice in the values for which our forefathers fought and passed down for centuries. The Hanukkah and Christmas lights that illuminate our homes burn bright for all of humanity. By Michael Oren.
Is ‘The Hobbit’ a ‘Christian’ film? Yes and no.
By Greg Garrison and Kay Campbell — December 14, 2012
(RNS) Travel along, if you dare, with Bilbo Baggins in “The Hobbit,” which opens in theaters on Friday (Dec. 14). If you do, you will, essentially, be traveling in a world constructed on Christian principles. By Kay Campbell and Greg Garrison.
Christianity in Britain losing ground to Islam, secularism
By Trevor Grundy — December 11, 2012
CANTERBURY, England (RNS) New figures from the 2011 National Census show that the number of people who identify as Christians in England and Wales has fallen by 4 million over the last 10 years, from 37.3 million to 33 million last year. By Trevor Grundy.
