Easter
Holy days converging in April spark interfaith celebrations
By Luis Andres Henao — April 18, 2022
(AP) — In addition to Passover, Easter and Ramadan, holy days occurring in April this year include the Sikhs' and Hindus' Vaisakhi, the Jains' Mahavir Jayanti, the Baha’i festival of Ridvan, and the Theravada Buddhist New Year.
Pope Francis showcases his vision for peace at Good Friday’s Via Crucis
By Claire Giangravé — April 15, 2022
VATICAN CITY (RNS) — On the day commemorating the steps of Jesus’ execution, Pope Francis focused on the need for forgiveness in overcoming the logic of war.
With high hopes for holidays, three faiths take stock of COVID-19 losses and gains
By Adelle M. Banks, Emily McFarlan Miller, Alejandra Molina, Kathryn Post, and Yonat Shimron — April 15, 2022
(RNS) — Even with the convergence of Easter, Passover and Ramadan this year, many Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders are uncertain whether they can count on a post-COVID-19 resurgence or what it will look like.
Palestinians and Israeli police clash at major holy site
By Joseph Krauss — April 15, 2022
JERUSALEM (AP) — Clashes at the site last year helped spark an 11-day war with Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
Christians hold many views on Jesus’ resurrection – a theologian explains the differing views among Baptists
By Jason Oliver Evans — April 15, 2022
(The Conversation) — Christians have engaged in passionate debates over the meaning of the resurrection. Baptists may be distinct in that they believe an external religious authority cannot enforce views on such matters.
The tinder box of Jerusalem and the tyranny of the religious calendar
By Daoud Kuttab — April 8, 2022
(RNS) — The holiday crunch doesn't bode well for a population already strained by repression and attacks.
Middle Church to begin meeting in synagogue on Easter as it awaits restored building
By Adelle M. Banks — April 7, 2022
(RNS) — The Rev. Jacqui Lewis said East End Temple displays ‘an incredible act of generosity and trust to make space in their community for us to tabernacle with them.’
Holy Week pain, Easter hope in Ukraine
By Thomas Reese — April 5, 2022
(RNS) — A visit to a Ukrainian church as Christ is being crucified again in Ukraine.
Franklin Graham writes to Putin, Zelenskyy to ask for a cease-fire during Holy Week
By Yonat Shimron — March 31, 2022
(RNS) — Samaritan’s Purse, Graham’s humanitarian relief organization, is pushing farther east and plans to open a second emergency field hospital in Ukraine by this weekend.
Patriarch of Jerusalem’s edict puts unity on Holy Land’s Christmas in doubt
By Daoud Kuttab — December 2, 2021
(RNS) — Western and Eastern Christians in Jordan and Israel have long agreed to celebrate Christmas according to the Gregorian calendar, on Dec. 25, and Easter according to the older Julian calendar.
Vaccinated faithful throng Jerusalem church for Holy Fire
By Associated Press — May 2, 2021
(RNS) — The scene at the church was a stark contrast to last year's, when only a handful of religious leaders held the centuries-old ceremony in a near-empty setting enforced by the coronavirus pandemic.
Justin Bieber’s Easter surprise EP, ‘Freedom,’ adds to his Jesus-filled chapter
By Kathryn Post — April 7, 2021
(RNS) — Justin Bieber’s latest recording is his most explicitly religious project to date.
President Biden: ‘Let us recommit ourselves to the lessons of Easter’
By Joe Biden — April 2, 2021
(RNS) — We know that the crisis is not yet over, but as Easter heralds the return of spring, we see signs of hope all around us.
At second Easter under pandemic rules, Christians glimpse church’s future
By Adelle M. Banks, Emily McFarlan Miller, Alejandra Molina, Bob Smietana, and Yonat Shimron — April 2, 2021
(RNS) — The pandemic has 'redefined for me what church is going to be like and what the definition of membership is,' said one pastor in North Carolina.
Celebrity lineup to read King’s anti-war speech on assassination anniversary
By Adelle M. Banks — April 1, 2021
(RNS) — Alice Walker, Jane Fonda and Ibram X. Kendi are set to read the civil rights leader’s speech during a ‘Breaking the Silence’ webinar.
