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Tech companies join Muslim groups in support of historic bill to end travel ban
By Aysha Khan — September 23, 2019
(RNS) — If passed, the bill would be the first legislation to focus specifically on Muslims’ rights.
A church, a synagogue and a mosque planned together for the Arabian Peninsula
By By David Gibson — September 23, 2019
NEW YORK (RNS) — The 'Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together' met in New York on Sept. 20 to unveil plans for a church, synagogue and mosque on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi. The three houses of worship will collectively be called the Abrahamic Family House and will stand together as a symbol of the kind of religious tolerance that the UAE wants to be known for.
Relevant magazine founder ‘stepping away’ from role
By Jack Jenkins — September 23, 2019
(RNS) — Relevant founder Cameron Strang announced his leave of absence in a post published on the magazine’s website on Monday afternoon (Sept. 23). He did not dispute the accounts of former staffers and apologized for his past actions, which he repeatedly described as toxic.
Who’s an evangelical and who gets to decide?
By Thomas S. Kidd — September 23, 2019
(RNS) — News stories about ‘evangelicals and politics’ typically only look at ‘self-identifying evangelical white Republicans.’
Decades-old Hindu pilgrimage, aided by Modi government, takes a populist turn
By Kalpana Jain — September 23, 2019
VARANASI, India (RNS) — Religious fervor, supported and aided by India’s right-wing Modi government, is on the rise among some blocs of millennials in India.
Growing the religious left by confessing our sins against nature to plants
By Tara Isabella Burton — September 23, 2019
(RNS) — For these progressive Christians, the language of social justice is a way of translating the gospel message of a kingdom of heaven on earth into a contemporary world.
A New York diocese filed for bankruptcy. Will others follow?
By Carolyn Thompson — September 23, 2019
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — All eight of the state's Roman Catholic dioceses face financial pressures as a result of the state's new Child Victims Act.
Arizona Supreme Court gives Christian artists a lot less than they asked for
By Mark Silk — September 23, 2019
(RNS) — Two graphic artists claim that the ruling means that Phoenix's anti-discrimination law "cannot compel us to imagine and create custom artwork that violates our beliefs." Actually, that's not the case.
US clerics O’Malley, McElroy selected to attend Amazon synod at Vatican
By Jack Jenkins — September 21, 2019
(RNS) — Cardinal Sean O’Malley, archbishop of Boston, and Bishop Robert McElroy of the Catholic Diocese of San Diego have been invited to the Vatican’s upcoming Amazon synod, two of only three Americans selected to participate.
Relevant founder Cameron Strang accused of creating racially insensitive workplace
By Adelle M. Banks and Jack Jenkins — September 21, 2019
(RNS) — In online testimonies from people who used to work for Strang, both African American and white, men and women, registered indignation about what some called a toxic environment that they say Strang created.
In San Diego, Muslims question rollout of city’s ‘smart’ streetlights
By Aysha Khan — September 20, 2019
(RNS) — An analysis of San Diego's controversial 'smart' streetlights, equipped with cameras and sensors, suggests that many of the city’s mosques could be monitored by the city.
Doctor’s cache of human remains shows the moral cost of practicing abortion
By Charles C. Camosy — September 20, 2019
(RNS) — Participating in our violent throwaway culture leads us to discard our own humanity.
People of faith know what must be done on climate change
By John L. McCullough and Rudelmar Bueno de Faria — September 20, 2019
(RNS) — Noah’s prophetic witness called on his community to heed the darkening skies and take action to save their world before it was too late.
United Methodists float plans to split denomination after LGBTQ vote
By Emily McFarlan Miller — September 19, 2019
(RNS) — The most likely proposals provide for dissenting congregations to exit the denomination, while retaining ties to United Methodist support organizations.
Why the Arizona Supreme Court ruling in favor of our art studio is a win for everyone
By Joanna Duka and Breanna Koski — September 19, 2019
(RNS) — When we decided to start an art studio together, we knew there would be highs and lows. We didn’t know the lows would include the threat of facing jail time. But the highs of winning a tremendous victory for free speech? We really didn’t see that coming, either.