Des Moines Pastor Michael Demastus was meeting privately with U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and a group of other faith leaders earlier this year when Scott asked if he could pray over the group.
Texas congressman criticized for prayers comment after mall shooting
The Texas congressman who represents the latest community reeling from a mass killing has pushed back against Americans who say more than prayers are needed to curb the violence, labeling them “people that don’t believe in an almighty God.”
Jewish institutions awaken to climate crisis, with hundreds pledging action
For a decade starting in 2002, Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi devoted herself to pro-Israel advocacy. After that, the Jewish philanthropist and activist from Annapolis, Maryland, went all in to fight for disability rights, working in the field for the next decade….
Mobs Kill 6, Burn Down 25 Churches in Northeastern India
Rioting mobs have taken the lives of at least six people and destroyed or burned down 25 churches in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur. Since May 3, thousands of victims, the majority of them Christians, have fled as their…
New Hillsong Exposé Reveals More Alleged Sex Abuse Cover-Up & Shameless Spending
The 45-minute documentary reveals more evidence of sex abuse cover-up at Hillsong and new details of pedophilia by Frank Houston, father of Hillsong founder Brian Houston.
Faith leaders ask Biden to mark Mother’s Day with prayer day against gun violence
More than 550 faith leaders have asked President Joe Biden to declare Mother’s Day an occasion for Americans to pray for an end to gun violence.
Are some human rights more important than others? Religious freedom advocates often put it first
Every year, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) releases a report on religious oppression around the world, recommending that the State Department designate specific countries as especially severe violators. In this year’s report, released May 1, 2023, Iran came in for…
State Department forced Muslim security guard to shave beard, lawsuit claims
When Devin Brooks reported for training in West Virginia early last year for his new security guard gig at the U.S. Department of State, he was pulled aside and told his beard violated the agency’s facial hair policy.
Bills promoting religion in public schools are advancing in the Texas legislature
The Texas state Senate passed four measures in April related to religion in public schools, some of which are raising significant religious liberty concerns for public school students and their parents.
Can evangelicalism survive its white, straight, conservative victory?
When Jann Aldredge-Clanton enrolled at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1982, she considered herself a bona fide evangelical Christian with a reverence for the Bible and a love for the church. It soon became clear that neither her Southern Baptist…
Pope greets Russian Orthodox envoy amid peace mission talk
Pope Francis on Wednesday greeted the foreign envoy of the Russian Orthodox Church, just days after revealing a secret “mission” was under way to try to put an end to the war in Ukraine.
How women have cultivated religious authority at LA’s Women’s Mosque of America
Tazeen M. Ali was a graduate student in Boston when she first learned about the opening of the Women’s Mosque of America in Los Angeles, believed to be the nation’s first women-only mosque.