The Rev. Alexander Karloutsos has met with presidents since the Carter administration, speaking to the nation’s chief executives on, especially, the cause of religious freedom.
Exclusive: Pope to give women a say in appointment of bishops
Pope Francis said he wants to give women more top-level positions in the Holy See and disclosed that for the first time he would name women to a previously all-male Vatican committee that helps him select the world’s bishops.
When abuse victims are adults, they’re often treated as ‘sinners,’ threats to churches
At their annual meeting last month in Anaheim, California, Southern Baptists passed a series of reforms to address sexual abuse in the nation’s largest Protestant denomination.
Judge: Execution can’t proceed without religious requests
A federal judge has issued a temporary order telling Texas prison officials that they can carry out next week’s scheduled execution of a death row inmate only if they grant all of his religious accommodations, including allowing his spiritual adviser…
Cuba fails to meet international religious freedom standards
The constitution Cuba adopted three years ago fails to meet freedom-of-religion standards based on international law, and the rights it established are unenforceable, a new report from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom concluded.
McMurry sues Hardin-Simmons over nursing school
McMurry University filed a lawsuit against fellow Abilene school Hardin-Simmons University, claiming a breach of contract regarding the Patty Hanks Shelton School of Nursing.
Medical aid in dying is still called ‘assisted suicide’; an anthropologist explains the problem with that
Several states around the U.S. are currently considering whether to legalize medical aid in dying for terminally ill patients. More than 20% of Americans already live in a state with access to a medically assisted death. Despite this rapidly changing legal climate, the…
Students at Seattle Pacific University end sit-in, plan to sue over LGBTQ exclusion
Students from Seattle Pacific University, a private school associated with the Free Methodist Church, have ended their more than monthlong sit-in protesting the board of trustees’ decision to uphold a policy prohibiting the hiring of LGBTQ people. They are now…
Black Jewish leader works to boost community, inclusiveness
Nate Looney is a Black man who grew up in Los Angeles, a descendant of enslaved people from generations ago. He’s also an observant, kippah-wearing Jew.
U.S. Catholics Not Significantly Influenced by Church Leaders on Social, Political Issues
The political views and position on social issues for most U.S. Catholics are not significantly influenced by church leadership or official doctrine, according to a report published June 2 by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the…
Judges dismiss Jewish couple’s suit alleging adoption bias
A panel of Tennessee judges has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a couple who alleged that a state-sponsored Christian adoption agency refused to help them because they are Jewish.
Church destroyed during 9/11 attacks consecrated as national shrine
St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine was consecrated Monday (July 4) in New York City. The original church, founded in 1916 on nearby Cedar Street in lower Manhattan, was destroyed in the aftermath of the attacks on Sept….