Some top New York Jewish Democrats are defending New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called him an “antisemite” and said he is “buddies” with Hamas.
Muslim Americans push back as Republican politicians stoke anti-Sharia rhetoric ahead of election
Some of the loudest cheers for Sen. Ted Cruz at the Republicans’ recent midterm convention in Dallas came after the Texas politician targeted Muslim Americans and their faith’s religious code.
Landing in Paris, Pope Leo says AI must serve, not dominate humanity
Just two days after tech leaders themselves called for increased regulation of artificial intelligence at the U.N. Security Council in New York, Pope Leo XIV voiced his own concerns over the unchecked development of AI models from across the Atlantic. Leo,…
In ‘NAZA,’ Israeli whistleblowers’ revelations about civilian deaths in Gaza reflect a longer history of Palestinian isolation
There’s a powerful scene in Moroccan-French-Israeli filmmaker Simone Bitton’s 2004 documentary “Wall,” which tells the story of the construction of the West Bank barrier, a 448-mile – or 721-kilometer – network of walls and fences dividing large parts of the…
Pope warns a ‘paradise of machines’ could undermine humanity as he opens France trip
Pope Leo XIV warned Friday that a “paradise of machines” risked undermining humanity as he opened a trip to France by posing fundamental questions about what it means to be human in the age of artificial intelligence, nuclear arms race…
Edinburgh University ends divinity programmes as theology faces a changing future
The University of Edinburgh is ending its Bachelor and Master of Divinity programmes, marking a significant change for an institution whose history has been closely intertwined with theological education for centuries.
Sukkot reminds us we can be vulnerable without falling
During the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, often referred to as Tabernacles, Jews the world over will be sitting and supping, as their recent forebears and distant ancestors did during the holiday, in makeshift huts defined by their roofs of thatch,…
Why Private Religion and Public Religion Tell Different Stories
Religious behavior is almost always assessed through one simple measure – frequency of religious attendance. And there’s a good reason for that: it’s included in basically every survey of American adults. So it’s easy to just copy and paste it…
Merz warns that Jews are not safe in Germany, as voters choose parties linked to antisemitism
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s warning this week that Jewish life in his country “is no longer safe” reflects concerns voiced by some Jews in Berlin.
Podcast sisters, unfazed by attention, teach by talking about themselves
Sr. Miriam Holzman did not set out to go viral. The 44-year-old Dominican Sister of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist — a pharmacist in Toronto before becoming a sister 20 years ago — doesn’t have a smartphone and isn’t on…
Fear-Driven Churches Create Three Kinds of Christians
Last week, I taught a university class on respect for the conscience. One smart young student talked to me afterward and said she sometimes had difficulty telling the difference between her conscience and the nagging voices in her head, which…
Meryl Streep as Narnia’s Aslan: Why some evangelicals call it blasphemy
For some conservative Christian fans of C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, the idea of God being portrayed as a lion is fine.