June 15 marks the 10-year anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but no one seems to be celebrating. Conservative leaders bent on ending immigration across the board yearn for the demise of DACA, a 2012 creation of…
Social media and right-wing politicians are fueling threat to democracy, panelists warn
The prevalence of social media and support from right-wing politicians have enabled white supremacist, anti-government and other domestic extremist groups to become much greater threats to American security than foreign terrorist movements ever have been, according to a panel of…
Churches called to help fill the gap as thousands of children orphaned by COVID-19 need aid
The plight of youth orphaned during the COVID-19 pandemic was forgotten in the scramble to understand, treat and prevent the disease from spreading, according to Albert Reyes, president of Buckner International. “COVID was such a new thing in the United…
Faith leaders and mental health providers need to work together, panelists urge
Taboos around psychological illness linger in part due to the misunderstandings and suspicions faith leaders and mental health providers harbor toward each other’s roles in emotional healing, panelists said during a June 8 webinar. Some psychologists and other counselors have…
In Tbilisi, the Peace Project rises as a home for Christians, Jews and Muslims under one roof
Bishop Malkhaz Songulashvili is all too familiar with the criticisms of interfaith dialogue, especially as his Peace Cathedral in Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, moves toward completion of a facility designed to host Christian, Jewish and Muslim worship and promote stronger…
Amid the refugees waiting in Mexico due to Title 42, a Russian nurse who opposes the war in Ukraine
A Fellowship Southwest-backed ministry in Mexico is housing a Russian asylum seeker who fled her country for protesting Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine. The organization recently announced that Red de Albergues para Migrante — or the Migrant Shelter Network in…
State support for a religion usually makes that religion decline, new study shows
Achieving the status of a government-backed religion usually creates a dependence on state political and financial support that erodes the ability of faith groups to attract new followers and foster participation, a new study has found. “Further, the involvement of…
Baptist missionaries exported white supremacy to Brazil alongside the gospel, historian says
The gospel Southern Baptist Convention missionaries brought to Brazil in the late 19th century contained at least as much Jim Crow as it did Jesus Christ, scholar João Chaves said during the Baptist History and Heritage Society’s second “Making Baptist…
Number of displaced persons worldwide hits new peak of 100 million
The war in Ukraine has driven the number of forcibly displaced persons worldwide to a record-setting 100 million, according to the United Nations. The 90 million figure reached at the close of 2021 was quickly surpassed after Russia’s Feb. 24…
New study documents pliable influence of partisan media
Partisan media outlets like Fox News pose a hazard to democracy by denying their viewers’ access to information detrimental to conservative candidates and causes while amplifying misinformation about their opponents, according to a study into the role of selective content…
Trump’s anti-immigration policies continue to cost U.S. economy $9 billion a year
Trump-era refugee and asylum policies continue to rob the U.S. economy of $9.1 billion annually and deny all levels of American government more than $2 billion per year, according to new academic research. The study by economist Michael A. Clemens…
They were attending a conference on Scripture and violence when the Uvalde massacre happened
Participants in a May 23-25 virtual conference on Scripture and violence came prepared for discussions on topics such as restorative justice, trauma and biblical interpretation, and criminal justice and the church. What they weren’t ready for was an elementary school…