Faith lowers stress, research suggests. Canadian researchers have discovered strong religious convictions can lower stress and enhance the performance of basic tasks. A team in Toronto put 28 students through tests measuring both levels of religious observance and stress caused by making mistakes on a test. The newly published study by professors at the University of Toronto and York University points to religious believers out-performing nonbelievers on cognitive tasks. Using electrodes, researchers monitored brain activity and found subjects with high levels of religious observance experienced less activity in the part of the brain that governs anxiety and helps modify behavior. The more religious zeal individuals showed, the better they did on the test.
Mainline ministers growing more liberal. Over the last decade, mainline Protestant clergy have inched leftward, a recent survey shows. The “Clergy Voices” survey builds on similar studies conducted in 1989 and 2001, according to scholars at Public Religion Research in Washington. Fifty-six percent of the 1,000 ministers surveyed self-identified as Democrats, compared to 53 percent in 2001 and 1989. More than three-quarters of mainline clergy say the federal government should be more involved in solving problems like poverty, low-income housing and unemployment, compared to 68 percent who said the same in 2001. Nearly 70 percent of mainline clergy called for more environmental protection, up from 60 percent in 2001. Two-thirds favor outlawing capital punishment, a jump of 8 percentage points from 2001. In August 2008, when the survey was conducted, nearly eight in 10 clergy said gays and lesbians should have the same rights and privileges as other Americans, up 9 percentage points from 2001. Conducted by mail, the survey is composed of a random sample of 1,000 senior clergy from each of the seven largest mainline Protestant denominations. With 2,658 clergy responding to the survey, the margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points.
Fireproof wins top Movieguide award. Fireproof and The Christmas Choir captured the two $100,000 Epiphany Prizes at the 17th annual Movieguide Faith and Values Awards Gala in Beverly Hills, Calif. Fireproof depicts the reconciliation of a troubled marriage while The Christmas Choir follows homeless men who refocus their lives by singing Christmas carols. The Epiphany Prizes for Inspiring Movies and TV are awarded to the movie and television program whose aim is to increase love and comprehension of God. WALL-E, beating out nine other films, was awarded the Best Family Movie. The comic book action flick Ironman received the Best Movie for Mature Audiences. Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed won the Faith & Freedom Movie Award for promoting positive American values. John Adams and The Medal tied in taking the Faith and Freedom Television Award for promoting positive American values. The annual Movieguide Faith and Values Gala recognizes films promoting family values and biblical principles.
Compiled from Religion News Service