The 1979 collapse of the Iranian monarchy coincided with the publication of Christopher Lasch’s blockbuster book of ideas, “The Culture of Narcissism,” a critique of American celebrity, grandiosity and spiritual emptiness. In retrospect, the book explains the reasons Iran’s young…
The United Church of Christ Is Running Out of People—and Pastors
I swear before I get done writing this newsletter, I will have written up a big report on nearly every American Protestant denomination. Just looking through the archive, I think I’ve tackled at least seven of them so far (TEC, ELCA, PCUSA, SBC, AG, PCA, UMC)….
‘The Tibetan Book of the Dead’ is actually not just about death
You’ve seen it in bookstores – the metallic turquoise spine peeking out from the shelf under “Eastern Religions.” Or, perhaps, another of its more understated editions rendered in muted tones. It is “The Tibetan Book of the Dead,” arguably the most well-known…
Kenyan sisters safeguard children of the incarcerated
At dawn, the parish compound of St. Michael’s School near Lang’ata Women’s Prison begins to stir moments before Nairobi’s traffic thickens.
At Republican antisemitism confab, Tucker Carlson is the villain — and JD Vance the unspoken question
Nearly everybody called out Tucker Carlson at the Republican Jewish Coalition’s symposium on antisemitism.
Over 100 Latino Christian leaders say Trump adviser Samuel Rodriguez’s reach is misrepresented
More than 100 Latino Christians leaders signed a statement saying the Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, an evangelical adviser to President Donald Trump and a go-to voice for Hispanic evangelical perspectives, and news media have exaggerated the size of Rodriguez’s reach as…
Conservative Anglicans Reshape Church Leadership At Historic Gathering
For more than four centuries, a single office in the south of England has served as the spiritual center of global Anglicanism. In Nigeria, conservative leaders from across the world voted to change that.
Whatever Happened to American Jewish Liberalism?
Since the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks and the start of Israel’s war in Gaza, the annual “State of World Jewry” address at 92Y—the New York City cultural center that used to be known, before its zippy rebranding, as the…
Pope accepts resignation of Chaldean leaders after US bishop faces felony charges
Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation of Bishop Emanuel Hana Shaleta, the leader of Chaldean Catholics in the Western U.S., the Vatican announced Tuesday (March 10), after Shaleta was arrested at the San Diego International Airport on Thursday on charges of…
Ramadan During a War
I was on a train the other night, speeding toward a mosque in north London, in a moderately — well, very — bad mood. I’d spent the day deep in news of the war, counting bodies and bombs for the…
What James Madison can teach Americans about religious freedom today
As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, debates about religious freedom continue to occupy the center of American public life.
Vatican Issues Cosmetic Surgery Warning: ‘Cult Of The Body’
Jesus will still love you as you age, even if you have a few wrinkles on your face, according to a Vatican document issued on Wednesday.