The Bible has not been banned from public schools, but there are appropriate and inappropriate ways to use it there, a professor told a summit on religion and public education Sept. 16. Mark Chancey, professor of religious studies at Southern…
Interfaith work called key to preserving religious liberty in public education
“Interfaith work is at the center of the work to save this country,” Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum told a summit on religious freedom in public schools Sept. 15. Kleinbaum, senior rabbi emerita at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah in New York City,…
To fight for democracy, act locally, Perryman advises
The way to win in the global fight for democracy is to think locally, according to Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward. In a keynote address to a summit on religious freedom in public schools held in Dallas Sept. 15,…
Republican congressional candidate burns Quran with flamethrower
The oldest Muslim community in the United States has condemned a Texas congressional candidate’s videotaped burning of a Quran. “Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA strongly condemns the burning of the Holy Quran by congressional candidate Valentina Gomez, as well as the…
‘Protecting the right to vote is protecting every other right we have as citizens’
Standing up for voting rights is essential in pushing back against the social and political chaos consuming the nation, activist Moya Harris said during a July 15 organizing webinar. “Protecting the right to vote is protecting every other right we…
Fight against federal school vouchers isn’t dead yet
Organized opposition to federal school vouchers in “the big beautiful bill” was so effective it nearly derailed the program altogether, an education advocate said after the U.S. Senate’s 51-50 passage of the legislation July 1. “Thousands of Americans took action…
Democracy Forward and Interfaith Alliance seek records of ‘anti-Christian’ task force
Two watchdog groups are using the Freedom of Information Act to seek details of the Trump administration’s Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias. Democracy Forward and Interfaith Alliance joined forces in making information requests of the Small Business Administration, Department…
Some Baptist leaders hopeful about Pope Leo XIV
“I did not think this would happen in my lifetime,” Baptist scholar Elizabeth Newman said of the election of an American as pope. Newman, a theologian and ethicist who serves as co-chair of the Baptist-Catholic dialogues convened by Baptist World…
Take heart and speak out, Raskin urges democracy advocates
Americans opposed to the Trump administration’s attacks against religious institutions and its attempts to radically reshape the federal government must take heart and speak out now, said U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md. Catholic and Lutheran relief groups have been denied…
White House plan to combat Islamophobia draws mixed reviews
A new White House strategy for combating anti-Muslim and anti-Arab hatred has received differing reactions from U.S. faith groups and left some wondering if the plan will survive the incoming Trump administration. Released Dec. 12, the 67-page blueprint outlines federal,…
Nationalism and religious hatred are as old as time, filmmakers say
Donald Trump’s victorious presidential campaign rode a wave of nationalism and religious hatred as old as humankind itself, said Todd Stiefel, executive producer of the documentary Bad Faith: Christian Nationalism’s Unholy War on Democracy. The 2024 film shows how Trump…
Conservative Christians do not have sole ownership of religion, Jewish scholar says
Now as much as ever, people across the spectrum of faith must proclaim religious freedom to push back against conservative Christians claiming sole ownership of religion in America, rabbi and author Jill Jacobs said. “It’s really important that progressive religious…