WASHINGTON (RNS)—Mary Miller used to have trouble getting fellow members of Wilmore United Methodist Church in Kentucky to go green. But as it turns out, a sour economy was an unlikely answer to prayer. As the economy shrank, so did…
Smorgasbord religion on the rise throughout United States
WASHINGTON (RNS) — Friday afternoons find Ann Holmes Redding at the Al-Islam Center in Seattle, reciting Muslim prayers. Come Sunday, she heads about two miles south to kneel in the pews of St. Clement’s of Rome Episcopal Church. “My experience…
Religious groups mobilize to keep alleviating poverty a priority in D.C.
The group, The Mobilization to End Poverty, plans to bring thousands of religious and community activists to Washington later this month to urge President Obama to make the poor a priority and continue his goal of reducing domestic poverty by…
Will proposed tax plan hurt churches? Maybe; maybe not
WASHINGTON (RNS) — President Obama’s proposed 2010 federal budget contains a 7 percent cut in charitable tax deductions for the nation’s wealthiest taxpayers. Some religious groups are asking how that will affect their bottom line. The answer: It depends who…
SECOND OPINION: Saying no to Sunday church
For five decades and in growing numbers, American Christians have been saying no to Sunday church. I think it is time we listened. We have labeled them “unchurched,” “nonbelievers,” “former Christians,” “happy pagans,” “lost,” and a “mission field” that’s “ripe…
BOOK NOTES: Study Bible wins Christian Book of the Year award
The ESV Study Bible has been named the “Christian Book of the Year” by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, marking the first time the honor has been given to a study Bible. The Bible, which is in the English Standard…
Jimmy Carter: Christians have duty to pursue peace in Holy Land
WASHINGTON (RNS) — Former President Jimmy Carter’s recent book, We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan that Will Work, reviews the contributions of past U.S. presidents toward peace in Israel and Palestine, and advances his hopes that…
Religious broadcasters brace for uncertain future
WASHINGTON (RNS) — Digital podcasts and streaming video might bring Christian audiences inspirational messages in the future, but they aren’t bringing in the cash that broadcast ministries need to weather a painful economy. To make ends meet, religious broadcasters are…
Death penalty opponents hope book about Texas case can help put an end to executions
NEW YORK (RNS)—Religious opponents of the death penalty hope a new book about a Texas death row case by a best-selling author can help their efforts to end the practice of state-sanctioned executions. Thomas Cahill’s just-published book, A Saint on…
Ministries offer help for Christians with porn addiction
FRESNO, Calif. (RNS)—Every February, SouthPoint Foursquare Church reminds young members that “True Love Waits,” as part of a global campaign launched by Southern Baptists that stresses abstinence until marriage. A few days after Valentine’s Day this year, 80 teenagers and…
American Muslims a diverse group
WASHINGTON—Muslims in America attend worship services weekly just as much as Protestant Americans. Among the nation’s faith groups, they are the most racially diverse. And they’re younger: more than a third of Muslim adults—36 percent—are between ages 18 and 29,…
Presidential prayer effort proves to be bipartisan
WASHINGTON (RNS)—A national grassroots network that came together after the 9/11 terrorist attacks for the sole purpose of praying for the president has lost more than 25,000 members since Barack Obama’s election last November. But more than 41,000 new members…