“Why I Left the Church”: Meet the US pastor behind that “quitting the church” essay
A pastor’s last thoughts on leaving the ministry sparked a national conversation about clergy health and the future of the church. BOB SMIETANA, of Religion News Service, reports…
In the US, reparations campaign takes new forms with Bible study, Juneteenth march
United StatesRNS The long campaign for reparations for slavery in the United States has taken numerous forms. Members of Congress have supported a commission to study the matter. Pastor Les Robinson interacts with members of the congregation at The Sanctuary Church on Sunday, 14th May, 2023, in Santa Clarita, California. For Black Californians who have […]
Conversations: John Blake, journalist on religion and race, goes personal with new memoir
“We really need to tell these stories about hope. There’s a lot of Americans now who have given up…and believe racism is just a permanent part of American life.” ADELLE M BANKS, of Religion News Service, speaks with Blake…
Advent: With race in mind, Christians reconsider language of dark and light
EMILY MCFARLAN MILLER, of Religion News Service, reports on the growing number of Christians who are having conversations around Advent imagery of dark and light…
US Christian leaders asked January 6 committee to investigate Christian nationalism
Washington DC, USRNS A group of prominent Christian leaders, including the heads of major denominations, say they submitted a letter earlier this year to the House select committee investigating the 6th January attack on the US Capitol, urging members to examine Christian nationalism and arguing the ideology played a crucial role in the insurrection. Organisers […]
Frederick Buechner, Christian “writer’s writer” and “minister’s minister”, dies at 96
United StatesRNS Frederick Buechner was asked on numerous occasions how he would sum up everything he had preached and written in both his fiction and non-fiction. The answer, he said, was simply this: “Listen to your life”. Frederick Buechner in an undated image. PICTURE: Courtesy photo That theme was constant across more than six decades […]
American Jewish groups denounce Presbyterian Church for calling Israel ‘apartheid’
United StatesRNS US Jewish organisations have responded angrily to the vote by the Presbyterian Church (USA) declaring Israel an apartheid state, with some saying it amounted to anti-Semitism. On Friday, the 1.1 million member denomination’s general assembly voted 266 to 116 on a resolution that stated “Israel’s laws, policies, and practices constitute apartheid against the […]
Presbyterian Church (USA) to divest from five oil companies after years of debate
United StatesRNS A prominent mainline Christian denomination plans to divest from five oil companies it believes are not doing enough to address climate change. The vote to divest from Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Marathon Petroleum, Phillips 66 and Valero Energy comes after years of debate in the Presbyterian Church (USA). The sun sets behind a pumpjack […]
In the US, Columbia Theological Seminary accused of racism amid influx of Black students
RNS In 2018, the incoming class at Columbia Theological Seminary, a Presbyterian Church (USA) seminary in the tree-lined suburbs of Atlanta, was 47 per cent white and 16 per cent Black. Just three years later, a 2021 admissions brochure advertised an incoming class that was more than 64 per cent Black and 32 per cent […]
My Mission: Meet the first minister of gun violence prevention
EMILY MCFARLAN MILLER, of Religion News Service, meets Rev Deanna Hollas, the first ordained minister of gun violence prevention in the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States…