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Christina House/Los Angeles Times/TNS

LA police ramp up patrols around synagogues during Rosh Hashana

Religion / Religious News /

LOS ANGELES — Police departments in the Los Angeles area are ramping up patrols around synagogues during Rosh Hashana this week — though authorities say they have not received any specific reports of threats or planned demonstrations.

The Beverly Hills Police Department has partnered with private security and increased patrols around ...Read more

John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/TNS

Do Americans think the US should be based on Christian values? What new survey finds

Religion / Religious News /

Americans are split down the middle on their perceptions of the country’s religion, new research finds.

Fifty percent of Americans surveyed say they think the U.S. is a Christian nation and should be based on Christian values, according to a Sept. 24 analysis by Public Religion Research Institute fellows.

The research is based on a national ...Read more

Joe Sohm/Dreamstime/TNS

God is mentioned in every state constitution but not the US Constitution. Why?

Religion / Religious News /

A majority of U.S. adults say they believe the U.S. Constitution is inspired by God, but apart from a colloquial expression of the date, there is no mention of a higher being throughout the document.

That’s not the same for the nation’s state constitutions, where there’s at least one reference to God or the divine in each and nearly 200 ...Read more

How the 'God gap' is shaping Washington State votes in presidential election

Religion / Religious News /

WHITE CENTER, Wash. — An outdoor Spanish-language Mass and festival might not seem the best place to look for supporters of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. Democrats have traditionally enjoyed a strong advantage among Hispanic voters, including those of faith.

But Democrats' hold on Hispanic Catholics, as well as other religious...Read more

Christy Thompson/DREAMSTIME/TNS

Do US Catholics agree with the church's stance on birth control? What poll found

Religion / Religious News /

Most U.S. Catholics disagree with the church’s stance on a number of issues, including the use of contraceptives, according to a new poll.

The latest Pew Research Center poll, released Thursday, finds that 83% of U.S. Catholics say the church should allow the use of birth control, while 15% say it should not.

The poll surveyed 2,021 U.S. ...Read more

Clarence Tabb Jr./The Detroit News/TNS

Detroit pastor urges other Black faith leaders to support Trump for president

Religion / Religious News /

DETROIT — A prominent pastor in Detroit has called for other Black faith leaders to support Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, saying any concerns about the former president's character should not deter them.

"God uses people who we may question their character," said Pastor Lorenzo Sewell of 180 Church at a Trump campaign-...Read more

Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS

From Project 2025 to Evangelicals for Harris: How Wheaton College grads are involved in presidential politics

Religion / Religious News /

CHICAGO — As a chief architect of Project 2025, Russell Vought has risen into the national spotlight for co-authoring the controversial conservative blueprint designed to radically overhaul the federal government under the next Republican president.

But years ago, the Wheaton College graduate made headlines for another written work — one ...Read more

MATIAS J. OCNER/Miami Herald/TNS

Catholic church pours big bucks into fight to defeat Florida abortion rights amendment

Religion / Religious News /

MIAMI — Catholic churches and other religious institutions in Florida are pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into the campaign to defeat an amendment intended to overturn the state’s controversial restrictions on abortion access.

Defeating the Amendment 4 proposal has become a major goal for the state’s Republican leadership, with ...Read more

Shawn Inglima/New York Daily News/TNS

Insurer locked in battle with NY archdiocese over abuse payments sues AG's office

Religion / Religious News /

NEW YORK — In an ongoing battle over who will be financially responsible for payouts to survivors of childhood sexual abuse at the hands of clergy, an insurance company suing the Archdiocese of New York filed a suit against the New York attorney general’s office Monday.

Chubb, an insurer of the Archdiocese of New York, filed papers in New ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Michigan church pastor arrested, fired after camera found in bathroom, officials say

Religion / Religious News /

DETROIT — A Brighton church leader was arrested Friday after a staff member found a hidden camera in a bathroom, officials said.

Will Johnson, the worship pastor director of 2|42 Community Church, was also fired, a top church official said in a statement.

Eric Rauch, 2|42 Community Church's executive pastor of ministry operations, said ...Read more

DREAMSTIME/TNS

Florida Muslim group expands mental health outreach to tackle stigma around suicide

Religion / Religious News /

MIAMI -- Mental health is not easy for anyone to discuss openly. But, in some religious communities, there is an added stigma that may hinder an open dialogue — and that’s particularly true in the Islamic faith.

The South Florida Muslim Federation (SoFlo Muslims), an umbrella organization representing over 40 mosques and Islamic ...Read more

Courtesy The Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church/TNS/TNS

Missouri church 'takes a stand' by taking over anti-racism billboard near Confederate flag

Religion / Religious News /

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- In 2021, Amanda Burrows had an answer to a giant Confederate flag that was erected along a popular route to the Lake of the Ozarks: a billboard with the anti-racist message, “EQUALITY BIGGER THAN HATE.”

She raised money through GoFundMe to lease the billboard so visitors would not leave with the impression that the area...Read more

Carl Juste/Miami Herald/TNS

This Miami church's new home is in a high-rise condo. You enter through the coffee shop

Religion / Religious News /

MIAMI -- Corner Coffee is not your typical coffee shop.

All the the usual suspects are offered: espresso, cold brews, pastries. But the distinct interior design offers some clues as to what is also on the menu: A ceiling mobile made of religious stained glass hangs over a seating area. A bronze sculpture of a life-size Homeless Jesus sleeping ...Read more

Kim Hairston/Baltimore Sun/TNS

Maryland Supreme Court to hear argument over Child Victims Act: 'This is what it means'

Religion / Religious News /

BALTIMORE — A priest lured 9-year-old David Schappelle into a private area of St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Gaithersburg decades ago under the guise of teaching him about confession.

Father Wayland Brown proceeded to masturbate under his “ceremonial robe,” withdraw his hand when he was finished and tell the boy that “God will be ...Read more

Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/TNS

Survivors call for expediency in sex abuse investigations of 2 Catholic dioceses

Religion / Religious News /

BALTIMORE — Survivors of child sexual abuse in Maryland on Wednesday demanded expediency from the state attorney general in its investigations of the Catholic dioceses of Washington and Wilmington, Delaware.

Members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, told reporters at a news conference that they hoped the Maryland ...Read more

Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Downtown LA church keeps the city's mayhem at bay -- one service at a time

Religion / Religious News /

LOS ANGELES — South Hope Street is quiet on a Sunday morning. Five blocks over in Skid Row, police are investigating a shooting, but in the Financial District, calm prevails.

Parking lots are nearly empty. Guests at the Sheraton are checking out early. The unhoused have mostly left their sidewalk beds, and Jeffrey Taylor and Deborah Johnson ...Read more

James Hartley/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/TNS

Woman sues Gateway Church, alleging she was sexually abused at 13 by youth group member

Religion / Religious News /

FORT WORTH, Texas — A woman and her parents are suing Gateway Church and a former youth group attendee, alleging she was sexually assaulted and groomed by a high school senior when she was 13 years old.

The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in a Tarrant County District Court. The plaintiffs are seeking more than $1 million in damages.

The ...Read more

James Hartley/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/TNS

Gateway Church cancels annual conference due to ousted pastor's sexual abuse of child

Religion / Religious News /

FORT WORTH, Texas — Gateway Church has canceled its annual conference in the aftermath of its founder and head pastor resigning after admitting he sexually abused a 12-year-old girl in the 1980s.

The church announced the cancellation of the conference on the event website.

“We’re continuing to pursue truth, and we’re filled with hope ...Read more

Jose F. Moreno/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

Would Tim Walz be the first Lutheran VP? It just depends on how you count it

Religion / Religious News /

Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz’s vibe has been defined by the internet as “Midwestern dad,” but Minnesotans know their governor as something more specific: a “Minnesota Lutheran” dad.

If elected alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, who herself is Baptist, he could be the first — or second — Lutheran vice ...Read more

Michelle Baruchman/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS

Atlanta pastor leans on personal story to fight for LGBTQ equality, social justice

Religion / Religious News /

ATLANTA — As a teenager, the Rev. Andi Woodworth spoke out against the lack of racial diversity at a Christian youth camp.

Decades later Woodworth is still speaking on that and a broader range of issues including support of the LGBTQ community, reproductive rights and social justice.

She’s speaking out at a time when state lawmakers around...Read more