VATICAN CITY (RNS) Both Pope Francis and Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby stand in stark contrast to their bookish predecessors, and they may find they have much to agree on when they have their first get-to-know-you meeting.
(RNS) Southern Baptists have been divided over Calvinism since their denomination began in 1845, but top leaders say disagreements had deepened with a “vitriol that is nasty.”
“I told my fellow employees at the restaurant to get ready for small tips, lots of gospel tracts to go with the cheap tips, and plenty of people ordering desserts.” – Thom Rainer, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s LifeWay Christian Resources, recounting the words of a Houston restaurant server as the SBC gathers in [...]
WASHINGTON (RNS) Experts say Muslim websites can help foster dialogue and understanding, but they’re also a forum for online fatwas and vitriolic discourse.
(RNS) The fight over Catholic Campaign for Human Development anti-poverty effort reflects a longstanding divide over whether a few litmus-test issues — most of which do not include social justice concerns — can or should define what it means to be a Catholic in America.
(RNS) Southern Baptist Convention President Fred Luter’s recent overseas missions trip is being hailed by black and white Southern Baptists as a catalyst to change a long-present reality: very small numbers of black missionaries.
(RNS) There’s a new evangelical engagement with public schools that is dedicated solely to helping kids rather than arguing over school prayer, evangelism, and other culture war flash points.
“Many monks act, in my view, quite unreasonably. On the one hand, (monks) leave the world in order to create favorable conditions for salvation, and on the other hand, they take their mobile telephone and start to enter the Internet where, we know, there is a large number of sinful and tempting things.” – Russian [...]
The adoption movement remains in the news as The Tennessean published three stories on the evolution of the evangelical orphan care movement in Sunday’s paper: one, two, three. Mass was held Sunday for Boston bombing victim Martin Richard on what would have been his 9th birthday. Catholic, anti-abortion Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad may have to sign [...]
(RNS) A spokeswoman for the Philadelphia district attorney said several people have called and tweeted requests for the bodies of babies killed by abortion provider Kermit Gosnell, but the ultimate decision will come from the medical examiner’s office.
