Jerome Socolovsky
Jerome Socolovsky is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Jerome Socolovsky
‘Black Panther’ inspires Kenyan church leaders’ march for Pan-African unity
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 27, 2018
NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) — A network of progressive churches in the United States, inspired by the success of the movie 'Black Panther,' has joined with over 100 Kenyan church leaders in a march to promote a global movement on Pan-African peace, power and prosperity.
The Slingshot: Last wrongs; Kansas mosque; Sumba rumble
By Jerome Socolovsky and Kimberly Winston — March 21, 2018
No deathbed conversion for atheist Stephen Hawking. Mosque bombing plot rattles immigrants in Kansas’ ‘meat triangle.’ On Indonesian Christian island, animist war game ritual lives on.
Streets deserted, airport closes for Bali’s Day of Silence
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 17, 2018
BALI, Indonesia (AP) — Aside from no Facebook, Instagram or instant messaging apps, television and radio broadcasts cease and Balinese stay indoors, covering the windows and not even turning on a light, for the day of reflection that is the most sacred in Balinese Hinduism.
German interior minister questions Islam’s place in country
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 16, 2018
BERLIN (AP) — Interior Minister Horst Seehofer told Friday's Bild newspaper that 'Germany is characterized by Christianity. ... My message is Muslims must live with us, not parallel to or against us.'
Why did former sheriff’s deputy allegedly try to bomb a Minnesota mosque?
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 15, 2018
CLARENCE, Ill. (AP) — A former sheriff's deputy and purported ringleader in the bombing of a Minnesota mosque emerges in court documents as a sometimes-threatening figure with anti-government views who also wrote books and attracted others into his shadowy group.
Attention turns to affiliations of mosque-bombing suspects
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 14, 2018
CHICAGO (AP) — Last year, three men allegedly chose to travel some 500 miles (805 kilometers) from a rural farming town in central Illinois to bomb a mosque in suburban Minneapolis. Why? One suspect reportedly said they hoped to scare Muslims into leaving the U.S.
Jerusalem tax spat pits heaven against earth
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 12, 2018
JERUSALEM (RNS) — An ethereal city graced with sunlight so bright it turns the white stone skyline gold at sunset, Jerusalem is also an earthbound city whose teachers must be paid and whose garbage must be collected.
My real-life Da Vinci Code moment
By Jerome Socolovsky — March 9, 2018
(RNS) — Three years ago I discovered a strange diagram written into an ancient monastic book. (Commentary)
The Slingshot: Billy Graham dies; Tainted artifacts; Forgiving a shooter
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 21, 2018
‘America’s pastor’ dies at 99. Suspicions surround the Museum of the Bible’s sister collection. A commentary on how religious people should respond to the horror in Parkland.
Pat Robertson is recovering after suffering a stroke
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 4, 2018
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — In an online news release, The Christian Broadcasting Network, which Robertson founded, says he was rushed to the nearest stroke center Friday after a family member recognized the onset of symptoms.
Judge temporarily halts deportation of Indonesian Christians
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 3, 2018
HIGHLAND PARK, N.J. (AP) — The order affects roughly 50 people from a community in New Jersey that includes many who left Indonesia years ago to escape religious persecution.
Gay marriage ruling boosts evangelical in Costa Rica vote
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 3, 2018
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — After last month's decision by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Fabricio Alvarado, a 43-year-old journalist with a prominent career as a preacher and Christian singer, suddenly became the leading contender in Sunday's vote.
Islam scholar Tariq Ramadan charged with suspected rape
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 2, 2018
PARIS (AP) — He was placed under investigation for alleged rape in a 2009 encounter and the rape of a vulnerable person in a 2012 case.
Judge grants Christian Indonesians time to fight deportation
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 2, 2018
BOSTON (AP) — A federal judge says 50 Indonesians living illegally in New Hampshire must be given time to reopen their immigration cases and argue that the conditions in their home country have changed.
Man who drove van into Muslims in London convicted of murder
By Jerome Socolovsky — February 1, 2018
LONDON (AP) — A jury at London's Woolwich Crown Court deliberated for just an hour before finding 48-year-old Darren Osborne guilty of the June 2017 attack in the city's Finsbury Park neighborhood.
