RELIGION
-
While “There Is No Intention To Legitimize Anything,” Vatican Allows Blessings For Same-Sex Couples
In a move laden with caveats and provisos, but nonetheless regarded as “a real development,” according to its author, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, the Vatican has issued a declaration on doctrine allowing priests to bless same-sex relationships. It required a change to the concept of what “blessings” are—broadening the definition by untying blessings from the sacraments and liturgy of Catholicism…
Read More » -
“All you need is a small pocket of people”—Following Airport Protest, NYC Braces For New Year’s Eve
Since the Hamas terrorist attacks of October 7, there have been 483 anti-Israel protests in New York City, involving 161,000 people. On the morning of December 27 pro-Hamas demonstrators blocked a major artery leading to JFK International Airport and assembled in front of the Israeli flag by Terminal 4 for flights to and from Israel. Most of them are peaceful,…
Read More » -
Celebrating My Right to Practice My Religion This Human Rights Day
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, ratified by the United Nations shortly after the horrors of World War II, outlines the 30 human rights every man, woman and child has, simply by being a member of the human race. Article 18 of the 30 rights states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom…
Read More » -
Oklahoma: Both Sides Cite Religious Freedom in Ongoing Legal Dispute Over America’s First Religious Public School
It began in May of this year when Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a bill into law that gave a tax incentive to parents who send their children to private and parochial school. Denounced by the opposition as “a tax shelter for individuals who can already afford private school tuition,” it was a prelude for what was to happen June…
Read More » -
Bucking the Trend, Latino Majority Congregations Are Prospering in Numbers, but Not in Finances
As the number of vacant pews increases in America’s houses of worship, one religious demographic is defying the trend: Latino majority congregations. According to a new Hartford Institute for Religion Research report, congregations of over 50 percent Latino have a median of 80 weekly worship attendees, compared to non-Latino congregations, with a median of 65. Another contrast is that while…
Read More » -
Snow and Antisemitic Bus Boycott Fail to Thwart Solidarity Rally for Israel in Canada
Thousands of Canadian Jews converged at the site of that nation’s seat of government—Parliament Hill in Ottawa—on December 4, undeterred by a foot of snow and a bus boycott that left many stranded in Toronto. Seventeen of the 70 chartered buses failed to show up to pick up rally-goers to make the 250-mile trek to the event. It was an…
Read More »