Top nun pushes for greater role for Catholic women
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Catholic sisters globally would be better-equipped to carry out their work if they could become deacons, the head of..
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Methodists vote to cut ties with group some consider anti-Israel
PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) United Methodists, voting at their General Conference, have called on their church’s mission agency to withdraw from a group founded to..
Methodist Church leadership denies rumored proposal to split
PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) The second-largest Protestant denomination in the United States denied rumors that it is seriously considering a proposal to split over..
3 ways Pope Francis’ opening on women deacons can change Catholicism
(RNS) When Pope Francis suddenly agreed, during an off-the-cuff chat last week with nuns gathered in Rome, to explore the idea of..
Methodist supporters of Israel-related divestment regroup after setback
PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) United Methodists who want their church to sanction Israel are regrouping after a committee at their denomination’s General Conference rejected four..
World Vision president: Treat refugees as guests
(RNS) Rich Stearns, head of World Vision, the evangelical relief and development group, says Christians should follow a model pioneered by Chaldean..
Methodists reject alternative format for divisive LGBT discussions
(RNS) Delegates to the United Methodist Church General Conference shot down a strategy that would have allowed them to discuss contentious legislation in small..
Pope Francis: Let’s study idea of ordaining women as deacons
VATICAN CITY (RNS) In an opening with historic import, Pope Francis has said he wants to study the possibility of ordaining women..
Can pastors make a comeback after a scandal?
RNS) Paul Hand may not be as well-known as a Tullian Tchividjian or, back in the day, a Ted Haggard or Jim..
Study: Changes in racial composition lead to decline in church attendance
(RNS) The more mixed the Sunday morning pews are, the fewer people are likely to be in them. That’s the primary finding..
French government battles intolerance with new public relations campaign
PARIS (RNS) On a sunny spring morning, an 18-year-old college student wrapped a scarf around her head to feel what it would..
6 things to watch at the Methodist General Conference
(RNS) The United Methodist Church General Conference convenes once every four years to make policy decisions and set the direction for the denomination. Beginning Tuesday..
Methodist General Conference to discuss LGBT issues — again
CHICAGO (RNS) “It’s time,” said the Rev. A. Wendy Witt during Sunday services at First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple...
Andover Newton to partner with Yale, shutter Mass. campus
(RNS) The nation’s oldest graduate school of theology is planning to relocate from Newton, Mass., to New Haven, Conn., where a small..
Bono and Eugene Peterson talk Psalms, Christian art in new video
(RNS) In a new video conversation with Christian scholar and poet Eugene Peterson, U2 frontman Bono said he finds “a lot of dishonesty” in Christian..
Two Lutheran seminaries will merge instead of closing, forming a new school
(RNS) Two Pennsylvania Lutheran seminaries have dropped plans to dissolve both schools and start a new one as they navigate hurdles in..
Silence is key to nuns’ singing success
GOWER, Mo. (RNS) Tucked away just off a rocky road is a small community of women who have chosen to retreat from the world..
Faith-based groups help quake-stricken Ecuador
(RNS) Emergency teams from U.S. faith-based humanitarian relief agencies are on the ground in northwest Ecuador after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that took..
Churches examine white privilege
(RNS) A year ago, when the death of Freddie Gray and resulting unrest in Baltimore filled the news, the Rev. Kathy Dwyer..
Pentecostal revival sweeps parts of West Coast
(RNS) They call it the West Coast Rumble: a set of multiweek revivals in Seattle and San Diego, plus a large Christian..
Pope Francis visits stranded refugees, brings 12 back to the Vatican
VATICAN CITY (RNS) - Pope Francis brought 12 Muslim refugees to the Vatican with him aboard the papal plane following a politically-charged..
White House, faith leaders say ‘moral obligation’ to halt payday loans
WASHINGTON (RNS) - White House officials have joined faith leaders in endorsing an end to payday lending abuses that often charge triple-digit interest..
Los Angeles church makes art ‘everyday sacred’ and secular too
LOS ANGELES (RNS) - To walk into First Congregational Church of Los Angeles on a Sunday morning is to see all the trappings of..
Hope and frustration mark anniversary of Chibok kidnappings
(RNS) Two years after the abduction of nearly 300 Chibok schoolgirls by Boko Haram militants in northeast Nigeria, some parents are still hoping..
Highly religious people say they’re happier, too, survey finds
(RNS) Look around. Three in 10 people you see claim they are pretty satisfied with life, happy, healthy and moral, too. They’re the “highly..