Religion
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In evangelical churches, a rift over Trump’s immigration policies
NASHVILLE (RNS and NPR) — The Sunday before the Tennessee Legislature voted to pass a sweeping immigration law, Republican State Sen. Brent Taylor, of Memphis, walked out of his home church before the service began. During the pre-service announcements at Trinity Baptist Church on the last Sunday of January, Pastor Matt Crawford criticized the end of sanctuary policies for churches,…
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After a decade of controversy, clergy psychedelic study is published
(RNS) — “I was the kid who never even smoked pot. I was very cautious, and a rule follower,” said Rabbi Julie Danan, spiritual leader of Seaside Jewish Community in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. So when Danan took the short train ride to Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore in the summer of 2016 to receive a legal 20…
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Hasidic Real Estate Fraud: Chaim Bediner’s Legal Fight
🛑 Exposing Hasidic Influence & Real Estate Fraud: The Case of Chaim Ben Dovid Bediner Sullivan County, NY — What began as a decades-long commitment to a small Jewish bungalow colony has now become a legal and ethical battleground. Chaim Ben Dovid Bediner, also known as Dmitri Bediner, is a 60-year-old Jewish refugee, stroke survivor, and brain surgery patient who…
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Why Southern Judaism Matters — with Shari Rabin
(RNS) — When I look back on my career as a Reform rabbi, I come to the following observation: For almost half of those years, I was a Southern rabbi. I served congregations in Georgia and south Florida. Mind you: Some people think that south Florida is another county of New York City. Wrong. Florida is the South. If you…
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Can we fix campus antisemitism?
(RNS) — “Of course, you know that Hitler negotiated with Herzl.” I heard those words in a university classroom as a sophomore in college in 1974, in the wake of the Yom Kippur War. I raised my hand, and I said: “How is that even possible? When Theodor Herzl, the founder of political Zionism, died in 1904, Hitler was 15…
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What can people of faith do?
(RNS) — After escalating tensions and military attacks between India and Pakistan, a ceasefire brokered by the United States was announced Saturday (May 10). The urgency of the situation cannot be overstated. A deadly terrorist attack on the Indian side of Kashmir late last month quickly escalated as both sides began launching missiles deep into the other’s territory — in…
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With ‘Adopt a Cardinal,’ lay Catholics can feel more connected to the conclave
(RNS) — Before the last conclave, Ulrike Heckl found herself looking at photos of the cardinals who were preparing to elect the next pope and wondering at the enormity of the responsibility on their shoulders. In that moment, she had a simple thought: “They need prayers.” A friend of Heckl’s was leading YOUTH 2000 Germany, a Catholic initiative focused on…
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The likely contenders to become the next pope
VATICAN CITY (RNS) — A diverse cast of cardinals gathering at the Vatican for Pope Francis’ funeral will soon turn to voting for his successor as head of the Catholic Church. Only a few are considered likely candidates for the papacy, or “papabile” in Italian. Because of Francis’ elevation of prelates from the “peripheries,” many of the electors will have…
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Holding tickets for Rome, Vatican pilgrims pivot from saint canonization to papal funeral
(RNS) — The morning before boarding a flight for Rome, Catholic radio show host and commentator Katie Prejean McGrady had a gaggle of suitcases lining the hallway of her home in Lake Charles, Louisiana, when she awoke Monday (April 21) to the news of Pope Francis’ death. “My heart sank,” said Prejean McGrady, who hosts “The Katie McGrady Show” on…
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Hamas Smuggling Chief Killed in Khan Younis Airstrike – IDF Confirms
The chief of Hamas’s smuggling operations was killed in an airstrike conducted by the IDF and Shin Bet in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, on Tuesday. According to the IDF, Yahya Fathi Abd al-Qader Abu Shaar had been actively involved in smuggling weapons and military equipment for Hamas, including during the terror group’s attack on October 7, 2023. Footage released by…
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