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(Kathryn Gamble | The New York Times) Pastor Sam Jones, who has signed about 30 letters endorsing parishioners requests for vaccine exemptions, at Faith Baptist Church in Hudson, Iowa, Sept. 2, 2021. Major religious traditions, denominations and institutions are essentially unanimous in their support of COVID-19 vaccines, but as more employers begin requiring them, they are butting up against vaccine holdouts who nonetheless see their resistance in religious terms or at least see an opportunity.

Vaccine resisters seek religious exemptions, but what counts as religious?

By Ruth Graham | The New York Times | September 11, 2021, 8:51 p.m.

(The Salt Lake Tribune) Native American celebration takes place at Salt Lake City's Liberty Park in 2017. There is a new translation out of the New Testament for Indigenous peoples.

There’s a new New Testament for Native American readers

By Emily McFarlan Miller | Religion News Service | September 1, 2021, 8:51 p.m.

(Cheryl Gerber | AP) A psychic and tarot card reader reads a spread of tarot cards in 2007 in New Orleans. A new study shows young people in traditional faiths are also turning to divination.

Gen Z Orthodox Christians, Mormons, others double down on spirituality, combining tarot and traditional faith

By Heather Greene | Religion News Service | August 13, 2021, 7:56 p.m.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Latter-day Saint apostle M. Russell Ballard receives the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine on Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, in Salt Lake City. A new poll shows faith leaders can have tremendous influence in persuading their followers to be vaccinated.

Vaccine hesitancy declines among faith groups, spurred partly by religious appeals

By Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | August 1, 2021, 5:41 p.m.

(Arnulfo Franco | The Associated Press) In this Oct. 19, 2018, file photo, Sting performs during a concert. A new book examines the Catholicism laced through the singer's music.

New book examines Sting’s enduring Catholic imagination

By Yonat Shimron | Religion News Service | July 21, 2021, 11:26 p.m.

(Steve Ranson/Lahontan Valley News via AP) FILE - John K. O'Connor looks back before the judge reads an indictment in justice court, Wednesday, July 25, 2018 in Fallon, Nev. O'Connor, a 48-year-old northern Nevada man accused of fatally shooting a fellow member of his congregation during Sunday services at a Mormon church has been indicted on murder, battery and assault charges. A district judge issued the ruling based on his finding that John O’Connor of Fallon is unable to assist his attorney with his defense, the Lahontan Valley News reported.

Man accused of killing at Nevada LDS church ruled incompetent

By The Associated Press | July 14, 2021, 5:17 p.m.

(AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) FILE - Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience in the Pope Paul VI hall at the Vatican, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. Commentary: Even with the best prognosis, age is catching up to Pope Francis. Barring a miracle, he will only be expected to continue as pope for five or six years. We may look back at his hospitalization as the moment that marked the beginning of the end of his papacy.

Commentary: The beginning of the end of the Francis papacy

By Thomas Reese | Religion News Service | July 13, 2021, 8:20 p.m.

(AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) FILE - Two people stand in an empty St.Peter's Square, at the Vatican, as Pope Francis recites the Angelus noon prayer in his studio Friday, Jan. 1, 2021. The Vatican indicted 10 former officials and business partners on Saturday, including a cardinal, in connection with a controversial investment in property in London that depleted the church’s finances and undermined its credibility.

Vatican indicts cardinal and nine others connected to financial scandal

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | July 6, 2021, 4:29 p.m.

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File) FILE - This combination of Sept. 29, 2020, file photos shows President Donald Trump, left, and former Vice President Joe Biden during the first presidential debate at Case Western University and Cleveland Clinic, in Cleveland, Ohio. Trump and Biden have starkly different visions for the international role of the United States — and the presidency. A new survey reports former President Donald Trump expanded his robust support among white evangelicals in the 2020 election, but President Joe Biden won in part by making significant gains among Catholics and non-evangelical Protestants.

Study: Trump expanded evangelical support in 2020, Biden gained other white Christians

By Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | July 2, 2021, 9:06 p.m.

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon) FILE - Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, laughs while speaking in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021, in Washington. The American Humanist Association announced Thursday that Dr. Anthony S. Fauci is its 2021 Humanist of the Year.

Dr. Anthony Fauci named 2021 Humanist of the Year

By Kathryn Post | Religion News Service | July 1, 2021, 8:20 p.m.

(Vatican Media via AP Photo) Pope Francis shakes hands with Secretary of State Antony Blinken as they meet at the Vatican, Monday, June 28, 2021. Blinken is on a weeklong trip in Europe, traveling to Germany, France and Italy.

Pope Francis and Blinken discuss climate change, China at the Vatican

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | June 28, 2021, 6:06 p.m.

(Nick Wass | AP) Chicago Cubs' Ben Zobrist looks on during practice at Nationals Park in Washington in 2017.

Ben Zobrist, World Series hero for Cubs, sues ex-pastor for alleged affair with wife

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | June 24, 2021, 2:12 p.m.

(AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) FILE - In this Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021 file photo, President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, attend Mass at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle during Inauguration Day ceremonies in Washington. When U.S. Catholic bishops hold their next national meeting in June 2021, they’ll be deciding whether to send a tougher-than-ever message to President Joe Biden and other Catholic politicians: Don’t partake of Communion if you persist in public advocacy of abortion rights.

U.S. Catholic bishops OK steps toward possible rebuke of Biden

By David Crary | The Associated Press | June 18, 2021, 7:28 p.m.

(Matt Slocum | AP file photo) President-elect Joe Biden's nominee for the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and adviser on science Eric Lander speaks during an event at The Queen theater, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, in Wilmington, Del.

White House science adviser to be sworn in on a 500-year-old Jewish text

By Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | June 2, 2021, 9:08 p.m.

(Lynne Sladky | AP file photo) A woman wears a protective face mask while holding a candle during an outdoor Christmas Eve Service of Lights at the Granada Presbyterian Church, Thursday, Dec. 24, 2020, in Coral Gables, Fla.

Jana Riess: Gen Z lost touch with faith communities during pandemic but kept the faith, says study

By Jana Riess | Religion News Services | June 1, 2021, 8:48 p.m.

(Ted S. Warren, The Associated Press) In this May 14, 2020, file photo, a person carries a sign supporting QAnon during a protest rally in Olympia, Wash. A new survey reveals that white evangelicals, Hispanic Protestants and Latter-day Saints are the most likely to believe in the apocalyptic conspiracy theory.

White evangelicals, Hispanic Protestants, Latter-day Saints most likely to believe in QAnon

By Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | May 30, 2021, 12:56 p.m.

(Jeremy Harmon | The Salt Lake Tribune) Jana Riess, speaking in 2019, says The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can learn from Crossroads Church.

Jana Riess: Five things Latter-day Saints can learn from one of the nation’s fastest-growing churches

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | May 27, 2021, 3:16 a.m.

(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) This Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011 photo shows the headquarters of the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, Tenn.

Southern Baptist denomination has lost more than 2 million members since 2006

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | May 21, 2021, 9:43 p.m.

(Alessandro della Valle/Keystone via AP, File) In this Jan. 22, 2020, file photo Jane Goodall, English primatologist and anthropologist, addresses the media during a news conference as part of the 50th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. Goodall has been named the winner of the 2021 Templeton Prize.

‘Religion entered into me’: A talk with Jane Goodall, winner the 2021 Templeton Prize

By Yonat Shimron | Religion News Service | May 21, 2021, 3:02 p.m.

(AP Photo | Ross D. Franklin) In this Wednesday, June 14, 2017 photo, Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, speaks at the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Phoenix.

Russell Moore, Baptist ethicist and Trump critic, to leave ERLC for Christianity Today

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | May 19, 2021, 10:43 p.m.

(Andrew Harnik | AP file photo) Emma Gonzalez, a survivor of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., closes her eyes and cries as she stands silently at the podium and times the amount of time it took the Parkland shooter to go on his killing spree during the "March for Our Lives" rally in support of gun control in Washington, Saturday, March 24, 2018.

Commentary: Jesus wept and so should we. Why crying as a spiritual discipline may change how you see the world.

By Benjamin Perry | Religion News Service | May 18, 2021, 12:14 a.m.

(Vatican Media via AP) Pope Francis and John Kerry, right, shake hands as they pose for a photo at the Vatican, Saturday, May 15, 2021. Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, currently President Biden’s envoy on the climate, met in private audience with Pope Francis on Saturday, afterward calling the pope “a compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis” who has been “ahead of the curve.” Kerry told Vatican News in an interview that the pope speaks with “unique authority, compelling moral authority, that hopefull can push people to greater ambition to get the job done.

At Vatican, John Kerry appeals to pope’s ‘moral authority’ to combat climate change

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | May 17, 2021, 5:31 p.m.

Penelope and Odysseus in Homer’s “The Odyssey.” Painting by Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, 1802

Commentary: What Homer’s ‘Odyssey’ can teach us about reentering the world after a year of isolation

By Joel Christensen | Religion News Service | May 14, 2021, 8:37 p.m.

(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) Palestinians walk next to the remains of a destroyed 15 story building after being hit by Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City, Thursday, May 13, 2021.

Religion plays a role in the renewed conflict in Israel, but it may not be what you think

By Yonat Shimron | Religion News Service | May 13, 2021, 5:14 p.m.

(Pat Nabong | Chicago Sun-Times via AP) In this Aug. 15, 2020, file photo, police officers stand beside a mural for George Floyd in the Chicago neighborhood of Bronzeville during an anti-police brutality protest.

Jana Riess: The seeds of police brutality in the Bible

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | May 12, 2021, 10:28 p.m.

(Esperanza Foft) Bishop-elect Megan Rohrer, left, and their family.

Lutherans elect Megan Rohrer first transgender bishop

By Paul O'Donnell | Religion News Service | May 10, 2021, 4:11 p.m.

(Guglielmo Mangiapane | Pool photo via AP) Pope Francis celebrates the Ash Wednesday mass leading Catholics into Lent, at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021.

Catholic bishops who want to deny Biden Communion may have to reckon with the pope

By Jack Jenkins and Claire Giangrave | Religion News Service | May 6, 2021, 12:18 a.m.

(David Bornfriend | A24 via AP) This image released by A24 shows Steven Yeun, foreground, in a scene from "Minari."

Oscar nominee ‘Minari’ spotlights Korean American faith and the role of the church

By Emily McFarlan Miller | Religion News Service | April 23, 2021, 10:28 p.m.

(Damon Winter | The New York Times) Parishioners during a Mass at St. Stephen of Hungary, in New York, Feb. 8, 2015.

Barring women as leaders in church may be bad for their health, new study finds

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | April 20, 2021, 4:54 p.m.

(Patrick Semansky | AP Photo) President Joe Biden departs after attending Mass at St. Joseph on the Brandywine Catholic Church as snow falls, Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021, in Wilmington, Del.

Commentary: Joe Biden may unify the country. Don’t ask him to unify Catholics.

By Kenneth L. Woodward | Religion News Service | April 20, 2021, 4:42 p.m.

(Jeremy Harmon | Salt Lake Tribune file photo) Jana Riess speaks while recording the 100th episode of the "Mormon Land" in 2019.

Jana Riess: When a woman doesn’t want a baby

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | April 14, 2021, 5:57 p.m.

(Domenico Stinellis | AP Photo) Father Hans Zollner, one of the founding members of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, speaks during a press conference at the Foreign Press Association headquarters, in Rome, Thursday, Sept. 27, 2018.

At online symposium, Pope Francis says religions can eradicate sexual abuse together

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | April 13, 2021, 9:47 p.m.

(Khalil Hamra | AP Photo) Muslims wearing face masks attend the Eid al-Fitr prayers outside a mosque in Gaza City, Sunday, May 24, 2020.

Commentary: Ramadan fasting isn’t about hunger. It’s about living mindfully.

By Omar Suleiman | Religion News Service | April 13, 2021, 9:47 p.m.

(Trisnadi | AP Photo) Indonesian Muslims pray spaced apart as they practice social distancing to curb the spread of the new coronavirus during an Eid al-Fitr prayer marking the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia, Sunday, May 24, 2020.

For interfaith couples, Ramadan can deepen ties to faith and each other

By Silma Suba | Religion News Service | April 12, 2021, 6:37 p.m.

(Tiziana Fabi | Pool photo via AP) Pope Francis celebrates mass in St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, Sunday, March 14, 2021. Christianity’s most joyous feast day was celebrated worldwide April 4 with the faithful spaced apart in pews and singing choruses of “Hallelujah” through face coverings on a second Easter Sunday marked by pandemic precautions.

Hymns through masks: Christians mark another pandemic Easter

By Frances D'Emilio | The Associated Press | April 4, 2021, 7:35 p.m.

(Evan Vucci | AP file photo) President Joe Biden speaks during a news conference in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, March 25, 2021, in Washington. Biden's Good Friday commentary urges Americans to heed the lessons of Easter.

Commentary by President Joe Biden: ‘Let us recommit ourselves to the lessons of Easter’

By Joe Biden | Religion News Service | April 2, 2021, 11:12 p.m.

President Joe Biden departs after attending Mass at St. Joseph on the Brandywine Catholic Church as snow falls, Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Survey: Most Americans know Biden is Catholic, far fewer know Harris’ religion

By Adelle M. Banks | Religion News Service | March 31, 2021, 5:52 p.m.

People leave incense sticks in a pot of rice to honor the victims of the Atlanta area massage parlors shootings during a memorial in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, March 28, 2021. The March 17 shootings at three Georgia massage parlors and spas that left eight people dead, six of them women of Asian descent, come on the heels of a recent wave of attacks against Asian Americans since the coronavirus entered the United States. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Commentary: Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Is he weeping over our gun problem?

By Shane Claiborne | Religion News Service | March 30, 2021, 8:23 p.m.

(Francisco Kjolseth | Salt Lake Tribune file photo) Most pews are taped off at the Cathedral of the Madeleine in Salt Lake City on Friday, May 8, 2020, due to the pandemic. A new Gallup report shows that most Americans no longer identify themselves as members of a church, synagogue, mosque or other house of worship.

For the first time, fewer than half of Americans belong to a house of worship

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | March 30, 2021, 2:24 p.m.

(Jeremy Harmon | Salt Lake Tribune file photo) Jana Riess speaks while recording the 100th episode of the "Mormon Land" podcast in 2019.

Jana Riess: The ‘nones’ are growing — and growing more diverse

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | March 25, 2021, 4:03 p.m.

FILE - In this April 19, 2019 file photo, a gay pride rainbow flag flies along with the U.S. flag in front of the Asbury United Methodist Church in Prairie Village, Kan. Had there been no COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, America’s largest mainline Protestant denomination would be convening in May 2020 for a likely vote on breaking up over differences on same-sex marriage and ordination of LGBTQ pastors. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

Study: Americans overwhelmingly support LGBTQ nondiscrimination laws

By Yonat Shimron | Religion News Service | March 23, 2021, 10:45 p.m.

(Tiziana Fabi | Pool photo via AP) Pope Francis celebrates mass in St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, Sunday, March 14, 2021. The Vatican has decreed, Monday, March 15, 2021, that the Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex unions since God “cannot bless sin.” The Vatican’s orthodoxy office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued a formal response to a question about whether Catholic clergy can bless gay unions.

LGBTQ Catholics stung by Vatican rebuff of same-sex unions

By David Crary and Luis Andres Henao | The Associated Press | March 16, 2021, 5:00 p.m.

(Jeremy Harmon | Tribune file photo) Jana Riess speaks while recording the 100th episode of the "Mormon Land" podcast in 2019.

Jana Riess: ‘Allergic to religion’ — Conservative politics can push people out of the pews

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | March 16, 2021, 12:00 p.m.

Worshippers wearing protective face masks offer Eid al-Fitr prayers outside a shrine to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 24, 2020. Muslims worldwide celebrated one of their biggest holidays under the long shadow of the coronavirus, with millions confined to their homes and others gripped by economic concerns during what is usually a festive time of shopping and celebration. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Islamophobia on the rise, according to United Nations report

By Joseph Hammond | Religion News Service | March 11, 2021, 10:05 p.m.

(Andrew Medichini | AP) A gust of wind blows Pope Francis's mantle as he stands by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi upon his arrival at Baghdad's international airport, Iraq, Friday, March 5, 2021. Pope Francis heads to Iraq on Friday to urge the country's dwindling number of Christians to stay put and help rebuild the country after years of war and persecution, brushing aside the coronavirus pandemic and security concerns.

Pope’s wind-whipped mantle drives Vatican tailors to consider Velcro

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | March 10, 2021, 7:47 p.m.

Pope Francis, center, leaves Mar Youssef Church in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, March 6, 2021. Pope Francis and Iraq's top Shiite cleric delivered a powerful message of peaceful coexistence Saturday, urging Muslims in the war-weary Arab nation to embrace Iraq's long-beleaguered Christian minority during a historic meeting in the holy city of Najaf. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

Pope dismisses ‘heresy’ charges for his commitment to Christian-Muslim dialogue

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | March 8, 2021, 9:55 p.m.

(Andrew Medichini | The Associated Press) Pope Francis, surrounded by shells of destroyed churches, leads a prayer for the victims of war at Hosh al-Bieaa Church Square, in Mosul, Iraq, once the de-facto capital of IS, Sunday, March 7, 2021. The long 2014-2017 war to drive IS out left ransacked homes and charred or pulverized buildings around the north of Iraq, all sites Francis visited on Sunday.

Where Muslim extremists ruled, pope calls on Christians to forgive, rebuild

By Nicole Winfield and Samya Kullab | The Associated Press | March 7, 2021, 6:45 p.m.

Pope Francis, center, leaves Mar Youssef Church in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, March 6, 2021. Pope Francis and Iraq's top Shiite cleric delivered a powerful message of peaceful coexistence Saturday, urging Muslims in the war-weary Arab nation to embrace Iraq's long-beleaguered Christian minority during a historic meeting in the holy city of Najaf. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

Pope, top Iraq Shiite cleric deliver mesage of coexistence

By The Associated Press | March 7, 2021, 12:43 a.m.

(Andrew Medichini | AP) Syriac Catholic Patriarch of Antioch Ignatius Ephrem Joseph III Yonan, left, and Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans Cardinal Louis Sako, right, listen to Pope Francis delivering his speech during a meeting with bishops and priests, at the Sayidat al-Nejat (Our Lady of Salvation) Cathedral, in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, March 5, 2021. Pope Francis has arrived in Iraq to urge the country's dwindling number of Christians to stay put and help rebuild the country after years of war and persecution, brushing aside the coronavirus pandemic and security concerns.

On first day in Iraq, Pope Francis pays tribute to Christian martyrs

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | March 5, 2021, 7:13 p.m.

In this Wednesday, March 28, 2018 photo, a worker stands on a scaffolding as he preparing the up coming Easter day mass at the Shantou Catholic church in Shantou in south China's Guangdong province. Good Friday celebrations in one Chinese parish had a conspicuous absence: their bishop, who just the day before was whisked away by the government. The bishop is at the center of talks between the Vatican and the atheist Communist Party that are expected to yield a historic deal on who appoints bishops in China and unite the country’s Catholics for the first time since Beijing and the Holy See severed relations nearly seven decades ago. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Being ‘godless’ might be good for your health, new study finds

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | March 5, 2021, 5:14 p.m.

(Charlie Riedel | AP file photo) A gay pride rainbow flag flies along with the U.S. flag in front of the Asbury United Methodist Church in Prairie Village, Kan., April 19, 2019. Had there been no COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, America’s largest mainline Protestant denomination would be convening in May 2020 for a likely vote on breaking up over differences on same-sex marriage and ordination of LGBTQ pastors.

United Methodist conservatives detail plans for a breakaway

By David Crary | AP National Writer | March 2, 2021, 3:45 p.m.

Federal policemen patrol by a concrete wall placed by Iraqi security forces to surround the Our Lady of Salvation Church during preparations for the Pope's visit in Mar Youssif Church in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Feb. 26, 2021. (AP/Photo/Hadi Mizban)

Commentary: The pope’s Iraq visit will make headlines. Can it make life better for religious minorities?

By Knox Thames | Religion News Service | February 26, 2021, 9:31 p.m.

(Jon Krakauer) The former compound of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter-day Saints pictured in 2006.

Former FLDS members buy sect’s South Dakota compound

By The Associated Press | February 26, 2021, 7:12 p.m.

(AP Photo) In this combination photo, Charisma Carpenter, from left, attends the 6th annual Thirst Gala on June 30, 2015 in Beverly Hills, Calif., Sarah Michelle Gellar arrives at Jingle Ball on Dec. 6, 2019, in Inglewood, Calif., and Joss Whedon arrives at the premiere of "Bad Times at the El Royale" on Sept. 22, 2018, in Los Angeles. Whedon, the prominent film and TV creator who faced a claim of abusive behavior on the set of “Justice League,” drew criticism Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, from actors who worked with him on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” including Gellar and Carpenter.

Jana Riess: On Joss Whedon, J.K. Rowling, cancel culture and the Bible

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | February 25, 2021, 10:49 p.m.

FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021 file photo, people are reflected on a puddle as they walk in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican. The Vatican is taking Pope Francis’ pro-vaccine stance very seriously: Any Vatican employee who refuses to get a coronavirus shot without valid medical reason risks being fired. A Feb. 8 decree signed by the governor of the Vatican City State sparked heated debate Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021 since its provisions go well beyond the generally voluntary nature of COVID-19 vaccinations in Italy and much of the rest of the world. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)

COVID-19 pandemic has Vatican bracing for $60 million deficit in 2021

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | February 19, 2021, 6:38 p.m.

Pope Francis sprinkles a member of the clergy with ashes during the Ash Wednesday mass leading Catholics into Lent, at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/Pool photo via AP)

On Ash Wednesday, Pope Francis says Lent is an ‘exodus from slavery to freedom’

By Claire Giangravé | Religion News Service | February 17, 2021, 6:48 p.m.

FILE - In this Jan. 21, 2021, file photo, Doug Emhoff, left, Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden, and first lady Jill Biden, stand during a performance of the National Anthem during a virtual Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service, in the State Dinning Room of the White House in Washington. Biden is expected to address the National Prayer Breakfast, a Washington tradition that calls on political combatants to set aside their differences for one morning. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Biden signs executive order reestablishing White House faith office

By Jack Jenkins and Adelle M. Banks | Religion News Service | February 16, 2021, 1:02 a.m.

FILE - In this May 29, 2020 file photo, images of Ravi Zacharias are displayed in the Passion City Church during a memorial service for him in Atlanta. A law firm's investigators have released a scathing report on their four-month investigation of alleged sexual misconduct by Zacharias, who founded a global Christian ministry that bears his name. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

Report: Ravi Zacharias was guilty of sexual misconduct. RZIM board apologizes.

By Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | February 12, 2021, 9:23 p.m.

FILE - In this May 14, 2020, file photo, a person carries a sign supporting QAnon during a protest rally in Olympia, Wash, USA. The social media company Twitter said Tuesday Jan. 12, 2021, it has suspended more than 70,000 accounts associated with the far right QAnon conspiracy theory following last week's U.S. Capitol insurrection. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

Survey: More than a quarter of white evangelicals believe core QAnon conspiracy theory

By Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | February 11, 2021, 11:40 p.m.

(Alex Brandon | AP file photo) From left, second gentleman Doug Emhoff Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden, and first lady Jill Biden stand during a performance of the National Anthem during a virtual Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Jan. 21, 2021.

Biden, at prayer breakfast, calls out ‘political extremism

By Elana Schor and Will Weissert | The Associated Press | February 4, 2021, 7:19 p.m.

(Chris Seward | AP file photo)Audience members join hands in worship at the the Rev. Franklin Graham's Decision America event at the Pitt County Fairgrounds in Greenville, N.C. on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019. A Pew study shows that white evangelicals are the most likely to say they’ve been harassed online for their religious views.

White evangelicals most likely to say they’ve been harassed online for their faith

By Roxanne Stone | Religion News Service | February 3, 2021, 3:34 p.m.

In this Dec. 8, 2020 file photo, Pope Francis delivers his message during the Angelus noon prayer from the window of his studio overlooking St.Peter's Square, on the Immaculate Conception day, at the Vatican. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, file)

Pope Francis tells Catholic journalists he has hope for ‘courageous’ U.S. church

By Claire Giangrave | Religion News Service | February 2, 2021, 10:17 p.m.

(David Goldman | AP file photo) In this Aug. 23, 2015, file photo, former President Jimmy Carter teaches Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains, Ga.

Commentary: How Jimmy Carter taught me to pray for a president

By Maina Mwaura | Religion News Service | January 29, 2021, 1:09 a.m.

(Ted S. Warren | AP file photo) In this May 14, 2020, file photo, a person wears a vest supporting QAnon at a protest rally in Olympia, Wash.

Half of U.S. pastors say they’ve heard conspiracy theories in their churches

By Emily McFarlan Miller | Religion News Service | January 29, 2021, 12:53 a.m.

(John Locher | AP file photo) Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, Dec. 14, 2018. Attorneys general from 19 other states had recently joined in support of the unusual request from Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley east of Reno. Ford had argued the justices should let the federal court in Reno sort out the details before taking the extraordinary step of wading into the case.

U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear Nevada church’s COVID-19 case

By Scott Sonner | The Associated Press | January 26, 2021, 11:18 p.m.

(Patrick Semansky, AP pool photo) American poet Amanda Gorman reads a poem during the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021.

Commentary: Amanda Gorman, my grandma and the Black tears we cried

By Danté Stewart | Religion News Service | January 21, 2021, 9:39 p.m.

(Gene J. Puskar | AP file photo) Joanne Rogers stands in front of a giant Mister Rogers Forever Stamp following the first-day-of-issue dedication in Pittsburgh on March 23, 2018. Rogers, the widow of Fred Rogers, the gentle TV host who entertained and educated generations of preschoolers on “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” has died. She was 92.

Joanne Rogers, widow of Fred Rogers, dies at 92

By Adelle M. Banks | Religion News Service | January 15, 2021, 5:55 p.m.

(Gregorio Borgia | AP) Pope Francis holds his pastoral staff as he arrives to celebrate Mass, at St. Peter's Basilica, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2020. Pope Francis has changed church law to explicitly allow women to do more things during Mass, Monday, Jan. 11, 2021, while reaffirming they cannot be priests.

Pope says women can read at Mass, but still can’t be priests

By Nicole Winfield | The Associated Press | January 11, 2021, 4:46 p.m.

(Jason Andrew | The New York Times) Protesters on the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. The Capitol was placed on lockdown, with senators and members of the House locked inside their chambers, as Congress began debating President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. President Trump addressed supporters near the White House before protesters marched to Capitol Hill.

As chaos hits Capitol, two forms of faith on display

By Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | January 7, 2021, 2:07 a.m.

(Courtesy photo) Jana Riess

Jana Riess: Author Brian McLaren says there’s a good reason your beliefs stopped working

By Jana Riess | Religion News Service | January 6, 2021, 3:42 p.m.