Saudi officials say more than 1.5 million foreign pilgrims have arrived in the country by Tuesday, the vast majority by air, from across the world. More are expected, and hundreds of thousands of Saudis and others living in Saudi Arabia will also join them when the pilgrimage officially begins on Friday. (Magdy, AP News)
Read MoreAn array of conservatives, including antiabortion activists, church leaders and conservative state legislators, has openly embraced the idea that American democracy needs to be grounded in Christian values and guarded against the rise of secular culture. (Dias & Lerer, The New York Times)
Read MoreEvangelical radio host Tony Evans has resigned as senior pastor at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, Texas because of an unnamed "sin." The decision for church's founder to step down was made after "tremendous prayer and multiple meetings" with Evans and church elders, Evans wrote in a statement posted Sunday on the church's website. While he said he has "committed no crime," he "did not use righteous judgement in my actions." (Robledo, USA Today)
Read MorePope Francis on Tuesday reiterated his opposition to gay priests, allegedly repeating a highly pejorative slur in an encounter with clerics just two weeks after the Vatican issued an apology amid reports that he had used the same word in an earlier meeting with bishops. (Faiola & Pitrelli, The Washington Post)
Read MoreOne of the biggest predictors of how much time kids spend on screens — and whether that use is problematic — is how much parents themselves use their screens when they are around their kids. (Godoy, NPR)
Read MoreOne in 5 US Protestant pastors (21%) say they see nothing wrong with two people of the same gender getting married, according to a Lifeway Research study. Three in 4 (75%) are opposed, including 69 percent who strongly disagree with same-sex marriage. Another 4 percent say they aren’t sure. (Earls, Lifeway Research/Christianity Today)
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