On this episode of “Interesting Times,” Ross Douthat interviews Vice President JD Vance about the Trump administration’s deportations, the tariff backlash and how Vance’s faith influences his politics (Douthat, The New York Times)
Read MoreAcross 22 countries in six continents, over 200,000 participants for five years, the research attempted to glean just who in the world actually feels content. In short, it’s not the British. (Retter, The Telegraph)
Read MoreThe overall number of regular worshippers across the Church of England’s congregations grew to 1.02 million in 2024, a rise of 1.2 per cent, according to an early snapshot of the annual Statistics for Mission findings. It was the second year in a row in which the Church of England’s “worshipping community” - the combined number of regular members of local congregations – has stood above a million since the Covid-19 pandemic. (The Church of England)
Read More[Churches] are hoping to tap into the power of pickleball to build community and bring a little joy to their neighbors. About 20 million Americans played pickleball in 2024, according to data from the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, and that number continues to grow. (Smietana, Religion News Service)
Read MoreIn early 2023, a change in how green-card applications for foreign-born religious workers are processed upended what had been a quick and predictable process for such workers to obtain permanent residency. The switch created a backlog that has put thousands of clergy at risk of being forced to leave the U.S. and disrupting the faith communities they serve. (Ramirez, USA Today)
Read MoreIn recent years, many U.S. seminaries have faced existential threats fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic and a changing religious landscape. As organized religion continues to fade in popularity among many Gen Z, some seminaries are downsizing, combining and embracing online and hybrid models. They are also evolving, offering different certificate programs or degrees tailored for non-clergy students. (Post, Religion News Service)
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