Latest Religion News
San Diego synagogue shooter avoids death penalty with plea
SAN DIEGO (AP) — A 22-year-old former nursing student pleaded guilty to the murder of one person and the attempted murders of 53 others in connection with a 2019 deadly shooting at a Southern California synagogue on the last day of Passover, effectively ending the possibility of facing the...
Former Delaware pastor found liable for child sexual abuse
DOVER, Del. (AP) — A woman who said her father, a former pastor of a Delaware church, sexually abused her as a child and trafficked her to other men, was awarded $1.5 million by a federal jury on Friday. Alicia Cohen, 41, said in her civil lawsuit that Ronald Cohen...
Access, travel rules influence missionary vaccine policies
COVID-19 vaccine refusal rates may be high among white evangelical Christians, but the International Mission Board — which deploys thousands of missionaries — is not hesitant about the shot. The global agency of the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest...
Maine files claim against teenagers over racist graffiti
BANGOR, Maine (AP) — Maine's attorney general said Friday he has filed a complaint under the Maine Civil Right Acts against a pair of Bangor teenagers who are accused of spray-painting racial threats on the vehicle of a local man. Attorney General Aaron Frey said the...
Many faith leaders say no to endorsing vaccine exemptions
As significant numbers of Americans seek religious exemptions from COVID-19 vaccine mandates, many faith leaders are saying: Not with our endorsement. Leaders of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America said Thursday that while some people may have medical reasons for...
Former Liberian military leader liable for church massacre
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A former Liberian military commander who supervised the slaughter of hundreds of unarmed civilians at a church during that country's civil war in 1990 is liable under U.S. law for participating in extrajudicial killings and torture, a federal judge in Philadelphia has...
Colombian teen draws, donates bird guide to raise awareness
Jacobo Rendon, 14, began setting out in March 2020 with his ornithologist mother on a mission to spot, count and record the birds they saw in their Colombian town of El Carmen de Viboral. Working with binoculars and a borrowed camera, they figured it could make for a nice science fair entry....
Justice Department reviewing policies on transgender inmates
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is reviewing its policies on housing transgender inmates in the federal prison system after protections for transgender prisoners were rolled back in the Trump administration, The Associated Press has learned. The federal Bureau...
Clarence Thomas criticizes judges for veering into politics
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Thursday criticized some in the judiciary for veering into the role of legislators and politicians, saying it is not the role of judges to make policy or to base decisions on their personal feelings or religious beliefs. ...
NY governor vows to fight lawsuit over vaccine mandate
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul vowed this week to fight a lawsuit launched by a group of Christian health care practitioners who argue that New York’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for many health care workers is unconstitutional because it lacks a religious exemption. ...
