Latest Christianity News

New temple to serve 34,000 Latter-day Saints in Virginia

Mar. 25, 2023 09:02 AM EDT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Central Virginia members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints now have a local temple to practice their faith with the opening of the Richmond Virginia Temple in Glen Allen, the first in the commonwealth. “For a family like ours with young kids,...

Southern Baptists oust Saddleback Church over woman pastor

Feb. 22, 2023 08:55 AM EST

The Southern Baptist Convention on Tuesday ousted its second-largest congregation — Saddleback Church, the renowned California megachurch founded by pastor and best-selling author Rick Warren — for having a woman pastor. The vote by the convention's Executive Committee culminates...

Mormon church fined $5M for obscuring size of portfolio

Feb. 21, 2023 18:52 PM EST

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its investment arm have been fined $5 million for using shell companies to obscure the size of the portfolio under church control, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Tuesday. The faith,...

Fond remembrances for Jimmy Carter after entering hospice

Feb. 19, 2023 17:29 PM EST

ATLANTA (AP) — Dozens of well-wishers made the pilgrimage Sunday to The Carter Center in Atlanta, as prayers and memories of former President Jimmy Carter's legacy were offered up at his small Baptist church in Plains, Georgia, a day after he entered hospice care. Among those...

Suspects sought in arson fires at LDS church in Nevada

Feb. 16, 2023 16:48 PM EST

ELKO, Nev. (AP) — Police in rural northeast Nevada are looking for an arson suspect or suspects in connection with a break-in at a Mormon church in Elko where two fires were intentionally set over the weekend. An organ and piano were set on fire inside the chapel and a stove was...

Ethiopia church split resolved amid social media suspension

Feb. 16, 2023 10:42 AM EST

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Leaders of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church have agreed to resolve their differences peacefully after weeks of deadly confrontations between rival followers of the synod and security forces that have left at least 10 people dead. The church, whose followers form...

Super Bowl ads will tout Jesus 'gets us' to the masses

Feb. 09, 2023 09:04 AM EST

The religiously wary, the spiritually curious — and anyone inclined to appeal to a higher power on game day — are the target audience for a Super Bowl ad campaign with a simple message: Jesus loves them. A group that includes wealthy Christian boosters is using the biggest...

Bulgarians celebrate Epiphany with traditional rituals

Jan. 06, 2023 05:08 AM EST

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Thousands of young men are plunging into rivers and lakes across Bulgaria to retrieve crucifixes, in an old ritual marking the feast of Epiphany. By tradition, a crucifix is cast into the waters of a lake or river, and it is believed that the person who...

Tribe asks to take over former boarding school in Kansas

Jan. 04, 2023 14:29 PM EST

FAIRWAY, Kan. (AP) — The Shawnee Tribe is asking to take over ownership of a historical site in Kansas that might contain unmarked graves of Native American students. The tribe released an architectural survey Tuesday that found the three buildings remaining at the Shawnee Indian...

'Not just the ramp.' Worship spaces need more accessibility

Dec. 29, 2022 10:12 AM EST

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) — Jerry Lamb could not maneuver his wheelchair into the rows of pews at his church. It wouldn’t fit. Nor could he sit in the aisles without awkwardly blocking the way. So he adapted. It’s a regular part of his new life with limited mobility that...