Deepa Bharath

The new pope is just what the Catholic Church needs to unify the global church and elevate the profile of Black Catholics whose history and contributions have long been overlooked. 

Mawphlang is one of more than 125 sacred forests in Meghalaya. These forests are ancient, virgin woodlands that have been protected by Indigenous communities for many centuries. Today, climate change, pollution and deforestation threaten these spaces. They have also been affected by the Indigenous population's conversion to Christianity.

Sacred forests and groves are primeval woodlands that different faith communities around the world have safeguarded for centuries as abodes of the spiritual or the divine.

One of the last remaining salt patches in Hawaii has been under constant threat due to development, pollution from a neighboring airfield, sand erosion from vehicle traffic and littering by visitors to the adjacent beach. In addition, climate change threatens to obliterate the cultural and spiritual practice of salt making, with rising sea levels and modified weather patterns.

Mauna Kea is a dormant 14,000-foot shield volcano. In Native Hawaiian lore, it is the first-born son of the sky father and earth mother. The mountain's dry atmosphere and limited light pollution make for a perfect location to study the skies — one of just a handful on the planet.

Joseph Stewart, in a publicly released letter to the head of the order, contends the Jesuits have failed to uphold their side of the partnership with the urgency the circumstances demand. 

Kamala Khan is the Marvel Cinematic Universe's first Muslim superhero to headline her own television show, "Ms. Marvel," on Disney+.

The Southern Baptist Convention voted overwhelmingly June 14 to create a way to track pastors and other church workers credibly accused of sex abuse and launch a new task force to oversee further reforms in the nation's largest Protestant denomination.

Wynn Bruce, a 50-year-old climate activist and Buddhist from Boulder, Colorado, set himself on fire in front of the U.S. Supreme Court last week, prompting a national conversation about his motivation.