Religion News Service

"As there's ashes on our head, there's also blood on our hands because we cannot exempt ourselves from what this country is doing," said the Rev. Graylan Hagler, pastor emeritus of Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ.

A new documentary about the Virgin of Guadalupe — the vision of Mary, the mother of Jesus, seen by a 16th-century Mexican peasant — premiered Tuesday (Feb. 13) at an event in Los Angeles attended by the city’s archbishop.

Fasting is an act of penance for what we in the rich world have done, and it is a prayer for help in avoiding catastrophe.

"Their lives are so much more complicated and distracting than mine was," Br. Larry Schatz, vocation director for the Christian Brothers Midwest province, said of young men discerning religious life. 

The Catholic partisan divide provides an opportunity for the church to model proper civic behavior, writes Jesuit Fr. Thomas Reese.

God sending Jonah to Nineveh would be like telling a modern-day rabbi to preach in Iran or Gaza, says Jesuit Fr. Thomas Reese.

Rome's move to allow LGBTQ couples to be blessed has been misunderstood by many, and misrepresented by others.

America's religiously unaffiliated, or "nones," are largely defined by what they are not, rather than what they are. So as they've multiplied, it's perhaps unsurprising that they've also been shrouded in myths and misconceptions.

Francis did the right thing in allowing priests to call God's blessing down on couples who are trying to love in the best way they know how. That may be different in the West than it is in Africa.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced a $1 million grant to leaders of the Church of God in Christ as part of a national program to plant and maintain trees in American cities. Vilsack said 'structuring this program so that it's empowering more tree planting and more workforce development gives us the opportunity to partner with the church.'

The Indigenous population sees lithium extraction as a disruption of their ancient relationship with the mountains that surround their homes, which they hold as sacred.

The American temptation is to rush the process. We tend to focus on what we individually want to say rather than patiently listening to the Spirit as expressed by others.

Instead of forcing Congress to do nothing, a conclave would force members of Congress to do their job.

Over two decades since DreamWorks' widely acclaimed 1998 animated movie "The Prince of Egypt" wooed religious and nonreligious viewers alike, a live-action staged version debuted on streaming platforms in December.

Through the power of friendship, prayer and cheerful determination, Richard Parks and his neighbors faced down a major oil company to shutter a nearly 60-year-old drill site in the middle of the neighborhood. Now they hope to build a community park and affordable housing in its place.

"There are too many hurting people frightened today," writes Phyllis Zagano. "Can we not quietly and with respect focus on their needs and discard the noise and disrespect that fuels the wars large and small?" 

The coming of Christ tells us our God is loving and merciful, but also challenging. He comforts but also gives us a mission: "Comfort, give comfort to my people," says the Lord.

Majority Latino congregations report growth and stability in attendance and, on average, have younger participants, a sharp contrast to the declining attendance and aging congregations in most churches in the United States.

The case for removing Cardinal Raymond Burke, a Vatican official, is simple. The case for firing Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland is more complicated. Removing a diocesan bishop should remain a rare exception. 

Christians who share the vision of Pope Francis and William Wilberforce should oppose the EATS Act as a diabolical end-run around laws that attempt to respect God's created order.