The conflict between the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Karekin II, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has intensified, with an opposition now also forming within the church, consisting of young parish priests, believers, and several hierarchs eager to reform the church, reports Harutyun G. Harutyunyan (State University of Yerevan, Armenia) in an […]
The return of Alawite celebrations in public life in Syria suggests that the adherents of this syncretistic Islamic sect are gaining new confidence in their identity since the fall of the Bashar al-Asad regime, even as persecution has intensified, according to the Public Orthodoxy website (January 7). Fadi Abu-Deeb reports that this year many Alawites […]
Although ultra-Orthodox Jews have traditionally been anti-Zionist, the younger generation has embraced Israel as well as a more ethno-nationalist brand of the faith, writes Martin Francisco Saps in Arc Magazine (December 17), which covers religion and politics. The official Haredi—or ultra-Orthodox—stance toward Israel has been that it was established without God’s approval and the coming […]
Italian Muslims are taking a unique and more activist path compared to Islam in other European countries, alarming populist and conservative groups and political leaders, but also carrying tendencies that may avoid the confrontations and tensions experienced in other parts of Europe. Writing in the European Conservative magazine (December 10), Javier Villamor reports that “In […]
Young Catholics in the UK are increasingly taking up distinctive practices and gravitating to parishes that cater to these conservative youth subcultures, according to the study After Secularization. The study, published by the Catholic Truth Society and conducted by Stephen Bullivant, Hannah Vaughan-Spruce, and Bernadette Durcan, is based on a 2019 survey of British Roman […]
Secularization, immigration, conversions, and a young generation’s hunger for spiritual meaning are transforming the religious landscape of Norway and making a new place for Roman Catholicism in that country, reports Pierre Jova in the French Catholic weekly La Vie (December 10). While Catholicism remains a minority faith in this traditionally Lutheran nation of 5.5 million, […]
Contemporary Christian music continues to flourish in the U.S. while broadening its reach and forming a growing partnership with country music through social media, the Wall Street Journal (November 9) reports. Elias Leight writes that Christian music’s new wave can be seen in artists like Forrest Frank, whose songs pair hip hop inflected beats “with […]
Growing interest in Christianity in the UK, with some (disputed) indications of growing church attendance and involvement, is being tied to far-right activism in the country, according to reports. The Church Times (November 26) reports that church leaders are cautioning their members not to let their faiths be converted into political extremism. At a recent […]
Orthodox Jewish women in Israel are increasingly taking up the roles of rabbis, with some help from a new ruling in Israel, writes Michal Raucher in the online magazine The Conversation (November 20). Raucher adds that in today’s Orthodox world, “a rabbi could be a teacher, a nonprofit executive for a Jewish organization or a […]
Many faith-based charities that have long partnered with the government have experienced setbacks to the point where they will not be likely to return to their former missions and levels of activity, according to leaders of religious social services during a recent New York conference attended by RW. The conference, sponsored by Religion News Service […]
