Hindu nationalist themes and plots are finding their way into an increasing number of Indian film productions, reports the New Yorker (October 10). Known as “Bollywood,” the global Indian film industry has long featured more traditional themes in its standard and ornate song and dance productions compared to Hollywood, but lately films critical of Hinduism […]
Women’s religious orders are seeing an increasing number of members from new immigrant groups and in the process are changing their structure and activities, writes Thu Do, a nun and researcher at the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University. Writing in the Jesuit magazine America (October), Do notes that “new members […]
The view that the January 6 riot was largely motivated by “Christian nationalism” and evangelical fervor is belied by new available data coming from the legal cases of those who have been prosecuted in connection with the event, writes Daniel Strand in the American Conservative magazine (August 23). Strand cites the Chicago Project on Security […]
A growing number of psychologists believe that religion and spirituality have tools that can help with today’s mental health crisis, which is leading to an increase in training opportunities to integrate faith and spirituality into psychotherapy, writes Richard Schiffman in the Washington Post (September 23). There have also been a growing number of articles and […]
Vaccine hesitancy may be taking place among only a segment of evangelicals, but is this new conflict with medicine signaling a more confrontational era between evangelical Christianity and science? Those were some of the issues addressed in a session on evangelicals and vaccine hesitancy that RW attended at the August meeting of the Association for […]
Since the decision reversing Roe v. Wade, leaders and participants in the pro-life movement are saying that the time has arrived for a more socially involved phase of the movement. But there are signs that the movement is showing new divisions, as well as disaffection from a key Catholic population group. Writing in the conservative […]
El Salvador is becoming increasingly authoritarian under President Nayib Bukele, as he draws on his multireligious background and connections to enforce an aggressive rightist agenda, writes Amy Fallas on the website Religion and Politics (August 2). In 2019, Bukele won the presidency on an anti-corruption and anti-establishment platform through a wave of popular support. To […]
More Jews are emigrating to Israel from Russia than they are from Ukraine, seeing it as a desperate option to prevent history from repeating itself, reports an article in the online magazine Common Sense (August 9). According to Israel’s Aliyah and Integration Ministry, in the first half of 2022, 11,906 people emigrated from Ukraine to […]
Under the leadership of Saudi strongman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (nicknamed MBS), a discourse on religious moderation has been promoted and various social norms have been relaxed, with conservative Wahhabi clerics left with no choice but to align themselves with these changes. However, the religious reforms appear to be inspired by practical considerations more […]
The assassination of Ayman al-Zawahiri in Afghanistan this summer is unlikely to diminish al-Qaeda’s status as a leader in world jihad, reports The Economist (August 2). The return to power of its Taliban allies a year ago gave al-Qaeda breathing room to communicate with followers, raise funds and organize. The magazine reports that a UN […]
