A study of faith-based social services in the strongly secularized Czech Republic reveals a growing dilemma that these groups face, needing the identity and resources provided by sponsoring churches while not wanting to alienate a predominantly unchurched and secular clientele. The study, conducted by Andrea Beláňová of the Czech Academy of Sciences and published in […]
While evangelicals have long been among the staunchest defenders of Israel, the greater hostility they have been facing in American society in recent years may make such support a liability for Israel during its war with Hamas, writes Aaron Renn in his self-titled Substack newsletter (November 16). Renn has been the foremost proponent of the […]
After the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas and the subsequent war, Islam is finding a new and unexpected following of admirers and potential converts on both the right and left, according to two reports. The Free Press (November 18) reports that, influenced by the war in the Middle East, non-Arab, left-leaning Western women […]
The new attention being given to psychedelic substances in medicine and psychology has also found a hearing in mainline and unconventional religions, not least among the elusive yet expanding population of the non-affiliated or “nones.” The online magazine, The Conversation (October 31), reports that while abandoning mainstream religious affiliation, many nones turn to alternative expressions, […]
The war in neighboring Ukraine is giving a new impetus to the competition between Russian and Romanian Orthodox Churches in Moldova, with some clergy leaving the first to join the second, reports the Nachrichtendienst Östliche Kirchen (November 16). Due to historical circumstances, the autonomous Moldovan Orthodox Church finds itself under the Russian Church and is […]
Producers of halal food could make higher profits by finding more non-Muslim customers, but marketing efforts remain limited despite promising developments, writes Heba Hashem in Salaam Gateway (November 6), a platform on the global Islamic economy. Several Muslim experts are convinced that halal food could expand into the mainstream food industry by appealing to people’s […]
While the Worldwide Church of God no longer exists after the schisms and scandals this new religious movement experienced in the 1980s and ’90s, its offshoots continue to preserve important features of the movement and show some growth, writes J. Gordon Melton in the Journal of CESNUR (September/October), published by the Center on New Religions […]
A growing number of Haredi men are volunteering for the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) following the outbreak of the war against Hamas, which might signal that the “modern Haredi” phenomenon is developing into a real movement, writes Eliyahu Berkovits of the Ultra-Orthodox in Israel Program on the website of the Israel Democracy Institute (October 26). […]
The second-largest national Orthodox church with 25 million members, autocephalous since 1885 and under its own Patriarch since 1925, the Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC) has played an important role in Romanian society and national identity, and has managed to preserve a high level of social acceptance throughout regime changes over the past century, writes Mihai-D. […]
Boko Haram, known for its Islamic jihadist terrorism in Nigeria, has slowly evolved from an organization under siege by the government to one estranged from its Muslim rivals and now actively targeting fellow Muslims with violence, writes Abubakar Abubakar Usman of the Asia Middle East Centre for Research and Dialogue (Malaysia). Writing in the journal […]
