Religion News Service

Signs of the Times: The time is already past to admit that the coronavirus pandemic in the United States is a moral crisis, not simply a public health and economic crisis. 

As Californians once again reckon with their statues of Serra, the founder of what would become 21 missions along the California coast, Native people and Indigenous scholars say it's time for their voices to be heard and their existence to be recognized.

Signs of the Times: Going our own way, with total disregard for the desires and interests of other countries, we eschew multilateralism, whether in trade negotiations or dealing with climate change.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia has temporarily shut down the Dakota Access pipeline for the latest twist in what activists and religious leaders have called a " spiritual battle."

Signs of the Times: Religious conservatives bet all their credibility on the Republican Party and President Donald Trump, who promised to appoint judges who would roll back the expansion of gay rights. This has been a costly bet that has alienated millions of young people from Christianity.

President Donald Trump has renewed outreach efforts to conservative Christians this week, targeting his most dedicated supporters in the wake of lagging poll numbers.

With COVID-19 restrictions preventing an intended in-person rally in Washington D.C., at least a million supporters of the Poor People's Campaign reportedly tuned in June 20 to watch a mix of live speeches and pre-recorded clips of liberal religious leaders calling for a "moral revolution" and the enactment of a sweeping policy agenda focused on the poor.

A conservative Catholic publication has sparked backlash after it released a video on June 11 referring to the African American archbishop of Washington as an "accused homosexual," a "Marxist" and an "African Queen."

Signs of the Times: In the streets of Washington, D.C., we have seen religion used as a political prop and we have seen it exercise its prophetic voice.

George Floyd was killed after employees at a convenience store owned by a Palestinian American Muslim called Minneapolis police over a suspected counterfeit $20 bill.

Informal evangelical Christian advisers to President Donald Trump have long championed religious freedom as a key issue that should be embraced by the administration, often arguing passionately against government infringement on religious activities.

Is Martin Gugino an Antifa provocateur? Or a beloved Catholic peace activist who was the victim of police brutality in Buffalo, New York?

For the Gwich'in Nation, the more-than-three-decade fight to defend the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge from oil development has prompted a spiritual and cultural renaissance in Alaska's rural villages.

I wish I could publish a blank column today. As a 75-year-old white guy, it is hard to know what to say in response to racism and police violence toward black men and women.

Across the country, the clergy took different approaches in their protesting.Some preferred to express solidarity from afar — from their pulpits or social media accounts. Others organized their own faith-based demonstrations. A few activist-minded believers decided to, as they described it, " use their privilege " to put their bodies on the line in confrontations with police. 

On June 1, President Donald Trump stood before the historic St. John's Episcopal Church in downtown Washington, D.C., and held aloft a Bible for cameras. Authorities had expelled at least one Episcopal priest and a seminarian from the church's patio.

America is experiencing a health crisis, but the pandemic has also spotlighted the moral crisis that afflicts our country. Until we care for all God's children, we will continue to be a nation that is sick in its soul.

On May 21, we celebrate the Ascension, the day Jesus left the Earth. I think a lot of us would like to have him back. But Jesus did leave and gave us the Spirit. Was that a fair trade?

The expansion of Communion services will contribute to declericalization of the church. It will also allow parishioners to see how well or badly laypeople can preside at liturgical ceremonies.

The Poor People's Campaign, a grassroots group with branches in more than 40 states, is urging resistance to or noncooperation with state plans calling for the reopening of the economy just weeks after the coronavirus put most of the country on lockdown.