Religion

In this June 19, 2015, file photo, the men of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. lead a crowd of people in prayer outside the Emanuel AME Church, after a memorial service for the nine people killed by Dylann Roof in Charleston, S.C.

5 Years After Charleston Church Massacre, What Have We Learned?

2:04pm June 17, 2020

by Debbie Elliott

In 2015, a white supremacist murdered nine worshippers at a historic African American church in South Carolina. The heinous tragedy prompted a racial reckoning that has lessons for today,

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Five Years After Charleston Church Shooting, America Reckons With Racial Injustice

6:59am June 17, 2020

by Debbie Elliott

It's been five years since a white supremacist murdered nine African Americans at a church in Charleston, S.C. The racial reckoning it prompted holds lessons for today's outcry over police brutality.

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The Rev. Lenny Duncan, here in May 2019, at the Metropolitan New York Synod Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Jesus Was Divisive: A Black Pastor's Message To White Christians

3:08pm June 12, 2020

by Isabella Rosario

Nationwide protests are forcing many Americans to think about race in new ways. A black pastor in one of Christianity's whitest denominations is asking his congregants to take an especially hard look.

DC Pastor On The Role Of Diversity In Places Of Worship

7:23am June 11, 2020

NPR'S Rachel Martin speaks with Pastor Irwyn L. Ince Jr. of the Grace DC Institute for Cross Cultural Mission about the role racially diverse churches could play in fostering social justice.

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Pastor Donte Hickman, seen at Southern Baptist Church in 2015, says he's had some productive conversations with the Trump administration on policy issues.

'Breathe, Pray, Meditate': Born From Resistance, Black Churches Now Leading In Crises

1:30pm June 07, 2020

by Juana Summers

Black America today is facing not just one crisis, but a convergence. African Americans have been hit harder by the virus and job losses. And there's systemic racism and discrimination.

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Sen. Tim Kaine, left, and then-Charlottesville mayor Michael Signer visit a temporary memorial Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2017, where Heather Heyer was killed when a car rammed into a crowd of people protesting a white nationalist rally Charlottesville, Va.

In 'Cry Havoc,' Former Charlottesville Mayor Details A Tragic Day

6:45pm June 06, 2020

by Michel Martin

"The value of having fought for things and standing at the end, having the experience of having fought for them in the real world, there's nothing like it," Michael Signer tells NPR.

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Evangelical Christians traditionally focus on individual sin and salvation. But some are taking a wider view when it comes to addressing systemic racism.

Evangelical Christians Grapple With Racism As Sin

11:45am June 06, 2020

by Tom Gjelten

For many, the Gospel is more about the need for personal salvation than the duty to address societal ills.

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Religion

Why Talking About Systemic Racism Can Be Difficult For Evangelical Pastors

7:07am June 05, 2020

by Tom Gjelten

Evangelical Christians have been traditionally focused on their personal relationship with Jesus. But some are now seeing a need to expand their attention to address the issue of racial justice.

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President Trump asserts "most religious leaders loved" his appearance Monday in front of St. John's Church in Washington. The bishop who oversees the church condemned Trump's photo-op.

Trump Defends 'Law And Order' Symbolism Of Photo-Op At St. John's Church

9:19pm June 03, 2020

by Ayesha Rascoe

"Most religious leaders loved it," the president said in a Fox News Radio interview, defending his visit Monday after protesters were forcibly cleared from the area.

In Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Sister Quincy Howard protests the arrival of President Trump to the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington.

Pope Francis Prays For George Floyd, Decries 'The Sin Of Racism'

1:11pm June 03, 2020

by Bill Chappell

"We cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye to racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim to defend the sacredness of every human life," the pope said.