Religion

In Trial, Movement To Ordain Mormon Women Approaches Defining Moment

4:51pm June 23, 2014

by Dan Bammes

Activists are now asking Mormon church leaders to reconsider a policy that allows only men to be ordained. One Mormon woman has just been expelled from the church for her activism.

Zain Lodhia plays an original song at a Mawlid, a birthday celebration for the Prophet Muhammad. The event was sponsored by the Webb Foundation, a so-called "Third Space" Muslim faith community outside the traditional mosque.

Religion

'Unmosqued' Examines Muslim Variant Of Unchurched Youth

11:00am May 23, 2014

by Monique Parsons

A new documentary making the rounds on college campuses is striking a chord with young Muslims. It depicts them drifting away from Islam and argues that mosques are to blame.

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Pastor Jimmy Scroggins (right) tells other Southern Baptist leaders to be compassionate to gay people during a leadership summit in April.

Southern Baptist Leaders Seek Softer Approach To Homosexuality

6:29pm May 17, 2014

by Blake Farmer

Though the denomination still considers homosexuality a sin, some leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention are telling pastors to rein in harsh rhetoric and accept that gay people are in their pews.

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UN Committee Grills Vatican Officials On Sex Abuse

11:05am May 07, 2014

by Sylvia Poggioli

The Vatican has faced two days of grilling before the U.N. Committee on Torture investigating the Catholic Church's handling of cases of sexual abuse by priests.

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Why People Exaggerate Religious Behavior

7:54am April 10, 2014

by Shankar Vedantam

Social scientists have learned you can't always believe what people tell you. An analysis of 3 places in the Muslim world examines whether peoples' reports of religious behavior match what they do.

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Finn Schwarz, president of the Jewish Congregation in Copenhagen, and Benyones Essabar of Danish Halal discuss the new slaughter rule on Danish TV.

Banning Traditional Animal Slaughter, Denmark Stokes Religous Ire

6:48pm April 09, 2014

by Sidsel Overgaard

The country's move to require animals to be stunned before being killed is seen by some as an affront to religious methods of slaughter. But now Jews and Muslims are working together to protest it.

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In her memoir Living With a Wild God, Barbara Ehrenreich describes the mystical visions she had as a teenager.

A Nonbeliever Tries To Make Sense Of The Visions She Had As A Teen

2:35pm April 08, 2014

Barbara Ehrenreich — a rationalist, atheist and scientist by training — has written a new memoir called Living With a Wild God: A Nonbeliever's Search for the Truth about Everything.

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"If Jesus had not been declared God by his followers, his followers would've remained a sect within Judaism, a small Jewish sect," says historian Bart Ehrman.

If Jesus Never Called Himself God, How Did He Become One?

6:26am April 08, 2014

In How Jesus Became God, Bart Ehrman explores how a Jewish preacher from Galilee was transformed into a deity. "Jesus himself didn't call himself God and didn't consider himself God," Ehrman says.

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Dr. Kamal Kalsi had to apply for special permission from the Department of Defense in order to keep his beard and turban while serving in the military.

Uniform Rule May Keep Religious Americans From Military Service

1:23pm March 19, 2014

by NPR Staff

Observant Sikhs need to get an exemption in order to keep maintain long hair and beards. One service member who is Sikh says the application process has a chilling effect on those who want to serve.

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Tiny Italian Town Thumbs Its Nose At Lenten Abstinence

5:53pm March 16, 2014

by Christopher Livesay

The town of Poggio Mirteto celebrates its independence from papal rule with a Freedom Festival. But the hamlet is still religious, and some residents wish the revelers would just go away.

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