April 24, 2023 By Bob Smietana (RNS) — Religion is often seen as a source of conflict — giving insiders a source of community and support while drawing boundaries against outsiders. A new study suggests religion can also prompt people to be generous to outsiders, even those from groups they distrust. For the study, entitled

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April 12, 2023 By Ryan Burge (RNS) — One of the most fascinating aspects of American religion is the peculiarity of its distribution across the United States. We know that large swaths of New England are dominated by mainline Protestants and white Catholics, while parts of South Florida have large Jewish enclaves, and Utah is

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March 24, 2023 By Ryan Burge (RNS) — When the COVID-19 pandemic led governors across the United States to close places where people congregated, religious organizations were left scrambling. While some larger houses of worship had already been broadcasting their weekend services online, many had to suddenly and urgently master the logistics of streaming worship

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Forget the centuries-old narrative of Christian missionaries being predominantly white and Western. Workers from the Global South are the force behind one of the great transformations of missions in the modern age.

A new wave of research on religious leadership is finding significant numbers of clergy show evidence of struggling with clinical signs of narcissism. Yet there is a powerful countervailing force: Humility.

Social and medical sciences are increasingly finding evidence to support how religion promotes better health, including living longer. This voluminous new wave of research is helping both religious communities and medical professionals to understand the promises and pitfalls of the faith-health connection. The potential for science and religion to work together for the common good holds great promise for improving global health during the coronavirus pandemic and beyond.