Photo illustration by Christopher Ross/Pixabay/Creative Commons April 19, 2021 By Bob Smietana (RNS) — Going to church is generally touted as good for the soul. But there is also evidence church attendance can be good for your health — unless, that is, you are a woman at a church that bars women from preaching or
Evangelicals’ feeling about porn may well be influencing public policy as mostly red states have increasingly sought to declare pornography a ‘public health crisis.’
A gentle attitude of self-regard may help clergy have greater life satisfaction and be more likely to be inspired and enthusiastic, rather than upset and guilty, about their ministry.
Summertime, and the livin’ seems easy on the glut of network shows featuring young men and women with sculpted bodies celebrating the narcissistic quest to determine who is the most desirable of all. But as we look away from the magic mirror of fantasy answers to the Cinderella question, consider how harmful it can be to the mental health and self-worth of those trying to live up to near-impossible cultural ideals of beauty. New research suggests faith may provide an answer.
Can belief in Hell, envisioned by many as a place of eternal torment, be considered a pathological fear? A study taking a systematic look at Hell anxiety found in general that individual belief in Hell was not in itself connected to any neuroses, and that most people did not display an unhealthy focus on the possibility of eternal damnation. The results suggested belief in hell “is perhaps a rational response to personal theological” beliefs.
The keys to a good night’s sleep include skipping midnight snacks, turning off the computer before bed – and faith. A new wave of research on religion and sleep is finding a close relationship with a caring divinity may help religious individuals enjoy a good night’s rest.
Miscarriage is often a socially taboo topic that can isolate parents in their grief. But some new studies are finding there is one area of life that can have a significant positive effect on the mental health of women dealing with miscarriages: Faith. One major study found that religious participation may increase mental health and be an important coping mechanism for women dealing with pregnancy loss.
America’s religious communities are failing children with chronic health conditions such as autism, learning disabilities, depression and conduct disorders. And they have been doing it for a very long time, suggests a just-published national study following three waves of the National Survey of Children’s Health.
Technology does not scare us. Nor especially does the fear of Hell or worries about getting into heaven. But the fears and suspect motives we place on belief systems different than our own very much concerns Americans, according to the latest wave of the Baylor Religion Survey. For centuries, Catholics and Jewish people bore the
No one factor tells the whole story of why attitudes toward homosexuality vary widely across national borders. But new research is helping to unravel why, despite the fact most world religions have proscriptions against homosexual practices, some nations are much more tolerant than others.
