Religion News Service

Signs of the Times: On the plane returning to Rome from Romania, Pope Francis made an extraordinary statement on the role of theology in ecumenical relations at his press conference June 2.

The Field Hospital: The U.S. Treasury has walked back on a redesign plan, but Hope Central Church moves ahead, stamping all $20 bills from its offering plates with Tubman's face — a "worthy replacement," says the pastor.

After years of advocating by community and faith organizations, the city of Los Angeles is officially requiring an oil and gas company to close and clean up a neighborhood drill site.

Southern Baptists hope to take steps at their upcoming annual meeting in Birmingham, Alabama, to address continuing reports of sexual abuse in their denomination.

After her unexpected death at age 37 at the beginning of May, Rachel Held Evans' loved ones gathered June 1 to remember her in a funeral service.

Much ink has been spilled describing the priest in the BBC/Amazon Studios series "Fleabag" as cool. The hard-drinking, foulmouthed priest joined the show’s second season as a foil for Fleabag, the main character.

In the past few decades, Brazil has experienced an unexpected Jewish resurgence fueled by the descendants of Portuguese and Spanish Jews forced to convert to Christianity in colonial times.

The 20-plus candidates running for the Democratic presidential nomination are rightly focusing on the inequitable distribution of income and wealth in the United States. Not only are CEOs receiving salaries that dwarf their underlings', the rich (whether through inheritance or earnings) now control a disproportionate share of wealth.

Marquette University students are part of a growing movement of tech sector professionals, religious leaders and Silicon Valley workers wrestling with profound questions about whether future technologies will be used for good or evil.

Catholics are moving away from President Trump. In the latest Quinnipiac poll, 55% of Catholics say they will definitely not vote for Trump in 2020, as opposed to 32% who say they definitely will vote for him.

Signs of the Times: In an article in The Atlantic's June issue titled "Abolish the Priesthood," James Carroll provides thought-provoking analysis of the state of the Catholic Church, recounting the history of the sex abuse crisis in the church with special focus on Boston, Ireland, the Pennsylvania grand jury report and Theodore McCarrick.

Signs of the Times: The House of Representatives passed the Equality Act, which would strengthen bans on discrimination against LGBTQ persons by adding "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" to the definition of "sex" in federal civil rights laws. The measure got the support of NETWORK, a social justice lobby led by Catholic nuns, but was opposed by the U.S. Catholic bishops.

Shopping at Walmart a few years ago, David Morgan saw a statuette of Santa Claus praying on one knee before a cross and knew he had to have it.

The Roman Catholic Church might not have dreamed up this marketing campaign on its own: a sexy, heavily swearing and equally heavily drinking priest who struggles to resist the charms of a highly promiscuous Londoner.

Felicia Sanders told her story while sitting in a theater at Museum of the Bible, where a new documentary about the Mother Emanuel shootings was screened May 14. Hers was one of many accounts told in person, on the screen and in a roundtable interview with reporters before the film showed to a crowd that included members of the media and those directly affected by the shooting.

The research highlights concrete solutions for combating anti-Muslim hate, explained Dalia Mogahed, director of research for the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, which surveys faith communities regarding Islamophobia in the U.S. "It's pretty clear. Make Muslim friends, learn about Islam, and work toward less bigotry in general."

Signs of the Times: Some Democrats in Congress who now make the rules in the House of Representatives have proposed dropping "so help me God" from the oath recited before someone testifies before a legislative committee.

Commentary: It's hard to imagine Joe Biden brushing off white Catholics at a time when two iconic institutions in their lives — the church and the factory — have been brought low by very different forces.

Signs of the Times: The new norms dealing with cover-ups are a good first step, but in civil society as in the church, good laws are not enough. Enforcement is also necessary if children are to be protected and survivors of abuse are to have justice.