Religion and Belief

Biden Is an Uneasy Champion on Abortion. Can He Lead the Fight in Post-Roe America?

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s decision to end the constitutional right to an abortion in the United States after nearly 50 years has set in motion a generational struggle over Republican efforts to ban the procedure in states across the country. But inside the West Wing, President Biden has made it clear that he is […]

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Where Mantras Trump Medicine, Vaccines Are a ‘Violation’

KANEKES, Indonesia — When their ancestors warned them, through dreams and a bone-bitingly cold wind, to be careful, the community leaders of the Baduy people in Indonesia knew they needed to protect their villages from something bad that was on its way. So Jaro Nalim, one of the senior leaders in the Baduy hamlet of […]

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12 Members of a Religious Group Charged in Death of 8-Year-Old

MELBOURNE, Australia — The police have charged 12 members of a religious group with murder in connection with the death of Elizabeth Struhs, 8, of Queensland state several months ago. The police say she was denied care over a period of days for an underlying medical condition. After Elizabeth’s death in January, her parents, Jason […]

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Religious Unrest Spreads in India With Killing of Hindu Man

NAINITAL, India — The attackers recorded the gruesome killing on a mobile phone. Then they filmed themselves gloating about the act and threatening the prime minister. The video — of two Muslim men killing a Hindu man on Tuesday in the state of Rajasthan because they said he had insulted the Prophet Muhammad — spread […]

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How a Religious Sect Landed Google in a Lawsuit

OREGON HOUSE, Calif. — In a tiny town in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, a religious organization called the Fellowship of Friends has established an elaborate, 1,200-acre compound full of art and ornate architecture. More than 200 miles away from the Fellowship’s base in Oregon House, Calif., the religious sect, which believes a higher […]

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Israel Plans Zip Line for Ancient Jerusalem

JERUSALEM — A picturesque ridge in Jerusalem, steeped in ancient history, is a favorite with visitors who come to snap panoramic photographs of the domes and spires of the Old City across a wooded valley below. Many believe that the ridge is the site of the Hill of Evil Counsel, where, according to Christian tradition, […]

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Ukraine War Divides Orthodox Faithful

In a small parish in northern Italy affiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church, the mostly Ukrainian worshipers — IT specialists, migrant factory laborers, nurses and cleaners — decided to repudiate the full-throated support for the war in Ukraine from Patriarch Kirill of Moscow. The Moscow Patriarch had repeatedly bestowed blessings on the Russian military, giving […]

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Pope Francis Meets With Canadian Indigenous Leaders Seeking Apology

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Monday held his first Vatican meeting with Indigenous groups from Canada who were seeking his apology over the Roman Catholic Church’s involvement in a system of boarding schools that abused Indigenous children for over 100 years. The meeting, with two of Canada’s three largest Indigenous groups, suggests that the […]

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