The closer ties between evangelicals and Catholics in the U.S. and Canada on theological and social issues is also taking root in Britain, according to the Catholic magazine The Tablet (Jan. 29). Elaine Storkey writes that the old posture of  separatism between Catholics and evangelicals in Britain of 20 years ago has given way to a new mood […]

American Sikhs are becoming increasingly involved in political life, according to the Los Angeles Times (March 21). The paper  reports that the new Sikh participation, termed a “political coming out,” includes “contributing to political campaigns as never before, with an estimated $7.7 million in donations to federal candidates in the last three elections,” the rising number of Indian […]

The traditional desirability of having a church, even a storefront congregation, next door in many Southern towns is no longer the case as this region undergoes an economic rebound and many downtown areas are being revitalized, reports the Wall Street Journal (March 15). These “sanctuaries, once considered beyond anyone’s reproach in the Bible Belt, are now targets […]

The growth of parachurch institutions and other networks outside of denominations and the new influence of women in churches will have significant effects in religious giving. A recent roundtable panel on the present and future of religious giving, particularly among evangelicals, highlighted these and other trends, according to leadExplorer (March 13), an online newsletter of Leadership Network. […]

The Catholic Church in the U.S. has significantly improved its ministry to priests with AIDS and the rate of new cases of the disease may be on the decline, writes Jon Fuller in the Jesuit magazine America (March 18). A late January report that American Catholic priests are dying with AIDS at a higher rate than that […]

The use of Eastern religious themes and terminology in marketing cosmetics and other beauty products is growing in American culture, although observers are not sure how much the trend  has to do with religion. Beliefnet.com (March 24) reports that companies such as Cover Girl and the Body Shop “have given Far Eastern civ a makeover, using some […]

One of the reasons Buddhism may have difficulty spreading beyond upper- and middle class white Americans is the high economic cost of Buddhist spiritual practice, writes Joe Parker in Turning Wheel (Spring), the magazine of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. In Asian countries, most Buddhist practices, such as meditation retreats, are offered free to practitioners. In the U.S. […]