WASHINGTON (RNS) — A city court on Oct. 11 dropped charges against a group of religious and civic leaders who were arrested in July during a prayer vigil for the poor in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. The vigil, held at the…

LEDYARD, N.Y. (RNS) — A conservative Christian group is behind a new YouTube video that features a town clerk explaining why she believes she should not have to comply with a state law and issue same-sex marriage licenses. Ledyard Town Clerk…

LANSING, Mich. (RNS) – There’s a difference between a boisterous protest near a veteran’s funeral and an anti-war bumper sticker on a car parked near a funeral home — but not in the eyes of Michigan state law. A state Senate…

(RNS) — Future British kings and queens would be permitted to marry Catholics for the first time in more than three centuries under reforms proposed by British Prime Minister David Cameron. Writing to his fellow heads of government in the British…

(RNS) — Religion may not only save your soul, according to a new book, but could also have a real impact on your financial well-being. New research from “Faith and Money: How Religion Contributes to Wealth and Poverty” suggests that mainline…

(RNS) — Tithing to mainline Protestant churches as a percentage of income is at its lowest level in at least 41 years, according to a new report, and churches are keeping a greater share of those donations for their own…

OAKTOWN, Ind. (RNS) — Eleven-year-old Sarai Camacho of Donna, Texas, tears up when she tells why her mother let go the baby sitter for her and her younger sister this summer. It’s the same reason her father brought the family…

(RNS) — President Obama formally extended his ear to evangelicals ahead of the 2012 election, meeting with top leaders of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) in the White House for about 30 minutes on Oct. 12. International religious freedom was…

Concordia University Texas, Austin, Texas, and the Lutheran Educational Conference of North America (LECNA) are co-sponsoring a “Symposium on Legacy and Leadership” Oct. 21 from 9 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. The “Wendish Heritage Week” event — which also will be…

Concordia Theological Seminary’s Good Shepherd Institute will take an in-depth look at marriage and weddings at its Nov. 6-8 conference, “What God Has Joined Together: The Theology and Practice of Christian Marriage in Rite and Song.” “This conference is the…

The LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) met Sept. 15-19 in El Paso, Texas — first for its regular quarterly meeting and then for an expanded “Consultation on Immigration Issues.”   At the consultation, the CTCR heard presentations from…

“Family Shield,” a weekly Christian radio program produced by Family Shield Ministries, St. Louis, expanded in September to 49 stations in 25 states.  The program was previously carried on four stations and Internet/satellite sites. The 15-year-old program — formerly an…

WASHINGTON (RNS) — The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear a case involving three employees who were fired by the Christian humanitarian agency World Vision, allowing the relief group to maintain its mandatory statement of faith for its workers. World Vision…

WASHINGTON (RNS) — The Washington National Cathedral will need “tens of millions of dollars” over “numerous years” to repair extensive damage to the nation’s second-largest church following an Aug. 23 earthquake, church officials said Oct. 4. The landmark church requires…

(RNS) — Radical American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki may be dead, but the power of the Internet means he won’t soon be forgotten. And that, experts say, could make him just as dangerous dead as he was alive. Counterterrorism experts say…