(RNS) — American congregations have grown less healthy in the last decade, with fewer people in the pews and aging memberships, according to a new Hartford Seminary study. But there are also “pockets of vitality,” including an increase in minority…

(RNS) — Is Catholic opposition to the death penalty losing traction as opposition to abortion, gay marriage, contraception and other causes become the defining “pro-life” issues for the American hierarchy? That’s what some Catholics are asking after the bishops’ Pro-Life…

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (RNS) — A federal judge jolted the national immigration debate on Sept. 28 by approving most parts of Alabama’s aggressive immigration law that religious leaders had called the “meanest” in the nation. In a ruling hailed by many…

Concordia Publishing House is offering a variety of resources that are designed to help congregations learn more about the Reformation and celebrate the special observance on Oct. 31. Among Reformation resources are the following new books, released this year: Luther:…

Yesterday, Oct. 5, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments in one of the most important church-state First Amendment cases in decades. “Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission,” concerns an LCMS congregation and…

Mark D. Hofman of St. Louis will begin serving Oct. 31 as the Synod’s executive director of fund development. Hofman currently serves as director, special projects, and senior gift officer for Concordia Seminary, St. Louis — a position he has…

The Lutheran Women’s Missionary League and its partner, Artesian Ministries, have produced an eight-lesson, DVD-based Bible study series titled “Your Strong Suit.” Written by Artesian Ministries author Donna Pyle, the new Bible study was videotaped this spring before a live…

LOS ANGELES (RNS) — A group of Muslim students who were convicted Sept. 23 of disrupting a speech by the Israeli ambassador plan to appeal as Muslim community leaders call the high-profile free speech case a civil rights moment. The…

GRANDVILLE, Mich. (RNS) — Megachurch pastor Rob Bell, whose best-selling book raised evangelical eyebrows by questioning traditional beliefs on hell, knew it was time to address the “giant, glowing, loud” elephant in the room on the morning of Sept. 25.…

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — A new report by the Irish branch of Amnesty International says the sexual abuse of children by Ireland’s Roman Catholic priests “included acts that amounted to torture and inhuman and degrading treatment.” The 430-page report, released…

BAY MINETTE, Ala. (RNS) — An alternative sentencing plan that would give inmates the choice between time in jail or a year in church will be delayed for several weeks while lawyers review it to make sure there are no…

LONDON (RNS) — British Christians are incensed after the state-funded BBC decided to jettison the terms B.C. and A.D. in favor of B.C.E. and C.E. in historical date references. The broadcaster has directed that the traditional B.C. (BeforeChrist) and A.D.…

JERUSALEM (RNS) — Five of the Dead Sea Scrolls that have been stored for decades in a climate-controlled exhibit at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem are now available in digital form to anyone with an Internet connection. A website (http://dss.collections.imj.org.il)…

WASHINGTON (RNS) — Amid a political climate dominated by economic concerns, social conservatives are as concerned as ever about issues like abortion and gay marriage, a leading conservative activist said Sept. 27. Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council…

The United States Supreme Court will hear one of the most important church-state First Amendment cases in many years at 10 a.m., Oct. 5. The case involves an LCMS congregation and school and an LCMS commissioned minister who taught at…