Mark A. Kellner

Waco showdown turns 30, focus of two miniseries

The tragic events at the Branch Davidian religious compound near Waco, Texas, will return to national consciousness next week when the 30th anniversary of the fiery conclusion of a 51-day siege is marked on Wednesday.

April 14, 2023

Ancient Bible fragment found, confirming Old Syriac version of New Testament gospels

Scholars have discovered a 1,750-year-old portion of the Gospel of Matthew in a "layered" manuscript where the original Old Syriac-language writing had been erased and written over, something also known as a "palimpsest," the Austrian Academy of Sciences announced.

April 13, 2023

Protestant evangelicals gain share among traditionally Catholic American Hispanics, Pew says

The Catholic Church's hold on the U.S. Hispanic community has declined markedly over the past decade, down from two-thirds of American Latinos in 2010 to just 43% today, according to a new analysis released Thursday.

April 13, 2023

Walter Reed, under pressure from Congress, says move to push Franciscans out under review

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center said Wednesday its decision to hire a secular firm to replace the Franciscan priests who oversee pastoral care in the Bethesda, Maryland, facility is under review.

April 12, 2023

Walter Reed reviewing disputed Catholic chaplaincy contract, medical center says

Officials at the Defense Health Agency may be looking for a way out of a Catholic chaplaincy services contract for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center that has drawn fire from eleven Congressional Republicans.

April 11, 2023

CAIR says Muslim bias complaints return to pre-Trump levels

Complaints involving bias against American Muslims fell 23% in 2022, the Council on American-Islamic Relations reported Tuesday, 5,156 versus 6,720 the year before.

April 11, 2023

First-class stamps set to rise 3 cents in July, less than six months after last rate hike

The price of stamps will increase this summer under a plan announced Monday by the U.S. Postal Service, with the cost of mailing a bill or letter rising to 66 cents from the current 63 cents -- less than six months after the last rate hike.

April 10, 2023

Higher Ground: If Jesus on the cross can forgive, so can we

Most Americans are likely to observe Easter. According to a Lifeway Research survey, 66% say they believe in the biblical accounts of the physical resurrection of Jesus as historical fact.

April 9, 2023

‘Please Sorry Thanks’ are keys to social grace and healing, District pastor Batterson says

You'd expect Mark Batterson, lead pastor of the District-based National Community Church, to preach the Christian message, and he does. His congregation will host the annual sunrise service at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday.

April 8, 2023

Americans accept historical reality of the Resurrection of Jesus, but struggle to make it personal

Millions and millions of Americans will commemorate the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday, but many still struggle to connect an event that they affirm as historically true to their daily lives.

April 6, 2023

Passover a time for antisemitic attacks, Jewish security experts warn

Jewish institutions need to be vigilant as this year's eight-day Passover celebration begins Wednesday evening, multiple analysts say, due to rising antisemitic incidents in the United States and elsewhere.

April 5, 2023

New Mexico exempts objecting doctors from aiding in assisted suicides

New Mexico doctors who object to assisting in suicides gained new protections Tuesday when Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, signed a bill that lets medical professionals decline to participate for religious or conscience reasons.

April 5, 2023

Messianic rabbi offers lessons for Christians in Jewish Passover ritual

A Messianic Jewish rabbi says many Christians don't fully understand the connections between the Jewish observance of Passover and the Last Supper of Jesus and the Disciples -- and he aims to illuminate those connections to a broad audience.

April 4, 2023

Muslim inmate files lawsuit claiming Virginia prison won’t accommodate Ramadan observances

A Muslim inmate at the Green Rock Correctional Center in Chatham, Virginia, is suing for what he claims is the prison's denial of accommodations during Ramadan, a monthlong religious observance that calls for fasting from dawn to sunset.

April 3, 2023

Liberty U. gets new president three years after scandal-hit leader resigned

Liberty University, the nation's largest evangelical Christian school, has named a new president nearly three years after Jerry Falwell Jr. resigned amid scandal.

March 31, 2023

Pope Francis, recovering from bronchitis, to leave hospital, attend Holy Week events

Pope Francis, hospitalized with viral bronchitis Wednesday, will be back at the Vatican Saturday and present for Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square, his spokesman said Friday.

March 31, 2023

Minors can’t receive transgender health care as Kentucky legislature overrides governor’s veto

Kentucky's legislature voted Wednesday to override Gov. Andy Beshear's veto of a bill that bans performing transgender medical procedures on minors such as puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries.

March 29, 2023

Pope Francis hospitalized in Rome following chest pains, infection, will remain ‘several days’

Pope Francis, the 86-year-old spiritual leader of the world's 1.3 billion Roman Catholics, was rushed to a hospital in Rome by ambulance Wednesday, and a spokesman said he will spend "several days" there being treated for a pulmonary infection.

March 29, 2023

Maine law blocking religious schools from tuition payments is ‘poison pill,’ church says in lawsuit

Maine is being sued over legislation enacted in 2021 that faith-based educators claim is a "poison pill" for religious schools.

March 28, 2023

More Americans stopped in-person worship than increased attendance during pandemic, Pew says

More Americans say their participation in worship services has declined since the COVID-19 pandemic than say it has increased, according to a new Pew Research study.

March 28, 2023