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Religion News

2023-03-09T13:28:45-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Q: Why do Southern Baptists and like-minded Protestants bar women pastors?

Last updated on: March 9, 2023 at 1:28 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Why? Simple. Because they believe that’s what the Bible teaches. But other conservative evangelical groups see female clergy as biblically proper, for example the Assemblies of God, Evangelical Covenant Church, Free Methodist Church and Salvation Army, along with many independent congregations. The question is timely because the June 13-14 annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, America’s largest Protestant denomination, will be a landmark on this. The gathering will decide whether to expel any congregation with... Read more

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"Mainline" Protestant

2023-03-07T14:10:10-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Is Gambling Evil?

Last updated on: March 7, 2023 at 2:10 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE QUESTION: Is gambling evil? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Analysts anticipate a record high cash haul from the Super Bowl with the explosion in legalized online sports betting. The big weekend produced several interesting articles about the pros and cons, the inroads and innovations, of America’s gambling industry. The Wall Street Journal’s Barton Swaim mulled religious aspects under the arresting headline “Would Jesus Bet on the Super Bowl?” He said that for Jews and Christians the Bible is “less than... Read more

Family, Parenting and Religion

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2023-02-04T10:44:35-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Why do images of the Prophet Muhammad so deeply offend Muslims?

Last updated on: February 4, 2023 at 10:44 am By Richard Ostling

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THE QUESTION: Why do images of the Prophet Muhammad so deeply offend Muslims? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: This issue has erupted unexpectedly at Methodist-related Hamline University in Minnesota. Last October, adjunct art teacher Erika Lopez Prater showed an online class two medieval paintings in which pious Muslims had portrayed the Prophet Muhammad receiving Quran revelations from the angel Gabriel. Lopez Prater warned Muslim students in advance so they could avert thir eyes. Nonetheless, the president of the Muslim Students Association... Read more

Muslim

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2023-01-23T17:58:21-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

How should worn-out Bibles or Qurans be disposed of?

Last updated on: January 23, 2023 at 5:58 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE QUESTION: How should worn-out Bibles or Qurans be disposed of? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Due to occasional news about Muslim riots when a copy of the Quran is believed to be mistreated, you’re probably aware that Islam takes very seriously the way its sacred book is handled, about which more below. But The Guy has rarely if ever heard of such discussion about a printed Bible and therefore was intrigued this past week when Joe Carter (a GetReligion alumnus)... Read more

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2023-01-06T12:54:01-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Why do 21st Century Christians favor, or oppose, same-sex marriage?

Last updated on: January 6, 2023 at 12:54 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE QUESTION: Why do 21st Century Christians favor, or oppose, same-sex marriage? THE GUY’S ANSWER: Just before Christmas, a top Trump-loving conservative on New York City talk radio professed disbelief that some Americans persist in opposing same-sex marriage because of some book (unnamed) written ages ago. So The Guy again realizes that journalism has important work to do explaining the basics on Christian thinking, both con and pro. The teaching against gay and lesbian relationships stood essentially unquestioned for 2,000... Read more

General Christian

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2022-12-26T08:38:53-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What are America’s biggest local Protestant churches?

Last updated on: December 26, 2022 at 8:38 am By Richard Ostling

THE QUESTION: What are America’s biggest local Protestant churches? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Through American history, Catholic parishes tended to have large memberships while local Protestant congregations were relatively small, with a few prominent exceptions. But beginning in the 1970s, the U.S. has entered a remarkable era with by now at least 1,750 Protestant “megachurches,” typically defined by average (pre-Covid) weekend attendance of 2,000 or more. These flocks often say they’re simply “Christian,” but The Guy insists the “Protestant” label... Read more

General Christian

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2022-12-08T13:57:06-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What’s signified by shepherds and wise men worshipping the newborn Jesus?

Last updated on: December 8, 2022 at 1:57 pm By Richard Ostling

THE QUESTION: What’s signified by shepherds and wise men worshipping the newborn Jesus? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: The world’s most-read and most-recited narratives are quite likely the two independent and contrasting accounts of Jesus’ birth that begin the biblical Gospels of Matthew and Luke. A particularly striking difference is that Matthew has a Jewish flavor yet features Gentile “wise men from the East” of high status and Luke, aimed at a Gentile audience, tells us of humble Jewish shepherds. Intriguingly,... Read more

General Christian

History and Religion

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2022-11-26T16:48:18-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Unending Debate: Should Christians Baptize Babies?

Last updated on: November 26, 2022 at 4:48 pm By Richard Ostling

THE QUESTION: Unending Debate: Should Christians Baptize Babies? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Yes or no, depending what church is answering the question. A quote posted in August by Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary says this “debate over baptism has raged in the church for millennia” and “all sides argue passionately for their view.” Jesus’ evangelism command to his followers in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19) directed water baptism for church membership as observed in all types of Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant groups... Read more

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2022-11-12T19:47:13-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Why Do Catholics Pray for the Dead?

Last updated on: November 12, 2022 at 7:47 pm By Richard Ostling

THE QUESTION: “Why Do Catholics Pray for the Dead?” THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: A Catholic News Agency feature for All Saints’ Day with the above headline was written by senior Rome Correspondent Hannah Brockhaus. One of The Guy’s colleagues immediately critiqued that wording because Eastern Orthodox Christians likewise pray for the dead, although in a different mode from Catholics, as we’ll see. Perhaps the appropriate question should instead be: Why don’t Protestants pray for the dead when these other Christians... Read more

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2022-10-28T19:34:57-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What do world religions believe on polygamy, pro and con?

Last updated on: October 28, 2022 at 7:34 pm By Richard Ostling

THE QUESTION: What do world religions believe on polygamy, pro and con? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: With religion, age-old issues such as polygamy vs. monogamy never disappear, and just last week a Jerusalem Post article discussed Jewish practices, which we’ll examine below. First, some terminology: What’s called “polygamy” occurs in two ways. “Polyandry” means one woman with more than one husband, a rare form found among, for instance, some Buddhists in Tibet where the husbands are commonly brothers. The familiar... Read more

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