Jason Boyett

If this whole inauguration is part of God's plan, as I've been told repeatedly, maybe Someone with authority could postpone the snow and cold weather for a day?

But the organizations responding to victims include atheist groups, Jewish groups, the Salvation Army, the Episcopal Diocese and the Catholic Archdiocese. These moments of crisis remind me that we are at our best when our collective humanity transcends traditions and beliefs.

The devastating wildfires in L.A. have destroyed a Catholic parish, a synagogue, a mosque, and at least seven Protestant churches. Fire doesn't care who you worship or how. [Photo by Jessica Christian on Unsplash] +

Return of the Kung Fu Nuns, Discoveries in Biblical Archaeology, and Nonbelievers in Congress Religion links for 1.3.25

Read more about them here: religiverse.substack.com/p/kung-fu-nu...

The order itself is pretty impressive. It prioritizes women's empowerment and gender equality within a patriarchal monastic system. And some of the nuns wield swords and machetes. +

For these nuns, the kung fu methods are a form of meditation as well as a form of physical activity and self-defense. “We train very intensely, and hope to encourage other people to be confident and strong,” the nuns proclaim. +

Today's Religiverse newsletter starts with the Kung Fu Nuns of Nepal's Druk Amitabha Monastery, which just reopened after a 5-year closure due to the pandemic. +

I answered Jimmy Carter, of course, and asked my dad if he was voting for Carter, too.

"Absolutely not," he said.

And that was the first time politics confused me.

Jimmy Carter was the first president I remember as a kid. I even remember when he ran for reelection in 1980 and my Southern Baptist dad asked me, a 7 year-old, who I would vote for if I could: Carter or Reagan?

Over the next few days, a lot of people are going to be singing, "truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His gospel is peace" while supporting policies that are very much not aligned with that law and that gospel.

And given the rapid expansion of atheist, agnostic and unaffiliated voters, expect non-religious Americans to gain more and more influence on national politics.

Only one in 10 young adults 18 to 29 identify as white evangelicals, even if their parents still are. Look for these shifting alignments and demographics to influence the rhetoric, policy priorities and messaging strategies for both parties in the years to come. +

Non-religious voters, New Jersey's Hindu temple, and reunited Druze sisters in Israel Religion links for 12.20.24

As a voting bloc, white Protestants are currently very powerful, of course, but rapidly declining in numbers. White evangelical Protestants represented 33 percent of the U.S. population in 1999. Today, they only number 21 percent of Americans. +

From my latest newsletter: Over the next generation, it’s increasingly clear that religion—or a lack of religion—will become a significant political dividing line. Non-religious Americans lean liberal, are growing quickly in numbers and may soon become a dominant Democratic constituency. +

I'm as calloused as anyone against the oddities of religious beliefs, but then you get a headline like "Following prolonged wait, the blood of St. Januarius liquefies again"

Syria's Christians, Farewell to Catholic "Blue Bloods," and Stars Who Became Buddhist Religion links for 12.17.24

Was Abu Mohammad al-Jolani’s only goal to get rid of a shared enemy in Assad, or will Syria move toward becoming a strict Islamic country? Those questions remain, and today's Religiverse newsletter explores them.

Neither do they necessarily believe the Islamic rebels currently rolling down the streets of their village who are promising them safety. +

Syria's Christians are living in uncertainty. Bashar Assad gave some up to ISIS for persecution while protecting other Christian communities. As a result, these believers—most of whom align with Eastern Orthodox traditions—learned not to trust the country’s leaders. +

Hegseth's threat to chaplain diversity, Brigham Young's Jewish QB, and the generosity of atheists Interfaith and religion updates for 12.13.24

That's the question at the heart of my latest Religiverse newsletter. religiverse.substack.com/p/trump-hegs...

But what happens when that religious diversity meets up with President-elect Trump's Defense Secretary nominee, Pete Hegseth—who has expressed a militant Christianity and disdain for other religions?

The U.S. Navy’s 874 chaplains include 101 Southern Baptists, 46 Catholics, and 18 Mormons (Latter-day Saints), along with 12 Jewish chaplains, 9 Eastern Orthodox chaplains, 4 Muslim chaplains and 1 Buddhist chaplain.

Words carry emotional weight. The words we use (and the words journalists or editors choose) can reveal perspective before you even get to the story itself.

Manifesto is to Essay as
Scheme is to Plan as
Mob is to Group as
Manipulate is to Influence as
Stubborn is to Determined as
Exploit is to Utilize as
Obstruct is to Intervene.

One 800-year-old skull belonging to Thomas Aquinas is touring the United States. But a church in Italy claims to also have the skull of Aquinas.

Today's Religiverse examines the Roman Catholic veneration of relics, plus other major religion stories.

religiverse.substack.com/p/the-twin-s...

The Religiverse with Jason Boyett | Substack This newsletter from author Jason Boyett offers fresh, curated links to the world's most important news about religion, faith and spirituality. It's like an interfaith version of the Drudge Report. Cl...

religiverse.substack.com

Coming up in tomorrow's Religiverse newsletter: the competing twin skulls of Thomas Aquinas (one is on tour!), AI Jesus hears confessions in Switzerland, and a Haitian gang leader slaughters Vodou practitioners to avenge his son's death.

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Multi-faith unity against assisted dying, and young men drawn to Orthodox Christianity Interfaith and religion updates for 12.6.24

That story plus a lot of other interesting religious news items:

"The bill, obviously, has been controversial throughout the process, but has brought rare unity to Protestant Christians, Catholics, Coptic Orthodox Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs and Jains." +

Latest from The Religiverse:

"According to the legislation, mentally competent adults who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness—and a prognosis of six months or less to live—can choose to end their lives. +

Churches, faith groups join forces in Britain against ‘deceptive’ assisted suicide bill OXFORD, England (OSV News) — Churches and faith groups across the United Kingdom have condemned a bill to allow physician-assisted suicide and stepped up efforts to block its Nov. 29 approval by parli...

Writing about this in tomorrow's Religiverse, but the breadth of faith leaders teaming up to oppose the assisted dying bill in the UK is astounding: Protestants, Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jains, Sikh, even Zoroastrians.