CHICAGO -- When 101 people were laid to rest at Chicago's Mount Olivet Cemetery last Wednesday afternoon, no family or friends were there to mourn them. Yet they were certainly not alone.

As cold sunshine flooded the cemetery, around 20 Catholic high school students stood sentinel in their uniforms by the wooden caskets, holding yellow roses ...Read more

New Birth Missionary Baptist Church was awash in pink Sunday morning, a stark contrast to the reds and blues that have dominated the 2024 presidential campaign.

It was Pink Sunday to bring attention to breast cancer. But the distinctly feminine shade also seemed a fitting backdrop for the day’s guest: Kamala Harris, who, if she is elected ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Clergy sex abuse scandals have rocked Catholic churches across the world, but few places have seen the financial toll of the Los Angeles Archdiocese.

With a record $880 million settlement with victims announced this week, the Los Angeles Archdiocese has now paid out more than $1.5 billion.

The bill reflects its rank as the ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — In what could be the closing chapter in a landmark legal battle, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to pay $880 million to victims of clergy sexual abuse dating back decades in the largest settlement involving the Catholic Church.

Attorneys for 1,353 people who allege that they suffered horrific abuse at the hands of ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Somewhere between 900 and 1,000 people have filed claims in the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s bankruptcy case, alleging they were sexually abused as children by people in the Catholic Church’s employ, an attorney said in court.

Edwin Caldie, a lawyer for a committee of abuse survivors tasked with representing the interests of all...Read more

For many who grew up in predominantly Black church congregations, the importance of public involvement was intertwined with historical and theological teachings.

“Part of the importance to me about civic engagement was absolutely passed down as a young person,” said Valerie Cooper, associate professor of Black church studies at Duke ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A former Catholic priest with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles has pleaded no contest to possession of child pornography and several related special allegations, authorities said.

Rodolfo Martinez-Guevara, 39, who was a member of the archdiocese at the time of the allegations, admitted to possessing over 600 images of child sexual...Read more

BALTIMORE — The Seventh-day Adventist Church is suing Maryland, arguing that its fair employment law prevents religious organizations from being able to hire — and fire — people based on their beliefs, bridging those groups’ constitutional right to religious independence.

The church said in its lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Police departments in the Los Angeles area are ramping up patrols around synagogues during Rosh Hashana this week — though authorities say they have not received any specific reports of threats or planned demonstrations.

The Beverly Hills Police Department has partnered with private security and increased patrols around ...Read more

Americans are split down the middle on their perceptions of the country’s religion, new research finds.

Fifty percent of Americans surveyed say they think the U.S. is a Christian nation and should be based on Christian values, according to a Sept. 24 analysis by Public Religion Research Institute fellows.

The research is based on a national ...Read more