Religion
/Health
As the Catholic Church and its insurer fight over paying abuse victims, a new group sparks questions
As the Archdiocese of New York and its insurance company, Chubb, battle over who is responsible for millions in potential payouts to survivors of clergy sexual abuse, a new group has entered the picture.
Announcing its presence in November with a full page ad in The New York Times, the Coalition for Just and Compassionate Compensation, which ...Read more
'Even the largest churches can fall': Will Texas' Gateway Church survive the Robert Morris sex abuse scandal?
FORT WORTH, Texas — Southlake’s Gateway Church is reeling from the shocking child sex abuse allegations against its founder Robert Morris, prompting questions of how one of the country’s largest churches will weather the scandal.
Morris resigned from the church last week after allegations surfaced that he sexually abused a 12-year-old ...Read more
They found religion, decent burgers, and lasting friendships at a North Jersey truck stop
COLUMBIA, N.J. — Somewhere in this random, run-of-the-mill truck stop full of things truckers need, like CB radios and corned beef hash, and stuff no one needs, like dragon sculptures or New Jersey-themed shot glasses, a local tanker driver found something he wasn’t looking for: God.
Mike Eurich was so sure that a higher power touched him ...Read more
St. Louis archdiocese releases long-awaited report on Catholic slaveholding
ST. LOUIS — Louis William DuBourg was just a baby in 1767 when his father, a ship captain and merchant, embarked on a journey from West Africa to the Caribbean with 270 enslaved people aboard. Only 157 of them made it across the Atlantic alive.
The younger DuBourg was also bold. He grew up to be a famous Roman Catholic priest, who, as the ...Read more
More abuse claims surface at Gateway Church protest. They don't involve Robert Morris
On June 15, Amy Smith had the police called on her as she stood outside Gateway Church in Southlake, protesting the sex abuse scandal involving the church’s founder and then-senior Pastor Robert Morris.
A week later — with Morris no longer the pastor after confessing to molesting a girl in Oklahoma starting when she was 12 years old in the ...Read more
'I'm so sorry.' Gateway Church holds first services since founding pastor's resignation
Southlake’s Gateway church conducted its first weekend of services since Robert Morris, the founder and senior pastor resigned after confessing to molesting a child in the 1980s, starting when the girl was 12.
The megachurch’s main Southlake campus was full on Saturday night and there were protesters outside; Sunday was a different story.
...Read more
Woman sues Catholic order in Delaware for child sex abuse on Maryland Eastern Shore
BALTIMORE — A woman is suing the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, a Catholic order based in Delaware, for sexual abuse she says she suffered as a young girl at the hands of a priest on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
Joyce Harper, 74, who now lives in Florida, alleges in a lawsuit filed Wednesday that Oblate priest George Mahoney, who has since ...Read more
Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert among comedians to meet Pope Francis at the Vatican
Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert were among the many comedians from around the world who visited the Vatican on Friday morning at the behest of Pope Francis.
More than 100 humorists hailing from 15 countries were invited to meet the pontiff for a meeting organized to “establish a link” between the entertainers and the ...Read more
As Pope makes G-7 debut, a spat unfolds over LGBTQ rights
Pope Francis made his debut at the Group of Seven summit, landing in a white helicopter and rolling into a room of world leaders to deliver a warning about artificial intelligence being “fascinating and terrible.”
Anticipation of the leader of the Catholic church had already infused an air of religiosity into a gathering that is typically ...Read more
As Pope makes G-7 debut, abortion vanishes from communique
Pope Francis landed in a white helicopter on Friday at the annual Group of Seven summit — the first ever pontiff to attend such an event.
Anticipation of the leader of the Catholic church had already infused an air of religiosity into a gathering that is typically concerned with geopolitics. Behind the scenes, Italy was ruffling feathers by ...Read more
Catholic Diocese of San Diego will seek bankruptcy protection from hundreds of sex-abuse claims
SAN DIEGO — The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego announced Thursday that it plans to return to U.S. bankruptcy court to help manage its response to hundreds of lawsuits filed by people who say they were sexually assaulted by Catholic priests when they were young.
It is the second time San Diego church officials have gone to bankruptcy ...Read more
Victims group says 5 credibly accused priests are missing from Twin Cities archdiocese public list
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Five former priests who have been deemed “credibly accused” abusers by church officials and who previously worked in Minnesota aren’t listed on the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ public list, clergy abuse victims said Wednesday.
That needs to change, said organizers with the Survivor Network of those Abused...Read more
Southern Baptists reject constitutional ban on women in pastoral roles
A day after the Southern Baptist Convention expelled a Virginia church for affirming women in pastoral roles, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination voted down a resolution to add an amendment banning the roles in its constitution.
The amendment failed to meet the two-thirds threshold necessary for adoption, a vote that surprised many ...Read more
Southern Baptists reject constitutional ban on women in pastoral roles
ATLANTA — A day after the Southern Baptist Convention expelled a Virginia church for affirming women in pastoral roles, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination voted down a resolution to add an amendment banning the pastoral roles in its constitution.
The amendment failed to meet the the 2/3 threshold necessary for adoption, a vote ...Read more
Pence to address Southern Baptists in Indianapolis; Trump to speak virtually
Former President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence will both address groups gathered in Indianapolis during the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting next week.
Trump, who is seeking a second term, will virtually address attendees on Monday during a “Life and Liberty Forum” free event and luncheon presented by the ...Read more
Southern Baptists expected to reaffirm ban of women in pastoral roles
ATLANTA — Southern Baptists attending the denomination’s annual meeting in Indianapolis next week will consider a variety of resolutions, such as affirming support for Israel, reproductive technologies, religious liberty and integrity in leadership.
The nation’s largest Protestant denomination will also elect a new president from a field ...Read more
Religion and politics create the sharpest divides over LGBTQ+ Americans, poll shows
There's a clear divide in how Americans view the influence of LGBTQ+ people in society.
Three out of four Democrats who said LGBTQ+ people have had an impact on the U.S. see that as positive, according to a nationwide poll conducted for The Times by NORC at the University of Chicago.
Nearly the same share of Republicans, 77%, said the ...Read more
Religion and politics create the sharpest divides over LGBTQ+ Americans, poll shows
There's a clear divide in how Americans view the influence of LGBTQ+ people in society.
Three out of four Democrats who said LGBTQ+ people have had an impact on the U.S. see that as positive, according to a nationwide poll conducted for The Times by NORC at the University of Chicago.
Nearly the same share of Republicans, 77%, said the ...Read more
Sex abuse claim deadline passes with hundreds filing in Archdiocese of Baltimore bankruptcy
BALTIMORE — Hundreds of people who were sexually abused as children by employees of the Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore filed in the church’s bankruptcy case ahead of Friday’s deadline for claims, but the exact figure remains unclear.
“Right now there are over 700, but the claims that were uploaded on Friday are still being counted,�...Read more
New York Mayor Eric Adams defends pope after use of gay slur but catches flack for his remarks
NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams defended the Pope following the pontiff’s use of a derogatory term for gay people, saying Wednesday that the leader of the Catholic Church, like him, is a target of the “word police.”
Adams' backing came after reports emerged that Pope Francis used an offensive Italian slang word in a closed door meeting last...Read more
Popular Stories
- They found religion, decent burgers, and lasting friendships at a North Jersey truck stop
- As the Catholic Church and its insurer fight over paying abuse victims, a new group sparks questions
- 'Even the largest churches can fall': Will Texas' Gateway Church survive the Robert Morris sex abuse scandal?
- St. Louis archdiocese releases long-awaited report on Catholic slaveholding
- United Methodists strike decades long ban on ordination of LGBTQ clergy