by Annalisa Musarra | Feb 20, 2012 | News
WASHINGTON (RNS) For the fourth year in a row, President Obama is proposing lower tax deductions for the wealthy on donations to churches and other nonprofit organizations. And for the fourth year in a row, nonprofit groups say the change would lead to a dramatic drop...
by Alessandro Speciale | Feb 20, 2012 | News
VATICAN CITY (RNS) It isn’t anywhere on the official agenda, but as Roman Catholic leaders meet in Rome this weekend, looming in the background will be a recent string of Vatican leaks that reveal a bitter power struggle among the hierarchy. In recent weeks,...
by Roy Hoffman | Feb 17, 2012 | News
FAIRHOPE, Ala. (RNS) For the Rev. Jerry Henry, pastor of First Baptist Church of Fairhope, being Southern Baptist is a defining aspect of life. He embraces the denomination’s conservative social values, extols its evangelism — “We reach out to people...
by Lauren Markoe | Feb 17, 2012 | News
WASHINGTON (RNS) Exhibit A in the fight over President Obama’s mandate for religious institutions to provide insurance coverage for contraception: a ham sandwich. At a hearing Thursday (Feb. 16) convened by House Republicans to cast opposition to the mandate as...
by Omar Sacirbey | Feb 17, 2012 | News
(RNS) FBI officials say they are willing to consider a proposal from a coalition of Muslim and interfaith groups to establish a committee of experts to review materials used in FBI anti-terrorism training. The coalition raised the idea during a Feb 8 meeting with FBI...
by Greg Horton | Feb 17, 2012 | News
One of the primary emphases of the New Baptist Covenant II meeting in Oklahoma was a push for economic reforms related to “payday lending” – industry terminology for the practice of extending short-term, high-interest loans with no credit checks....
