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  Feds release first guidelines for confronting a church shooter

  For the first time, the federal government has issued written guidelines for houses of worship confronted with a homicidal gunman.

  06/27/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Analysis: Religious conservatives ponder next move

  Twin Supreme Court rulings that further opened the door for same-sex marriage in the United States were not entirely unexpected. The real question is what opponents of same-sex marriage will do now.
  

  06/26/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Hispanic ministers press lawmakers on immigration reform

  With a July 4 deadline looming for an immigration reform vote on Capitol Hill, politicians and clergy at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast pushed lawmakers to reach common ground.

  06/25/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Religious freedom panel lacks real power, activists insist

  Fifteen years after Congress created an independent watchdog panel to oversee global religious freedom, the panel has little power and little influence, activists told lawmakers.

  06/20/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Gay marriage inevitable? Most Americans think so

  Close to three-fours of Americans say legal recognition of same-sex marriage is “inevitable,” according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center.

  06/17/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Faith prompted Emancipation Proclamation, scholar insists

  A “profound spiritual odyssey” prompted Abraham Lincoln’s crafting of the Emancipation Proclamation, one of “the most revolutionary documents ever signed by an American president,” a prominent religious historian told a conference on racial reconciliation.

  05/30/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  After disasters, Americans turn to God & practice generosity

  When natural disasters occur, most Americans take increased interest in God and donate to relief agencies, a recent survey shows.

  05/30/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Analysis: Is religious freedom report failing the faithful?

  The U.S. State Department missed a key opportunity to put teeth into its annual assessment of global religious freedom.

  05/24/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Supreme Court to hear prayer case

  The Supreme Court agreed May 20 to hear a case centering on whether sectarian prayers at the beginning of official government meetings violate the First Amendment—an issue that has roiled local governing and school boards for years.

  05/24/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  TBM command team to Oklahoma, others prepare

  (UPDATED) Texas Baptist Men plans to send a team to Shawnee, Okla., Wednesday to relieve Oklahoma Baptists who had been responding to a previous tornado there.

  05/21/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Analysis: Will Gosnell verdict change abortion debate?

  Fervent prayers by abortion opponents for a game-changing impact from the conviction of rogue abortionist Kermit Gosnell may go unanswered for a variety of reasons.

  05/17/2013 - By John Rutledge

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  Franklin Graham calls IRS probe ‘un-American’

  Evangelist Franklin Graham blasted the Internal Revenue Service probe of conservative nonprofit groups as “un-American,” saying the IRS audited both the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and the relief group Samaritan’s Purse.

  05/17/2013 - By John Rutledge