Weekly religion news roundup (April 4-10, 2025)
Photograph by Utsav Srestha via Unsplash
Rev. Dr. Anna Piela
Most Americans view Israel unfavorably in new Pew poll. Israel is no longer perceived as David, but as Goliath, the poll suggests. (RNS)
Passover begins soon. For many Jews, the celebrations will occur amid anxieties and divisions. Passover is a major Jewish holiday, celebrated over seven or eight days each year, commemorating the exodus of ancient Israelites from slavery in Egypt, as recounted in the Bible. It is considered the most widely observed of any Jewish holiday, symbolizing freedom and the birth of a Jewish nation. (Associated Press)
Indonesia offers to temporarily shelter wounded and orphaned Palestinians from Gaza. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto says that his country will offer temporary shelter to Palestinian medical evacuees and children orphaned by the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. (US News and World Report)
In a Greek island monastery, a monk has kept together faith and community for 50 years. For more than 50 years, Spyridon Denaxas — or Father Spyridon, as he’s affectionately called — has prayed, worked and welcomed the faithful in a millennium-old monastery carved into a seaside cliff on the Greek island of Amorgos. (Associated Press)
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School will move to Canada in acquisition deal. The Evangelical Free Church long had an outsized role in evangelicalism and helped give birth to such institutions as The Gospel Coalition and Sojourners magazine. But declining enrollment and financial struggles have dogged the school for years. (RNS)
Each Friday in The Christian Citizen, we publish a Religion News Roundup with summaries of religion news stories and links for those who want to read more.
The latest far-right argument: Women are too empathetic to serve on Supreme Court. While still attacking empathy as a sin, the far-right among American conservatives — including some Christian leaders — has a new gripe to air: Women should not be allowed to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. (Baptist News Global)
Trump’s disruptions are ‘necessary for progress,’ Mohler tells The New Yorker.
The disruptions created by President Donald Trump are necessary for “progress to be made toward correction,” Al Mohler told The New Yorker in an interview published April 1. The president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., is one of the most frequent front men for the Southern Baptist Convention. He was a never-Trumper in 2016, then got on board with Trump enthusiastically in 2020 and 2024. (Baptist News Global)
Amish communities quickly repair tornado damage in Michigan and Indiana.
After a tornado struck an Amish community in Michigan, repairs began even before the National Weather Service could assess the damage. (US News and World Report)
Cartoon Jesus to hit theaters: Will moviegoers pay? Angel Studios is coming out with a new movie, just in time for Easter. After shattering box office expectations with their sleeper hit “Sound of Freedom,” despite some controversy, the startup studio is hoping for another one. This time around, the movie’s director brings a new perspective to a story that goes back 2,000 years: the life of Christ. (News Nation)
Nicaragua’s crackdown on the Catholic Church is worsening, exiles and human rights advocates say. Preparations for popular, often daylong Lent and Holy Week processions are underway across Latin America — but not in Nicaragua. They’ve been largely banned for a second year, one of many concerns for the faithful in a country that human rights advocates, exiled priests and the U.S. government say is pursuing one of the world’s most flagrant persecutions of religion. (News Nation)
Rev. Dr. Anna Piela is senior writer at American Baptist Home Mission Societies and assistant editor of The Christian Citizen.
The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of American Baptist Home Mission Societies.
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