Weekly religion news roundup (March 21-April 3, 2025)
Photograph by Utsav Srestha via Unsplash
Rev. Dr. Anna Piela
UN agency closes its remaining Gaza bakeries as food supplies dwindle under Israeli blockade. The U.N. food agency is closing all of its bakeries in the Gaza Strip, officials said Tuesday, as supplies dwindle after Israel sealed off the territory from all imports nearly a month ago. (Associated Press)
Miami’s Haitian community gathers in prayer as crises escalate in homeland and US. For a community caught in the crossfire of growing violence in their island homeland and disappearing humanitarian protections in the U.S., clinging to faith in God is one of the few lifelines left. (Associated Press)
Abortion fight won, conservative Christians mimic Dobbs tactics to go after same-sex marriage. A multistate effort is spitting out legislation and lawsuits aimed at testing the Supreme Court justices’ commitment to Obergefell v. Hodges. (RNS)
Earthquake compounds Myanmar's humanitarian crisis as the death toll passes 2,000. Some 700 Muslim worshipers attending Friday prayers were killed when mosques collapsed, said a member of the steering committee of the Spring Revolution Myanmar Muslim Network. (RNS)
Texas Senate passes Ten Commandments bill. Unwilling to be outdone by its neighbor to the East, the Texas Senate has passed a bill that would require the Ten Commandments be posted in all public school classrooms. (Baptist News Global)
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.
Authoritarian rule is ‘common denominator’ in religious persecution, USCIRF says.
Authoritarian rule is the “common denominator” in the worsening of religious persecution around the world, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said in its 2025 annual report. (Baptist News Global)
No, the UK isn't forcing school pupils to study Islam. Viral social media posts are claiming that the UK is forcing children aged nine to 16 to study Islam as one of its main subjects. (Yahoo News)
‘House of David’ renewed as faith-based series enjoy success. “House of David,” Amazon’s new dramatic series about the biblical figure who became the most celebrated king of Israel, is being renewed for a second season. It comes after the series garnered 22 million views in its first 17 days, according to media reports. (News Nation)
What it’s really like at a ‘White Lotus’-style Buddhist temple. The latest season of the hit HBO series “The White Lotus” takes place in Thailand in a luxury resort where a group of wealthy tourists are exploring Buddhism and its ancient traditions. (News Nation)
Supreme Court appears to back tax exemption for Catholic charities. The Wisconsin Catholic Charities case has implications for other religiously connected nonprofits, including hospitals, and for state unemployment systems. (Washington Post; paywalled)
Canadian Evangelicals Brace for Trade War. A lot of Canadians feel betrayed by their country’s closest ally. And Trump’s tariffs—which could go into effect on April 2, a day Trump has dubbed “liberation day”—will likely hurt people in the church. (Christianity Today)
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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