Tags: Religion

The United Methodist Church has lost 20% of U.S. congregations in schism over LGBTQ rules

More than 6,180 United Methodist congregations in the U.S. have been granted permission to leave the denomination in a schism that began in 2019 over the role of LGBTQ Methodists in the church and other theological issues, according to an unofficial tally kept by UM News. The bulk of the departures, 4,172, were approved in June, in…

Should taxpayers fund religious schools?

A school board in Oklahoma recently voted to approve public funding for a Catholic virtual charter school run by local dioceses. When it opens next year, St. Isidore of Seville Virtual Catholic Charter School, named after the patron saint of the internet, will be the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school. Its approval has…

Southern Baptists expel Saddleback, 2nd church over female pastors, approve further clampdown

Delegates to the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual conference voted overwhelmingly this week to confirm the expulsion of Saddleback Church in California, previously the second-largest Southern Baptist church, and Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, for having female pastors. After the results of Tuesday’s votes were announced on Wednesday, the delegates enshrined the ban on…