The number of Hindu-based schools in India started by nationalists has grown sharply since they have gained power in the nation, reports the Christian Science Monitor (Feb. 16). A growing network of k-12 schools teaching Hindu values and nationhood started by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak (RSS), the religious parent organization of the Hindu nationalist Dangh Parivar movement, has […]

An “unlikely” alliance is being sought by Brazil’s liberation theologians to the charismatic and other spiritual renewal movements, reports Alejandro Bermudez in the National Catholic Register (Jan. 21-27). Since its inception in the 1960s and 1970s, liberation theology, which links salvation to social activism, has often scorned the charismatic movement, claiming it is escapist and too individualistic […]

While mainline churches continue to decline in the Netherlands, evangelical and charismatic and even Catholic churches are showing new growth in this liberal and secular nation. Quadrant (March) the newsletter of the British Christian Research Association, reports that the smaller Protestant denominations, such as the various conservative offshoots of the Dutch Reformed Church, are showing […]

The dramatic downturn felt by secular Internet companies has affected the once-booming Christian dot com world, reports Christianity Today (Feb. 16). Companies, such as iBelieve.com, i.Christian.com and Lightsource.com (which provided Christian audio programs on the web) have crashed, while Crosswalk.com is losing support and revenues. Most of the closings and losses are tied to the same general […]

The appointment of 44 new cardinals by Pope John Paul in February suggests a moderating influence among this body of papal electors as well as new Latin American influence. The liberal National Catholic Reporter (Feb. 9) notes that analysts are puzzled by the selection of such moderates as German Archbishops Karl Lehmann and Walter Kasper. Lehmann in […]

While psychotherapy and Buddhism may appeal to the same people, the effort to merge the two fields into one form of spiritual practice is becoming more common. The Utne Reader (March/April) reports that Buddhist spiritual teachers are now taking their students on as paying clients for psychotherapy, erasing the boundaries between therapy and religion that have already […]

Although mainline Protestants have emphasized inclusiveness and have criticized traditional family initiatives, their churches have attracted fewer non-traditional families than evangelicals who espouse more conservative family views, writes W. Bradford Wilcox in the Christian Century (Feb. 21). Wilcox looks at the articles, sermons and programs of mainline churches and finds that they may speak of the plight […]

Women who are former Catholics have been increasingly moving into the ranks of mainline Protestant clergy, although the journey is difficult and they tend to carry some of their Catholic background and mind-set into their new roles. The influx of ex-Catholic women into the Protestant ministry has been underreported by the press and underresearched by academia, […]