In reviewing the state of evangelicalism in Canada in the last two decades, theologian John Stackhouse finds patterns of both stability and change, especially the emergence of fundamentalism. Writing in the Evangelical Studies Bulletin (Summer), Stackhouse notes that evangelicals still represent about 10 percent of the Canadian population since two decades ago, while the percentage […]

Judging by the October issue of Charisma magazine, prayer and politics are being increasingly joined for many charismatic Christians as they enter the election season. The issue is devoted to the topic of praying for America, but it is noteworthy how prayer is linked with political concerns relating to the 2012 elections. While publisher Stephen […]

Buddhist, Muslim and Christian groups are finding new ways to overcome government restrictions and obstacles as they expand in urban China, according to scholars speaking at a session of the August meeting of the Association for the Sociology of Religion (ASR) in Denver, which RW attended. A paper by Yuting Wang of the American University […]

Singapore’s recent adoption of liberal causes—from stem cell research to gay rights and gambling—is leading to conflict with its increasingly influential Christian community, although it is unlikely to lead to American-style culture wars, writes Peter T. C. Chang in the journal Religion, State and Society (June). Since the early 1990s, Singapore’s one-party government has been […]

In contrast with the commercialization of many Buddhist temples in Thailand, those attracting monks born in the Western world tend on average to retain traditional forms of Buddhist monastic life, reports journalist Max Constant in Asie Info (June 24). He contrasts the strict discipline respected by residents of the International Forest Monastery (Wat Pah Nanachat) […]

Formerly known as Kofuku-no-Kagaku or the Institute for Research in Human Happiness, and now operating under the name of Happy Science, a Japanese new religion has been making inroads in Uganda. Thousands of believers are reported in the country and 10,000 gathered in June in the national stadium in Kampala to hear lectures by the […]

Recently, SoonBokUm (True Evangelical) church in Korea, also known as Yoido Full Gospel Church, which has the world’s largest congregational membership of 750,000, is facing the most serious challenge since its founding in 1958. Twenty-six elders of the megachurch filed a complaint against its founder, Cho Yong Gi (known as Paul Yongi Cho in the West), […]

Due to the numerical decline of the Reformed population in Switzerland, ministers celebrate fewer baptisms or weddings; nevertheless, there will not be enough young seminarians ready for the ministry in Swiss Reformed Churches when the next wave of retirements arrive, reports the Swiss daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung (July 14–15). The Reformed faith used to be […]