Most American Muslims may condemn violence, but their organizations are actively supporting, or look favorably upon, creating a Muslim state in the U.S., writes Daniel Pipes in Commentary magazine (November). Pipes, a Middle Eastern specialist, writes that an ambition to create an Islamic America has taken root among a growing number of Muslim groups and educated believers. […]

The Sept. 11 tragedy has been described as nothing short of  apocalyptic, but some scholars view the term less figuratively in describing the motives of Osama bin Laden and terrorists associated with him. At the recent meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR) in Columbus, Ohio, Catherine Wessinger of Loyola University said […]

Protestant male clergy are falling below middle class status, a trend bringing new models of the ministry to the surface, writes Matthew J. Price in the Christian Century (Aug. 15-22) magazine. Until fairly recently, clergymen belonged to the middle class in income along with other professionals who came out of graduate schools. But in the past 20 […]

The growing acceptance of Menachem Schneerson as a messiah , even a divine being, among Lubavitch Hasidic Jews is having a deep impact on Judaism the world over, writes David Berger in Commentary magazine (September). Belief in Schneerson as messiah has grown from a minority position to one embraced by a “substantial majority” of Lubavitchers, or Chabad, […]

Canada, as well as many other Western nations, is experiencing a mushrooming of churches using and drawing unchurched through the Alpha program, a Christian basics class. The evangelical Faith Today magazine (September/October) reports that Alpha, started by charismatic Anglicans in Britain, has spread so widely in Canada that three-quarters of the churches using Alpha are not Anglican. […]

Recent reports on denominational decline and growth in countries as disparate as England, Egypt and Canada all cite the common factor of busting or booming Sunday school ministries. Touchstone magazine (September) reports that the steep decline in the fortunes of the United Church of Canada are more dramatic when examining the loss of Sunday school students […]

Stephen Prothero of Boston University even sees the state of Buddhism in the U.S. changing in the aftermath of the terrorist attack. Like other pop icons in American culture (such as the David Letterman show), the “cool” and ironic style of Buddhism in the U.S. is  losing its currency and persuasive power in the face of […]

It is still too early to discern the shape of a peace movement in response to the terrorist attacks, but mainline Protestant and Catholic groups are already in the forefront of protests against American use of force and retaliation in the conflict, according to reports. The National Catholic Reporter  (Sept. 21) reports that faith-based peace groups showed […]

The sense of biblical judgment and even prophesy  have also been revived by the terrorist attacks. The Washington Times (Sept. 21) reports that other Christian leaders and commentators beside Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson have seen the events of Sept. 11th as much a judgment on American sins as a symptom of world unrest and unfolding prophetic events […]

Interest in spirituality and religious observance have been on the upturn since the attacks, and religion has found a new place in the public square, but for how long? Time magazine (Oct. 8) reports that churches, synagogues and mosques were packed the weekend after Sept. 11. Sixty percent of all Americans attended some kind of memorial, […]