Back in 1990, about 8 percent of the U.S. population had no religious preference. By 2010, this percentage had more than doubled to 18 percent. That’s a difference of about 25 million people, all of whom have somehow lost their religion. That raises an obvious question: how come? Why are Americans losing their faith? Today, Read more
“You believe in God? Jesus!” The irony was lost on my friend. The only funny thing he’d picked up on was that I could believe in God. I get it. As a leftie, organic pasta, and free-the-gay-whale type, people tend to think I’m atheist. At a stretch, I’m middle class enough to be a casual Buddhist Read more
While New Zealand is becoming less religious overall, there’s greater diversity to the country’s religious make-up, according to the latest census. Most people who consider themselves religious identify as being Christian, however other religions are growing. The three that saw the biggest increase in followers between 2006 and 2013 are Hinduism, Islam and Sikhism. Meanwhile, the Read more
As part of the New Zealand festival last Saturday’s third Embassy session was a public conversation between Diarmaid MacCulloch Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University and the award-winning author of A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years, and Peter Biggs, the chair of the New Zealand Book Council, “Having Faith in 21 Century. In his review Listener columnist Read more
Looking for prayer and penance ideas for this year’s Lenten journey? Or a faithful guide and friendly reminder to practice virtue, do good works and read Scripture? Whatever you’re searching for to help you draw closer to Jesus Christ these 40 days of Lent, there’s an app to help you. “It’s a beautiful thing to Read more
Some people may think that I would be treated badly because I have Down syndrome. My experience has not been this way. God tells everyone to treat people equally, and I think that most people act in this way. I don’t feel as if people make fun of me or make me feel bad just because Read more
In a recent interview in the New Zealand Herald, All Black, Keven Mealamu was asked how big a part faith played in his life. “It’s always with you,” he replied. “I’m Catholic. Go to church whenever I can. When we were on tour in Italy I stopped into a church with a couple of the other boys Read more
Abortion will always be divisive, as it’s highly unlikely that the polarised groups will ever agree. But what many do agree on is the need to keep talking about an issue that just won’t go away. A drunken night out, sex with an ex. It’s not an unusual story. But a few weeks later, Katherine (whose name Read more
This year, some people are celebrating “Thanksgivukkah,” as Thanksgiving is celebrated the day after the first Hanukkah calendars are lit on Wednesday night. The convergence of these two holidays won’t happen again for another 77,798 years, according to some calculations. Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, is celebrated for eight days beginning at sundown on Read more
This week – even as the world mourns the tragic loss of life in the unprecedented Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippine Islands – political leaders have converged on Warsaw, Poland, in yet another anticipated meeting on climate change. Concerned citizens throughout the world are hoping and praying for prompt and practical results. The conference follows Read more