Religion news is a beat in its own right. At the same time, religion as a category is not independent or sui generis. It is implicated in politics, society, science, culture, and many other fields of understanding, study, and news. The religion news this week comes from a variety of sources covering it from a variety of […]
Lies, lies, and other religious news. Religion news isn’t all bad. Nor is it all good. This week’s news tends to lean toward the more scandalous, investigative, and questionable side of things with accusations leveled at a top institutional atheist leader, claims that halal slaughter is inhumane, and the “culture of lies” surrounding Donald Trump. So you’ve been warned, […]
Read more "Lies, Lies, and Other Religion News: April 20, 2018"
Religion is a diverse object of study. Some people even argue that religion is not an object of study. At the very least, if there is a thing to the thing of religion, we can agree that it is a varied thing. The religion news round-up this week testifies to that fact. This week’s news includes […]
Read more "Give us news from ALL the religions: April 13, 2018"
It’s not the sort of thing you hear everyday — the government was working with a televangelist to discredit Martin Luther King Jr. It maybe sounds a bit crazy… But if you study religion, you know things can get weird quickly. Or, at least, you think they are weird. The truth is that they are […]
Read more "A Televangelist Plot & The Americanization of Coptic Christianity: April 6, 2018"
The study of religion can take you anywhere. This week’s news goes to show it. Some Christians are boycotting what they see as “satanic ice cream.” Other Christians are shielding potential deportees from being sent back home. Still, others are rallying around Trump or marching in the streets for gun control. Religion is not something […]
Read more "Satanic Ice Cream & Sanctuary Churches: March 30, 2018"
Hipster — a person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural mainstream; can often be seen wearing alternative and ironic clothing, sipping on craft beer, and making plans to move to Austin, TX (a.k.a. Hipsterville U.S.A.). Humor aside, this week’s religion in the news illustrates how religion […]
Religion and power. That’s the theme for our 3rd annual RGSA Conference this weekend at UF. It’s also the theme of religion and the news this week. From the way in which Evangelical Christians and Trump are getting along (or not) to the threat of violence against Muslims as a sign of national identity, these […]
The canonization of Latin American Catholic hero Oscar Romero is a big deal and for those who study religions of Latin America (like we do!) it’s a significant moment to take note of. So too are stories about Hindu nationalism and the rewriting of history (especially for our Religions of Asia students) and Muslims saving octopuses in […]
Read more "Of Muslims, Octopuses, & Latin American Saints – Religion in the News: March 9, 2018"
Hope and despair, death and life. Religion explores, navigates, and brings both to its practitioners, observers, and students. This week’s RELIGION IN THE NEWS testifies to the full range of human experiences and emotions, from the good to the bad to the in-between: CULTURAL DISINtegration (SIGHtings) PRAYER & A PACKING PASTOR (RNS) A SHORT HISTORY OF TECH […]
Read more "Hope & Despair, Death & Life – Religion in the News: March 2, 2018"
The graduate program in the Department of Religion at the University of Florida (#UFReligion) is designed to prepare students for careers in academia, public service, non-governmental organizations, and various forms of advocacy work in the popular and public sphere. Our desire to connect our academic study of religion to the real world is helped along […]
This week’s Religion in the News not only looks back on the week that was in “religion news,” but also to the entire year. Recently, religion reporters voted on the Top Religion News Stories of 2017. Many of these stories were featured in our Religion in the News feature posted each Friday on UF Religion’s RELIGION […]