Friday's News & Ideas - 4/25/2025
- Papal funeral
- Trump looks to Catholic Church
- Settler violence in West Bank
- Nazi ‘silver levy’
- Doubt & science
- Loneliness industry
Pope Francis simplified papal funerals. Not everyone will notice.*
The New York Times: The changes reflect Francis’ view of the pope as a pastor more than a powerful person, but the rites will still be on a grand scale.
The Guardian: Santa Maria Maggiore: Why Pope Francis decided ‘this is my place’ to be buried
Trump, Vance and why their next big prize is the Catholic Church
The I Paper: The US President will be at the Vatican for Pope Francis’s funeral on Saturday, reflecting the growing importance of the Catholic vote to MAGA.
The Christian and Jewish Israelis protecting West Bank Palestinians*
Christianity Today: As settler violence increases in the West Bank, a night-watch group guards Bedouin homes from intruders.
The Nazis extorted Jewish families’ silver. Their descendants gathered in Munich to memorialize them.
Religion News Service: A conference this month brought together descendants of Jewish families who surrendered their silver heirlooms as part of the Nazi party’s ‘silver levy,’ or ‘Silberzwangsabgabe.’
Doubting Thomases in an age of science*
The Christian Century: It takes courage to plunge our hands smack-dab into the side of the universe and reach for a God that could be real.
The Spark
You’ve probably already met your next best friend
The loneliness industry* is trying to solve the wrong problem, The Atlantic says.
*access is limited for nonsubscribers
