Friday's News & Ideas - 5/16/2025
- More US Jews recognize Nakba
- University funding freeze
- ‘Sinners’ movie
- Anti-gambling Christians
- NYU withholds diploma
- Defense of despair
As fighting continues in Gaza, more US Jews are recognizing the Nakba
Religion News Service: Nakba commemorations are not yet widespread in the American Jewish community, but they are gaining more attention.
Sojourners: There can be no peace without freedom for Palestinians
What losing billions in federal grants means for universities, and the nation
NPR: In the past four months, the total frozen by the federal government at universities across the U.S. is about $11 billion. The cuts affect things like cancer research, diabetes treatments, new wearable technology, farming solutions and studying domestic violence: research across nearly every discipline and subject.
‘Sinners’ is making Christians uncomfortable. We should dig into why.
Religion News Service: The real reason many Black Christians reject the movie “Sinners” is that they’ve adopted the beliefs of their oppressors, not orthodoxy.
Where are all the anti-gambling Christians?
ARC: The Supreme Court went all-in on sports betting. We’ve all lost.
NYU withholds diploma of student who condemned Israel in graduation speech
The Guardian: The university says it “strongly denounces” the commencement speech by Logan Rozos, who called out “atrocities” in Gaza.
The Spark
In defense of despair
The feeling* is most commonly framed as an end point, a level of despondency that cannot be overcome. But it doesn’t have to be so, The New Yorker says. (trigger warning: descriptions of suicidal ideation)
*access is limited for nonsubscribers
