News & Ideas

Thursday's News & Ideas - 10/31/2024

  • Perspective of evangelical pastor
  • Election anxiety
  • Catholic spending on abortion measures
  • Christian nationalism in the past
  • Catholic anime mascot
  • ‘Agatha All Along’ & modern witches

Why are some evangelicals drawn to — and sticking by — Trump? This pastor weighs in
NPR: Chad Harvey, whose sermons address to weekly crowds of about 3,000, says only a small part of his job intersects with politics, but there’s no way to completely avoid political discourse.

The antidote to election anxiety*
Christianity Today: My community is the kind you see in articles hyping the threat of political violence. Reality is more mundane — and hopeful, Carrie McKean says.

The Catholic Church is spending big to defeat abortion rights ballot measures*
Mother Jones: From Florida to Colorado, Catholic organizations are backing pro-life campaigns.

We tried Christian nationalism in America. It went badly.
Religion News Service: Nostalgia for a ‘Christian America’ overlooks the realities of religion in the founding era — which included taxes, jail time, exile and even public hangings for anyone who defied state-run churches.

Who is ‘Luce’? — the anime mascot of the Catholic Church, explained*
Forbes: The Catholic Church has revealed a new mascot, a cutesy, anime-inspired girl known as “Luce,” but the character sparked mixed reactions online.

The Spark

Marvel’s series ‘Agatha All Along’ gets it right, say modern witches
The series “Agatha All Along,” which had its finale Wednesday (Oct. 30), oozes witchcraft lore, movie references and symbolism, Religion News Service says. Modern witches are all in.

*access is limited for nonsubscribers



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