Thursday's News & Ideas - 4/27/2023

Pope Francis gives women historic right to vote at meeting
BBC: The Pope will for the first time allow women to vote at an influential global meeting of bishops in October — a move that has been welcomed as a historic first.

Georgia pastor Mike Stone to challenge SBC President Bart Barber this summer
Religion News Service: Stone said he wants to help local churches do more evangelism and to do a better job at dealing with abuse.

Five ‘Christian influencers’ still face defamation case by former Dominion executive
Baptist News Global: Despite the much-publicized settlement between Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems, five “Christian influencers” still face defamation lawsuits brought against them by Eric Coomer, former director of product strategy and security for Dominion.

After cult deaths, another Kenyan pastor arrested over ‘mass killings’
Reuters: A Kenyan church leader was arrested on Thursday over the “mass killing of his followers,” the interior minister said, just days after the leader of a cult based in the same region was detained and mass graves of his followers were found.

Unmaking a priest: The rite of degradation
JSTOR: The defrocking ceremony was meant to humiliate a disgraced member of the clergy while discouraging laypeople from viewing him as a martyr.

The Spark

Sorry, you’ve been rejected. Now let’s party.
Whether it’s with sheet cake or walls proudly displaying rejection letters, students and adults are finding a new joy* in the word “no,” says The New York Times.

*access is limited for nonsubscribers