Thursday's News & Ideas - 5/8/2025
- American Robert Prevost is first US pope, will reign as Leo XIV
- American Democrats turn to religion
- Taxing endowments
- Adopt a Catholic cardinal
- Religious charter schools
- The church’s DEI problem
- The world’s first grief pill
HABEMUS PAPAM: Leo XIV is 1st American pope chosen to lead Catholic Church
National Catholic Reporter: Pope Leo XIV, a Chicago-born Augustinian friar, has been elected the first American pope in the history of the Roman Catholic church.
US Catholic: Robert Francis Prevost, O.S.A. elected pope: What we know about the new leader of the Catholic Church
Religion News Service: Robert Prevost, first US pope, will reign as Leo XIV
To put pressure on Trump, Democrats turn to religion — and religious activists
Religion News Service: “Faith leaders have been at the forefront of every progressive movement in our nation’s history … so I’m glad to see faith leaders speaking out and getting into good trouble in opposition to the upcoming reconciliation bill,” said Delaware Sen. Chris Coons.
Endowments are next*
The Atlantic: Taxing endowments is likely to weaken elite institutions, not fix them. That’s the point, writes Rose Horowitch.
With “Adopt a Cardinal,” lay Catholics can feel more connected to the conclave
Religion News Service: The popular website, where people are randomly assigned a cardinal to pray for, has been revived for the 2025 conclave.
Religious charter schools threaten to shift more money away from traditional public schools — and the Supreme Court is considering this idea
The Conversation: The U.S. Supreme Court is considering what could be the most consequential case for public education since the court started requiring schools to desegregate in the years following Brown v. Board of Education.
The church has a DEI problem*
The Christian Century: We love diversity. That doesn’t mean we’re willing to make room for difference, writes pastor and Emmy-winning hip-hop artist Julian DeShazier.
The Spark
The pill that promises to cure grief
Classifying prolonged grief* as a disorder in the DSM-5 is already controversial, writes Ayesha Habib for The Walrus. But the classification has also come with a flurry of proposed cures. One contender has emerged to be the world’s first grief pill: naltrexone.
*access is limited for nonsubscribers
