Wednesday's News & Ideas - 9/6/2023

Giving is up at churches and people are back, but clergy are still thinking about quitting
Religion News Service: While life at local congregations has returned mostly to normal, the future remains uncertain.

Not religious, not voting? The ‘nones’ are a powerful force in politics – but not yet a coalition
The Conversation: Nearly 30% of Americans say they have no religious affiliation. Today the so-called “nones” represent about 30% of Democrats and 12% of Republicans – and they are making their voices heard.

A church lay leader sexually abused a child. The victim’s family says the institution protected him.*
Intelligencer: Cherin Marie, and other victims and advocates who belong to a grassroots organization called ACNAtoo, say the ACNA mishandled the response to the allegations of sexual abuse and further harmed Mark Rivera’s victims.

Migrants from majority-Muslim countries were unequally imprisoned in Del Rio, Texas
NPR: Even though less than 5% of the people who cross the U.S.-Mexico border are from Muslim-majority countries, an investigation finds that more than 60% of the people charged in these cases are from those countries.

French schools send home dozens of girls wearing Muslim abayas
The Guardian: Girls who refused to remove the banned garment were given a letter saying “secularism is not a constraint, it is a liberty.”

The Spark

Tonika Lewis Johnson’s photos spark transatlantic conversation about race
The artist’s work draws connections* between Black communities in Chicago’s South Side and the suburbs of Paris, Hyperallergic says.

*access is limited for nonsubscribers