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Defining the Iowa evangelicals who support Donald Trump: Is going to church required?

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Defining the Iowa evangelicals who support Donald Trump: Is going to church required?

U.S. pastors are struggling with post-pandemic burnout: A survey indicates half considered quitting since 2020, The Associated Press’ Peter Smith reports.

U.S. attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions increased 360% in the three months that ended Sunday, according to Anti-Defamation League data cited by the Washington Times’ Mark A. Kellner.

And online Bible reading continued to increase in 2023, Lifeway Research’s Marissa Postell Sullivan notes.

This is our weekly roundup of the top headlines and best reads in the world of faith. We start with the evangelicals supporting former President Donald Trump in Monday’s Iowa caucuses.

What To Know: The Big Story

The 2024 voting starts: What will happen Monday in the presidential campaign’s first formal test at the ballot box?

“Donald Trump seems to have locked down a majority of the evangelical Iowan vote in this year's Republican caucuses, even as local leaders have tried to steer them toward his competitor, Ron DeSantis,” Axios’ Linh Ta writes.

But who are these evangelicals?

“They are not just the churchgoing, conservative activists who once dominated the G.O.P.,” according to the New York Times’ Ruth Graham and Charles Homans.

The Times explains:

Being evangelical once suggested regular church attendance, a focus on salvation and conversion and strongly held views on specific issues such as abortion. Today, it is as often used to describe a cultural and political identity: one in which Christians are considered a persecuted minority, traditional institutions are viewed skeptically and Mr. Trump looms large.


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Rosalynn Carter memorials, with coverage about faith, family and, yes, political fashions

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Rosalynn Carter memorials, with coverage about faith, family and, yes, political fashions

The public drama of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter continues this week with a public memorial service and a family funeral, the kind of events that pull people into church sanctuaries, especially in the Bible Belt.

It’s safe to say that the more private funeral today — in the couple’s home church, Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia — will be a worship service in a progressive Baptist congregation. It will be interesting to see if footage is provided featuring the eulogy, along with the hymns and scriptures chosen by the Carters.

The memorial service was held in Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church, near the Carter Center at Emory University. The 99-year-old president — 10 months into home hospice care — spent Monday night at the center, close to where is wife’s body lay in repose. Atlanta is 164 miles from the Carter home in Plains.

Let’s give credit to the Associated Press for getting some mention of the couple’s faith into the lede of its story about the public, rather political, memorial service:

ATLANTA (AP) — Rosalynn Carter was remembered Tuesday as a former U.S. first lady who leveraged her fierce intellect and political power to put her deep Christian faith into action by always helping others, especially those who needed it most.

A gathering of first ladies and presidents — including her 99-year-old husband Jimmy Carter — joined other political figures in tribute. But a parade of speakers said her global stature wasn’t what defined her.

Later on, there was this, as well:

Family members described how Rosalynn Carter went from growing up in a small town where she had never spoken to a group larger than her Sunday school class to being a global figure who visited more than 120 countries.

Kathryn Cade, who stayed on as a close adviser as Rosalynn Carter helped build The Carter Center and its global reach, called Rosalynn Carter’s time as first lady “really just one chapter in a life that was about caring for others.”

GetReligion readers may recall that I chided AP for producing a stunningly faith-free obit for the former First Lady.


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Religion ghost? No, the new president of Argentina has openly bashed Pope Francis

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Religion ghost? No, the new president of Argentina has openly bashed Pope Francis

Javier Milei is a practicing Catholic, but Argentina’s new president of has made zero attempts to hide his opposition to much of the cultural and economic agenda of Pope Francis.

In a stunning outcome that few would have predicted even a few months ago, this libertarian economist and former soccer player was elected Argentina's president. In this political story, there is no “religion ghost,” since many politicos openly called the election a referendum on Pope Francis’ status in his home nation.

Milei, 53, won a resounding victory last Sunday with nearly 56% of the vote in a runoff against Sergio Massa. This was the highest winning percentage in a presidential election since the South American nation returned to democracy in 1983.

The self-described anarcho-capitalist — who many have compared to former President Donald Trump — said in a victory speech that the “reconstruction of Argentina begins today.”

“Argentina’s situation is critical,” Milei told a crowd of supporters. “The changes our country needs are drastic. There is no room for gradualism, no room for lukewarm measures.”

Milei made headlines earlier this year with his caustic descriptions of Pope Francis, was born in Argentina and once served as cardinal of Buenos Aires. The pontiff became a campaign lightening rod after Milei called Francis “a communist” and “leftist son of a b----.”

Francis’ message against the accumulation of wealth — including criticism of an “economic system that continues to discard lives in the name of the god of money” — has been seen by some voters as an endorsement for Peronism, which some have argued is left-wing populism in the style of Sen. Bernie Sanders.

In it’s report on the election, The New York Times stirred religion and populism into this snarky mix:

Mr. Milei overcame criticism and questions about a variety of unusual behaviors during the campaign, including his harsh attacks against the pope, his clashes with Taylor Swift fans, his claims of being a tantric-sex guru, his dressing up as a libertarian superhero and his close relationship with his Mastiff dogs that are named for conservative economists — and are also all clones.


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Dear Associated Press editors: The story of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter includes lots of faith

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Dear Associated Press editors: The story of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter includes lots of faith

When former President Jimmy Carter describes his life he almost always mentions each of these subjects — his wife, Rosalynn, their shared Christian faith, community service and the Bible.

In his mind, these subjects are linked. Could someone please pass that information on to the political-desk editors of the Associated Press?

The bottom line: It is impossible to write about the Carters without paying some attention to the topics that mattered the most to them, as opposed to the subjects that matter the most to political-desk journalists. If you know lots of people who have followed the Carters for decades (I even have a nephew named “Carter”), you know the role that their evolving, progressive Baptist convictions played in their story.

The death of Rosalynn Carter this weekend gives news consumers a first draft of the coverage that will follow the looming death of the 99-year-old former president, who remains in hospice care.

Much of the Carter coverage today is starkly secular and faith-free. How is that possible?

But let’s start with a positive note, care of a nuanced passage in the New York Times obit that offers an outline of what journalists will find if they explore Carter territory with open eyes and even the slightest interest in the faith elements therein. Read the following carefully

Reared in the same tiny patch of Georgia farmland, 150 miles south of Atlanta, they were similar in temperament and outlook. They shared a fierce work ethic, a drive for self-improvement and an earnest, even pious, demeanor. Their Christian faith was central to their lives. Both were frugal. Both could be stubborn.

After Mr. Carter lost his re-election bid in 1980 to Ronald Reagan, he and Mrs. Carter embarked on what became the longest, most active post-presidency in American history. They traveled the world in support of human rights, democracy and health programs; domestically, they labored in service to others, most prominently pounding nails to help build houses for Habitat for Humanity.


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Plug-In: Inside the conservative Baptist faith of new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson

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Plug-In: Inside the conservative Baptist faith of new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson

Why not start here? My beloved Texas Rangers won the World Series for the first time. You knew I’d write a column about it, right?

In shocking news, actor Matthew Perry, best known for playing Chandler Bing on TV’s “Friends,” was found dead Saturday at age 54. Perry “did not speak about faith often, but the stories he did share highlighted religion’s pivotal role in his life and career,” the Deseret News’ Kelsey Dallas explains.

Meanwhile, a day of prayer and reflection followed last week’s mass shooting that claimed 18 lives in Maine, The Associated Press’ Jake Bleiberg, David Sharp and Robert F. Bukaty report.

But in our weekly survey of the top headlines and best reads in the world of faith, we start with the role of religious faith in the politics of the new U.S. House speaker.

What To Know: The Big Story

One of their own: “Evangelical Christian conservatives have long had allies in top Republican leadership in Congress. But never before have they had one so thoroughly embedded in their movement as new House Speaker Mike Johnson, a longtime culture warrior in the courthouse, in the classroom and in Congress.”

That’s the lede from The Associated Press’ Peter Smith.

The veteran religion writer notes:

Religious conservatives cheered Johnson’s election (Oct. 25), after which he brought his Bible to the rostrum before taking the oath of office. “The Bible is very clear that God is the one that raises up those in authority ... each of you, all of us,” he said.

“Someone asked me today in the media, ‘People are curious, what does Mike Johnson think about any issue?’” Johnson said (Oct. 26) in a Fox News interview. “I said, ’Well, go pick up a Bible off your shelf and read it. That’s my worldview.’”


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Plug-In: Looming Israel-Hamas war brings familiar questions about the end of the world

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Plug-In: Looming Israel-Hamas war brings familiar questions about the end of the world

No big deal. OK, it’s sort of a big deal: went to Arlington, Texas, for the start of the World Series. Let’s go, Rangers! But you knew that I would say that.

Speaking of the Fall Classic, Marvin Olasky writes at ReligionUnplugged that the World Series “reflects life and what little we can control.” I sure hope my favorite team can control its bullpen and win its first title ever.

But you signed on for religion news, not my baseball analysis, so here goes: The new speaker of the U.S. House is a Southern Baptist who has served as a trustee of the SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Baptist Press’ Brandon Porter notes.

Rep. Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, suggested his election as speaker was ordained by God, according to Religion News Service.

This is our weekly roundup of the top headlines and best reads in the world of faith. We start again with the Israel-Hamas War, this time focusing on questions about the end of the world.

What To Know: The Big Story

End times debate: The Israel-Hamas war has sent Christians in search of prophetic meaning, as the Washington Times’ Mark A. Kellner, a former GetReligion contributor, explains:

Evangelical leaders are looking to the Bible’s end-of-days prophecies as congregants seek to understand the Israel-Hamas war.

While the Book of Revelation and the Gospel of Matthew offer details of what is to happen before Christ’s return, apocalyptic Scriptures have often been cited when global tensions flare up, such as Israel’s war of independence in 1948, the 1967 Six-Day War and the October War of 1973.

Believers also sounded alarms after the eruption of World War II, the Cold War and the 9/11 attacks.

“I think even secularists would tell you never have we faced so many severe threats in the world that we’re facing right now,” said the Rev. Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas.


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Plug-In: The crucial role of religion in the dangerous Israel-Hamas war

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Plug-In: The crucial role of religion in the dangerous Israel-Hamas war

Did you miss me? I traveled to Cuba on a reporting trip. Given my limited internet access while away, Plug-in took last week off.

That means this is our first edition since the Israel-Hamas war started.

What an overwhelming story with countless religious angles. But I’ll do my best to catch you — and me — up.

The latest: a blast on the campus of the historic St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church in Gaza City, where scores of Palestinian families had been sheltering from Israeli air strikes. The omnipresent Clemente Lisi has the details.

This is our weekly roundup of the top headlines and best reads in the world of faith. We start, of course, with the deadly conflict in the Middle East.

What To Know: The Big Story

‘Blood libel’: “The heated discourse about the deadly rocket explosion near Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in the southern Gaza City neighborhood of Zeitoun on Tuesday is rooted in the centuries-old religious hatred underlying the current war in Gaza.”

That’s the lede from Gil Zohar, reporting from Jerusalem for ReligionUnplugged.

The blast occurred at Gaza’s only Christian hospital, reported Christianity Today’s Morgan Lee.

The why: Hamas is selling its assault on Israel as a holy war, as Religion News Service’s Michelle Chabin and Yonat Shimron detail:

When Hamas, the Islamic Palestinian terrorist group, stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, took over military bases, massacred more than 1,300 Israelis — most of them civilians — and kidnapped 150, it dubbed its military operation the “Al-Aqsa Deluge.”  


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Plug-In: Pope Francis, the nones and an embattled pastor's life after Mars Hill Church

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Plug-In: Pope Francis, the nones and an embattled pastor's life after Mars Hill Church

The next generation is leaving the Christian faith faster than parents realize, Lifeway Research’s Aaron Earls writes.

Religion cases are notably absent from the U.S. Supreme Court’s fall schedule, the Deseret News’ Kelsey Dallas notes. The question: Is that a good thing?

Surprisingly, state-level pandemic restrictions had no measurable, lasting impact on American churches, according to data cited by Christianity Today’s Daniel Silliman.

This is our weekly roundup of the top headlines and best reads in the world of faith. We start with major news we previewed last week: the Catholic Church’s Synod of Bishops on Synodality.

What To Know: The Big Story

Blessing same-sex unions: Even before the synod opened Wednesday, a doctrinal earthquake shook the Catholic world, as our own Clemente Lisi explains:

In a move that would signal a seismic shift for the Catholic Church, Pope Francis said he’s open to blessing same-sex unions and to studying the possibility of ordaining women to the priesthood.

The comments came in an eight-page letter Francis penned this past July — and released by the Vatican on Monday — in response to five cardinals who had written to the pope expressing concern about a number of issues that will be discussed at a meeting of bishops set to start Wednesday at the Vatican.

“Pastoral prudence must adequately discern whether there are forms of blessing, requested by one or several people, that do not transmit a mistaken conception of marriage,” Francis wrote.

A welcome for “everyone” — Lisi, a veteran journalist who has reported on the Vatican for years — offers additional insight in his coverage of the synod’s opening day:

Pope Francis opened a meeting of bishops at the Vatican on Wednesday by warning that the Catholic church needs to put aside “political calculations or ideological battles” and welcome “everyone” to dialogue about the faith.


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Plug-In: Vatican Synod on Synodality is sure to make some Catholics mad and others happy

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Plug-In: Vatican Synod on Synodality is sure to make some Catholics mad and others happy

Religion-beat professionals are following tragic news out of Pakistan: Dozens are dead after a suicide bombing in a crowd of people celebrating the birthday of Islam’s prophet, The Associated Press’ Abdul Sattar reports.

Meanwhile, Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California — the longest serving woman senator — has died at 90. An obituary by the Washington Post’s Emily Langer recounts that Feinstein “attended an elite Catholic high school where she was the only Jewish student.”

This is our weekly roundup of the top headlines and best reads in the world of faith. We start by previewing a major summit of the Catholic Church.

What To Know: The Big Story

‘Truly important’: “This is the biggest thing happening in the Catholic Church since Vatican II, there is no question about that,” a scholar tells The Tablet’s Carol Zimmerman.

John L. Allen Jr. of Crux characterizes the upcoming Synod of Bishops on Synodality as “this fall’s Catholic equivalent of the Super Bowl.”

“The unprecedented gathering of 464 Catholic clergy and laypeople, including women, begins Oct. 4 at the Vatican,” Religion News Service’s Claire Giangravé reports. More from RNS:

While some might dismiss the highly anticipated event as a meeting on meetings, the term synodality under Pope Francis has expanded to reflect his vision for dialogue and decision-making in the church.

“I am well aware that speaking of a ‘Synod on Synodality’ may seem something abstruse, self-referential, excessively technical, and of little interest to the general public,” Francis said to journalists at the Vatican on Aug. 26.

he summit will bring 464 Catholic clergy and laypeople, including women, to the Vatican to discuss hot-button issues ranging from sexual abuse to LGBTQ inclusion and female ordination.

“It is something truly important for the church,” the pope said.

Divided American clerics: Ideological rifts among U.S. bishops are in the spotlight ahead of the Vatican meeting, according to The Associated Press’ David Crary:


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