All posts tagged: Church

AME Church clergy could recover M more in retirement scandal settlement

AME Church clergy could recover $44M more in retirement scandal settlement

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — A federal judge gave preliminary approval to a settlement that could restore tens of millions more in retirement funds to African Methodist Episcopal Church clergy and staffers who lost their money through the denomination’s allegedly mishandled plan. The development on Friday (April 17) comes after the same judge last August approved $60 million in partial settlements, not including interest, for the thousands of clergy and staff who learned in 2021 that much of their expected retirement money was missing. However, legal fees totaled a third of the settlement.  The plaintiffs and Symetra Life Insurance Co., a defendant in the case, accepted a mediator’s proposal that would allow the affected retirement plan participants to recover an additional $44.4 million, if the judge approves it in a hearing set for Aug. 19 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. According to court documents, the plaintiffs alleged that Symetra was a co-conspirator with the Rev. Jerome Harris, then the director of the AME Church’s Department of Retirement Services, in misappropriation of the …

Surge in Young Men’s Church Attendance: Key Insights – OpentheWord.org

Surge in Young Men’s Church Attendance: Key Insights – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Two men praying together at a church in Beijing, China Credit: Sam Balye/unsplash.com Polls by Gallup over the past few years have uncovered a growing interest in religion among young men. A survey conducted in 2024 and 2025 found that 42% of men aged 18 to 29 said that religion was ‘very important’ to them. Equally significant this interest has climbed dramatically in recent years. A similar survey of men in this age group in 2022 to 2023 found only 28% of young men said that religion was very important. In a matter of two years, the percentage has nearly doubled. But the survey wasn’t all good news. It also found that women in this same age group were lagging behind. The 2024 t0 2025 survey revealed that only 29% of women stated that religion was ‘very important’. Young men’s growing interest in religion is also showing up in church attendance. Forty percent of young men stated that they attended a religious service at least once a month in 2024 t0 2025 up from 33% …

Poll: over 70% Brits ‘don’t care’ about Church of England

Poll: over 70% Brits ‘don’t care’ about Church of England

Published by Sam Flores

The National Secular Society has said separating Church and state is “an obvious necessity” after polling found most people do not care much about the Church of England. Recent YouGov figures found 33% of British adults do not care “very much” about the CofE, while 40% care “not at all”. The polling of 7,019 adults in Britain found only 16% care “a fair amount”, and 5% “a lot”. Despite this widespread apathy, the Church of England is uniquely privileged as the UK’s established religion. Establishment confers a number of privileges, including automatic seats for 26 Church of England bishops in the House of Lords, the head of state being the ‘supreme governor’ of the Church, and Anglican prayers being said in Parliament. The Church also controls a significant percentage of state-funded schools. The polling is consistent with the Church of England’s own figures, which reveal less than 2% of England’s population attend church at least once a month. The polling found people in Scotland and Wales are particularly apathetic about the CofE, with 63% of …

Police appeal after woman in her 20s raped by several men near church

Police appeal after woman in her 20s raped by several men near church

Published by Sam Flores

A young woman was raped by a group of men after leaving a nightclub in Surrey, police have said. The victim, aged in her 20s, told officers she was attacked in the early hours of Saturday near Epsom Methodist Church, shortly after leaving Labyrinth nightclub in Epsom. Surrey Police believe the assault happened sometime between 2am and 4am. An investigation is now underway, with officers working to track down those responsible. Detective Inspector Aine Matthews said: “We understand this is an extremely distressing incident and the victim is being supported by specialist officers. “Our investigation is in its early stages and a team of officers have been conducting extensive enquiries today to identify and locate the suspects. “We are working at pace to develop our picture of the suspects and we will share details as soon we are able to. “Officers remain in the area and I encourage you to speak with them if you have any concerns. “As part of our investigation, we would like to speak to anyone who was in the area …

Iran’s Crown Prince States the Underground Church is Exploding in the Country – OpentheWord.org

Iran’s Crown Prince States the Underground Church is Exploding in the Country – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Even though it is illegal for a Muslim to convert to Christianity in Iran, it has one of the fastest growing churches in the world. Photo: Tehran, Iran Credit: Amir Pashaei/Wikipedia/Creative Commons 4.0 The 1979nIranian revolution replaced the then Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi with an Islamic theocratic government controlled by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The Shah, who functioned as Iran’s king, died a year later while in exile in Egypt. He was 60 years of age. His son Reza Pahlavi, who is often referred to as Iran’s crown prince, recently spoke at Liberty University, based in Lynchburg, Virginia, USA. For 40 years, Reza has been working in exile to see the Iran’s Islamic regime toppled. But in his presentation this past Easter, he acknowledged Christianity’s growing presence in Iran. “For those of you grounded in faith, there is another truth,” Pahlavi said. “In Iran today, Christianity is not fading. It is rising quietly, powerfully underground. In homes, in whispers, in hidden gatherings, Iranians are finding faith at great cost. Pastors are imprisoned. Bibles …

5th-Century Church in Glasgow Will Become a Museum and Cultural Center

5th-Century Church in Glasgow Will Become a Museum and Cultural Center

Published by José Betancourt

The future of a 5th-century church in Glasgow, known locally as “Govan Old,” has been in a state of flux for the past decade. In 2016, according to a report by the BBC, the Govan Heritage Trust began managing the site (Govan is the name of a district in southwest Glasgow) and announced a plan to “develop the church into a self-sustaining community-run cultural, museum and business complex.” Several years prior, in 2008, the Govan Old congregation joined forces with two other local churches to form the Govan & Lighthouse Parish Church, now housed at the nearby New Govan Church. Related Articles The location of the original Govan Old Parish Church was an active site of worship from the 5th century AD until 2007. The current building, designed by Robert Rowand Anderson, was constructed in the late 1800s. Govan Old is famous for its collection of medieval carved stones known as the Govan Stones. The early Christian sculptural objects were first discovered in the mid-19th century, when a sarcophagus and some 40 carved stones were …

Black church leaders revive civil rights playbook to mobilize voters for midterms

Black church leaders revive civil rights playbook to mobilize voters for midterms

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Ahead of the midterm elections this fall, Pastor Mike McBride, a longtime Black voter mobilization strategist, is spearheading an initiative for church and community leaders to sit down together for Sunday dinners to learn from each other. Several dinners have been held in U.S. cities — and more are scheduled through June — to bring together dozens of people in 10 municipalities from the San Francisco Bay Area to Atlanta, all to discuss the treatment of immigrants by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other concerns related to politics across the country. The events were created by McBride and Live Free, a nonprofit focused on community violence reduction and voter engagement he founded 15 years ago, in an effort to build community involvement before voters head to the ballot box.  “The idea is to unite congregations within cities and regions, to bring our people into a shared space, to hear each other’s stories, to share a meal and strengthen our bonds of connection,” McBride, a Black Pentecostal minister at The Way Christian Center, …

How the LDS Church is growing — and shrinking

How the LDS Church is growing — and shrinking

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints just reported its highest convert growth in history. Over the weekend at its semiannual General Conference, the church released its 2025 membership statistics that indicate an almost 25% increase in convert baptisms in 2025, compared to 2024. But at the same time, 2025 data from the Cooperative Election Study, also made available last week, tells a different story. In the United States at least, fewer adults are self-identifying as Latter-day Saints than at any other time since the survey began nearly 20 years ago. Both of these stories are true. But how? Let’s dive into the data, starting with the church’s rosy internal membership numbers. A surge of growth Each April, the LDS Church releases its global statistics about the number of members, congregations, missionaries, enrolled students and temples it has. There have been some extremely lean years in the last decade, even before the COVID-19 pandemic. A decade ago this month, I wrote a column about how Mormon growth had slowed to its lowest …

Taylor Frankie Paul announces on Easter that she’s distancing herself from Mormon church amid Bachelorette and SLOMW controversies

Taylor Frankie Paul announces on Easter that she’s distancing herself from Mormon church amid Bachelorette and SLOMW controversies

Published by Daniella Wilson

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Taylor Frankie Paul has announced her decision to “detach” herself from the Mormon church as she continues to deal with the fallout from multiple domestic violence allegations. The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star, 31, was set to lead season 22 of The Bachelorette. However, days before its premiere, a violent video of her 2023 assault involving her ex, Dakota Mortensen, was leaked, leading ABC to cancel the season. Another alleged instance of domestic violence between Paul and Mortensen in February also brought a pause to the production of season five of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. Paul has since spoken out, describing the past 40 days as “hell on earth,” in an Instagram post shared Easter Sunday. Later that day, the mother …