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Editor's note:
A case before the U.S. Supreme Court has provided an opportunity to examine the role that spiritual advisers sometimes play during executions in federal and state prisons. It’s a case out of Texas that has united groups spanning the political spectrum – including the American Civil Liberties Union, which opposes capital punishment, and conservative religious organizations which support it. They're arguing against a Texas policy barring spiritual advisers from praying aloud or laying hands on a condemned inmate whom they've accompanied to an execution. AP’s Global Religion news director, David Crary, wrote about the case, noting that among those joining the ACLU's brief is a Catholic nun who strongly opposes the death penalty. Yet she is grateful she could pray for two men at their executions in federal prison last year.
Religion News
Indigenous and faith leaders urge Procter & Gamble to end logging of old-growth forests
Activists pressuring the company to source materials in Canada and Southeast Asia more ethically say it’s not just an environmental issue, but also a spiritual one. By Diana Kruzman/Religion News Service
High court struggles with government secrets case
The Supreme Court struggles with whether to allow a lawsuit by Muslim men claiming religious bias by the FBI to go forward despite the government’s objection that doing so could reveal national security secrets. By Jessica Gresko/The Associated Press
Performing in drag was an ‘incredibly wonderful, refreshing, deepening, powerful spiritual experience,’ said Pastor Craig Duke of Newburgh United Methodist Church in Indiana. By Emily McFarlan Miller/Religion News Service
Israel's ultra-Orthodox protest women's prayer at holy site
Thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews have gathered at the Western Wall in Jerusalem to protest against a Jewish women’s group that holds monthly prayers there in a long-running campaign for gender equality at the site. By Shlomo Mor/The Associated Press
Indians celebrate festival of light amid COVID-19 fears
Indians across the country are celebrating the Diwali festival amid concerns over the coronavirus pandemic and rising air pollution. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is typically celebrated by socializing and exchanging gifts with family and friends. By Krutika Pathi/The Associated Press
Commentary and Analysis
A scholar on South Asian affairs traces the growth of Hindu nationalism, started by an atheist anti-colonial revolutionary, to the one adopted under Modi's government. By Saba Sattar for The Conversation
Art is more than just a companion for activism. By Andre Henry/Religion News Service
A scholar of religion in film explains the varied representation of Catholicism in horror. In some films, it is used in the fight against evil, while others show the Church itself as evil. By Regina Hansen for The Conversation
What the world can learn from the Buddhist concept loving-kindness
For World Kindness Day, a scholar of Buddhist studies explains its idea of compassion and the diverse ways to think about and express kindness. By Brooke Schedneck for The Conversation
Relatives spend the night next to the tombs of their loved ones during Day of the Dead commemorations at the the Arocutin cemetery in Michoacan state, Mexico, Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. In a tradition that coincides with All Saints Day and All Souls Day, families decorate the graves of departed relatives with flowers and candles, and spend the night in the cemetery, eating and drinking as they keep company with their deceased loved ones. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
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- This Week in Religion is a publication of the Global Religion Journalism Initiative, a collaboration among the Religion News Service, The Associated Press and The Conversation U.S.
- The three news organizations work to improve general understanding and analyze the significance of developments in the world of faith.
