150,000 U.S. Deaths from Alcohol, Drugs, Suicide in 2017
In a report published March 5, the total U.S. deaths attributable to alcohol, drugs and suicide in 2017 have more than doubled since 1999.
Criminal Justice System in Most States Penalizes Trafficking Victims
Victims of trafficking often end up with criminal records resulting from forced actions during enslavement, making it difficult for them to rebuild their lives after being freed from enslavement. Why?
Churches and Other Faith-Based Groups Lend a Hand After Historic Nebraska Floods
OMAHA, Neb. (RNS) — In Nebraska, many residents are getting a first look at their homes since floodwaters raged weeks ago. Local churches, national faith-based disaster relief groups, and state and federal officials are stepping in to lend a hand with the recovery.
Midwest Recovery Begins as Additional Flooding Looms
OMAHA, Neb. (BP) -- Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) leaders have established several sites in the Midwest to respond to historic flooding that has created at least $3 billion in damages in recent weeks.
Mass Shootings Correlated to Increased Gun Ownership, Looser Laws
U.S. states with higher levels of gun ownership and those with fewer restrictions have higher rates of mass shootings, according to research published this month by a United Kingdom-based medical journal.
Appellate Court Says Tax Break for Clergy Housing Is Constitutional
CHICAGO (BP) -- A three-judge panel of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago ruled unanimously the long-standing clergy allowance does not violate the First Amendment clause that prohibits government establishment of religion, reversing a federal judge's 2017 opinion.
K-12 Funding Below ‘Great Recession’ Levels in Many States
Funding for K-12 schools in the U.S. has increased in recent years, but in 24 states, it remains below levels before the “Great Recession,” according to a Center on Budget and Policy Priorities’ (CBPP) report published March 6.
‘Total Destruction’: Ala. Baptists Clearing Debris
BEAUREGARD, Ala. (BP) -- As a tornado ripped through Baptist deacon Barry Gullatte's home in eastern Alabama, he and his family could feel themselves being sucked out of the bathroom where they took shelter.
Disaster Relief, Baptist Church Give Aid After Deadly Tornado
BEAUREGARD, Ala. (BP) -- The small community of Beauregard is facing the grief of at least 23 deaths, including children, after a tornado struck the southeastern Alabama community on Sunday afternoon (March 3).
In Fight Over Protestant-Only Foster Agency, Lawsuit Asks: Who Is a Christian?
(RNS) — For many Catholics in the Upstate, the 10-county westernmost region of South Carolina, Catholic bias is a startling yet eerily familiar part of being a minority amid a vast sea of Protestants. But when Aimee Maddonna's foster parent application to Miracle Hill Ministries