Nation

A federal judge on Monday (May 11) dismissed a legal challenge by a group of Catholics in St. Louis, while a similar challenge in Kansas City by a Baptist church is moving toward a hearing on Friday. Both suits challenge local restrictions designed to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the two hardest-hit regions of Missouri.

Some Southern California pastors agree with Gov. Gavin Newsom it’s time to start opening up their state — including its churches — after weeks of being shut down to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. They disagree, however, on how fast that should happen.

Stating “pandemics cannot be partisan,” North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper on Tuesday defended his eased stay-at-home order as criticism mounted from elected Republican officials and demonstrators who gather weekly outside his home. His order continues to impact churches.

A leading gun control advocacy group has enlisted more than a dozen religious leaders to boost voter turnout this fall in support of candidates who support measures to prevent gun violence.

Hearing arguments by phone, the Supreme Court on May 11 seemed divided over how broadly religious institutions including schools, hospitals and social service centers should be shielded from job discrimination lawsuits by employees.

North Carolina legislators and leading sheriffs want Gov. Roy Cooper to clarify or remove a portion of his executive order that limits how religious services can convene under his eased stay-at-home rules for COVID-19. 

A multi-denominational coalition of Christian leaders is calling on Congress to allocate upwards of $4 billion in its next coronavirus economic recovery measure to help Americans safely cast their votes in November.

In the West Virginia town where Mother’s Day started 112 years ago, there was another first: an online-only audience due to the coronavirus pandemic.

While the White House looks ahead to reopening houses of worship, most Americans think in-person religious services should be barred or allowed only with limits during the coronavirus pandemic — and only about a third say that prohibiting in-person services violates religious freedom, a new poll finds.

Nearly three months after his death, a graphic video of the moment a young black man was shot while jogging on a quiet street in a small town in Georgia has inflamed tensions and spurred outrage.