News

As millions of Americans went to the polls to vote today amid anxiety about the results, concerns about voter intimidation, and even worries about post-election violence, some clergy showed up as election chaplains to bring a calming presence and safeguard voter rights.

As millions of Americans line up — some in church buildings — to exercise their democratic right to vote, dozens of churches decided to open their buildings to celebrate the sacred rite of communion for services called “Election Day Communion.”

Americans voting on Election Day are exhausted from constant crises, uneasy because of volatile political divisions, and anxious about what will happen next. This includes many Christians on either side of the political divide.

A Louisiana man who admitted to burning down three predominantly African American churches to promote himself as a “black metal” musician was sentenced Monday to 25 years in prison and ordered to pay the churches $2.6 million. 

A number of religious leaders, houses of worship, and faith-based organizations are planning spiritual care to help their communities handle the fear, stress, and anxiety throughout the Election Day.

In their final sermons before Election Day, some of the country’s most prominent Christian pastors urged their listeners on Sunday (Nov. 1) to vote, even as they defended the propriety of addressing politics from the pulpit.

Some churches are planning vigils and services this year around All Saints’ Day, the traditional Christian day of remembrance. The various services are remembering people who have died in the past year, especially those who have died from COVID-19.

For many Black Americans, life in predominantly white and conservative regions can be isolating and lonely. Here is a look at multiple congregations in rural North Carolina.

The Missouri Baptist Convention on Tuesday elected its first Black president — 186 years after the first man to hold that position did so while he enslaved more than a dozen Black people. This week’s election of Jon Nelson symbolized a significant change since Jeremiah Vardeman’s election in 1834 & 1835.

A group of evangelical leaders has issued and signed a letter calling for believers to be peacemakers, elevating their identities in Christ above societal divisions. A network known as The Matthew 5:9 Fellowship initiated the letter.