The Columbian

Churches & Religion

FILE - "In God We Trust" is engraved in stone above a U.S. flag in the House of Representatives chamber at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, March 1, 2022. Even though nearly three in 10 Americans claim no religious affiliation -- a rate that has steadily risen in recent years -- only two of the 534 incoming members of Congress will admit to as much.

Survey: Religiously, Congress doesn’t reflect America

January 8, 2023, 6:00am Churches & Religion

Religiously speaking, the incoming 118th Congress looks like America — that is, the America of decades past, rather than today. Read story

Faith-based travel is often a group affair, but whether you'll be traveling solo, with family or with a church group, tour operators often offer the best opportunities to enjoy a truly faith-based journey.

See the light when planning faith-based vacation

January 7, 2023, 6:02am Churches & Religion

Religious travel, often also called faith-based travel, is a unique subcategory of the travel industry that focuses on connecting travelers with religious travel experiences around the world, from experiencing the Holy Land or hiking along the famed El Camino de Santiago to pilgrimages to Mecca and beyond. Read story

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill delivers a Christmas service in the Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Jan. 6, 2023. Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on Jan. 7, in accordance with the Julian calendar.

Orthodox celebrate Christmas in shadow of conflict

January 6, 2023, 1:54pm Churches & Religion

Orthodox Christians packed churches on Friday evening for Christmas Eve services, a holiday darkened for many by the conflict raging between Orthodox neighbors Russia and Ukraine. Read story

Ukrainian priests holding a service before the start of the Orthodox Chrismas in the St. Michael's Monastery of Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 6, 2023. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday ordered Moscow's armed forces to observe a 36-hour cease-fire in Ukraine this weekend for the Russian Orthodox Christmas holiday, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy questioned the Kremlin's intentions, accusing the Kremlin of planning the fighting pause "to continue the war with renewed vigor".

Ukraine reclaims Kyiv cathedral amid church dispute

January 6, 2023, 12:59pm Churches & Religion

The Ukrainian government has taken the main cathedral of the revered historic monastery from the church previously affiliated with Moscow's patriarchate and allowed its Ukrainian rival to use it for Orthodox Christmas services. Read story

Faithful attend the funeral mass for late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Benedict died at 95 on Dec. 31 in the monastery on the Vatican grounds where he had spent nearly all of his decade in retirement.

Faithful mourn Benedict XVI at funeral presided over by pope

January 5, 2023, 8:46am Churches & Religion

Pope Francis joined tens of thousands of faithful in bidding farewell to Benedict XVI at a rare requiem Mass Thursday for a dead pope presided over by a living one, ending an unprecedented decade for the Catholic Church that was triggered by the German theologian’s decision to retire. Read story

Nuns arrive at dawn to view the body of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI as it lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. The Vatican announced that Pope Benedict died on Dec. 31, 2022, aged 95, and that his funeral will be held on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023.

Pope praises ‘gentle’ Benedict ahead of funeral

January 4, 2023, 8:20am Churches & Religion

Pope Francis praised Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s “acute and gentle thought” as he presided over a packed Wednesday general audience in the Vatican, while thousands of people paid tribute to the former pope on the final day of public viewing in St. Peter’s Basilica. Read story

FILE - Bishops watch Pope Benedict XVI on a large video monitor during a rally with young people and seminarians at Saint Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y., Saturday, April 19, 2008. Many of the conservative prelates who dominate the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops were appointed by Benedict. Even after his death in December 2022, Catholic academics and clergy say his absence is unlikely to weaken the conservatives' collective power or end the culture wars that have divided the USCCB.

U.S. bishops’ rifts unlikely to ease after Benedict’s death

January 4, 2023, 8:18am Churches & Religion

Many of the conservative prelates who dominate the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops were appointed by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. His recent death deprives them of a symbolic figurehead but is unlikely to weaken their collective power or end the culture wars that have divided the USCCB, according to Catholic… Read story

Former Associated Press Rome Bureau Chief Victor Simpson poses for a portrait after an interview with The Associated Press at the Vatican on April 29, 2021. Simpson, who covered the Vatican for over 30 years for The Associated Press before his retirement, recalls the graciousness of Pope Benedict XVI.

Recalling Benedict’s grace but also the storms of his papacy

January 3, 2023, 8:33am Churches & Religion

Flying back to Rome from Beirut in September 2012, I was escorted down the aisle to the first-class section of the papal plane and seated beside Pope Benedict XVI. Read story

Nuns arrive at dawn to view the body of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI as it lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023. The Vatican announced that Pope Benedict died on Dec. 31, 2022, aged 95, and that his funeral will be held on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023.

An account of Benedict’s papacy to be sealed in his coffin

January 3, 2023, 8:32am Churches & Religion

For a second day, lines of people wanting to honor Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s service to the Catholic church snaked around St. Peter’s Square on Tuesday to view the late retired pontiff’s body. Read story