Austin
The Republican-controlled state legislature in Texas is processing bills that will increase religious activity in public schools, thus challenging traditional boundaries between church and state. Religion News reports: “One [bill] mandates the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools; another allows school districts to require local campuses to set aside time for staff and students to pray and read religious texts; and a third allows administrators to furnish schools with chaplains in addition to existing counselors.” Critics maintain these efforts are part of the larger agenda of Christian Nationalism.
Minneapolis
Minneapolis has become the first city in the United States to officially allow the Muslim call to prayer to be broadcast anytime and anywhere. The Minneapolis City Council unanimously agreed Thursday to amend the city’s noise ordinance, which had prevented dawn and late evening calls at certain times of the year due to noise restrictions. The new policy was unopposed by religious groups and, in fact, was supported by many non-Muslim religious leaders. It is expected that at least two mosques, located in heavily Muslim areas of the city, will begin broadcasting the early morning (5:30) and late night (11:00) calls to prayer.
Dallas
A new musical about Jesus called “His Story: The Musical” is set to open on May 5 in a performance venue near Dallas, Texas. It was written and composed by a teenager named Anna Miriam Brown. The script and score caught the attention of professionals and celebrities, helping the producers raise $7.5 million. The piece follows in the lineage of things like “Jesus Christ, Superstar” and “Godspell” but with a more traditional take on the life and ministry of Jesus, especially his resurrection.
Philadelphia
Drawing data from surveys conducted over the last six years, scholars at the Pew Research Institute report that Roman Catholic affiliation of Hispanics in the United States had declined from 67% to 46%. Most of the loss has been to the “religiously unaffiliated” group, with Protestants maintaining a steady one fifth of the respondents (most of whom connect with some form of Pentecostal faith and practice). Almost 80% of those involved in these surveys are persons born in the United States, the remaining being immigrants.
Chicago
Christianity Today reports that as many as “three dozen colleges and universities have closed or merged since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Eighteen of them are Christian, including Methodist, Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Church of Christ, and Independent Christian Church institutions.” All were small and struggling and could not survive the COVID pandemic. Schools included Judson College (Baptist) in Alabama, Finlandia University (Lutheran) in Michigan, MacMurray College (Methodist) in Illinois, Holy Family College (Catholic) in Wisconsin, Cincinnati Christian University (Christian) in Ohio, and Ohio Valley University, (Church of Christ) in West Virginia.
