Should Churches be Tax-Exempt? Why, or Why Not?

Last updated on: May 8, 2025 at 10:49 pm By Richard Ostling

THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: The perpetually thorny issue of tax exemptions erupted in a dramatic new way last week when President Donald Trump announced that “we are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status. It’s what they deserve!” The dispute over so penalizing the nation’s oldest and richest college, on top of slashing research grants, poses threats to other schools and tax-exempt organizations that provoke controversy, including religious ones. Harvard University might be only the beginning. On Monday,... Read more

How Are Popes and Other World Religious Leaders Chosen?

Last updated on: April 26, 2025 at 11:31 am By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Today’s majestic open-air funeral for Pope Francis is now followed by election of the next pope by the College of Cardinals in a process shrouded in secrecy. (Indeed, the Latin root for “conclave” means “locked room.”) Its legendary status was underscored in January when the fictionalized movie thriller “Conclave” was nominated for Best Picture and other Oscars. It’s fair to say Francis and Buddhism’s Dalai Lama have been the world’s two best-known religious leaders. This year,... Read more

How Might a Newsman Approach Good Friday and Easter?

Last updated on: April 13, 2025 at 12:04 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: A highly readable new book provides the latest example of such a timely seasonal quest. The author, Ross Douthat, is a sophisticated New York Times columnist and former senior editor of The Atlantic magazine. In his intriguing “Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious,” Zondervan mostly prods people to consider the value of belief in general rather than Christianity in particular, building the case upon up-to-date scientific knowledge. He figures that “the raw data of existence implies religious... Read more

Does the Faith Factor Explain “Mainline” Protestant Decline?

Last updated on: March 29, 2025 at 6:11 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Let’s say you are looking for a local church to join and perhaps with good religious grounding for your kids. You’d probably be confident if the pastor says “I know God really exists and I have no doubts about it.” In the important new National Survey of Religious Leaders (NSRL) reported last week, that wording was affirmed by 97% of “evangelical” Protestant pastors, 98% of the Black Protestants, and 96% of Catholic priests — but only... Read more

How Might Religion Shape 2026 & 2028 Elections?

Last updated on: March 14, 2025 at 10:51 am By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Candidate Donald Trump won Michigan by 1.41%, Pennsylvania by 1.7%, and Wisconsin by 0.86%. If Kamala Harris could have overcome those three small margins she’d be president, barely carrying the Electoral College. Trump also had slim margins in Georgia (2.18%) and New Hampshire (2.78%). In 2028, these and a few other hotly contested states will presumably make the difference once again. The tiny and ulcer-inducing Republican majority in the U.S. House is up for grabs in... Read more

Does Science Point to God? A Journalist Makes the Case

Last updated on: February 28, 2025 at 11:50 am By Richard Ostling

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The Religion Guy’s Answer: This is pretty much the ultimate Q&A topic for Patheos. There’ve been some intriguing developments lately, so let’s bring the unending debate up to date. For one thing, this week’s Pew Research Center report on a survey of 36,908 adults indicates 21st Century America’s much-publicized religious decline has bottomed out. Early in this century, popular books by so-called “New Atheists” variously assailed believers in God as stupid and deluded if not downright evil. Religious parents were... Read more

What do U.S. religious groups believe on transgender issues?

Last updated on: February 13, 2025 at 12:46 am By Richard Ostling

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What do U.S. religious groups believe on transgender issues? THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: This topic is pertinent just now for two reasons. First, an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision due by June will determine whether 26 states are allowed to restrict or forbid gender transition treatments for minors (U.S. v. Skrmetti, docket #23-477). Second, President Donald Trump has just issued a series of new executive orders to shape government transgender policy in line with his 2024 campain platform, which pundits... Read more

Is Same-Sex Marriage a Settled Issue in the U.S.?

Last updated on: January 31, 2025 at 12:44 pm By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Not yet, and not quite, even as President Trump’s agenda instead puts the news spotlight on transgender issues. Though the Supreme Court’s historic 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision to legalize gay and lesbian marriage nationwide was by a narrow 5 to 4, the law appears very unlikely to change. And yet dissent continues and U.S. public opinion is shifting just a bit. This past Monday a never-say-die bid occurred in “red” Idaho, which went 67% for... Read more

Explainer: What Is Rome’s Holy Year? What Are Indulgences?

Last updated on: January 17, 2025 at 9:52 am By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: Italy’s tourism agency expects 35 million pilgrims to visit Rome during the Catholic Church’s current “Holy Year” or “Jubilee” that runs through Epiphany on January 6, 2026. In modern times, Holy Years usually occur in 25-year intervals, though Pope Francis called an “extraordinary” one in 2015 and has announced a 2033 Jubilee will commemorate the approximate 2,000th anniversary of the redemption won in the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Although Rome is the traditional destination,... Read more

Why Is This 1,700-Year-Old Creed So Important?

Last updated on: January 3, 2025 at 9:14 am By Richard Ostling

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THE RELIGION GUY’S ANSWER: No text ever written can compare with the impact of the Nicene Creed in this way: Whenever the world’s 2 billion-plus Christians gather for their regular Communion services, most recite these ancient words to define their core beliefs affirmed across the centuries, in a multitude of nations and languages, in churches that may differ on many other matters. This New Year marks the 1,700th anniversary of this credo, which was produced by bishops attending Christianity’s... Read more