Daily Religion Headlines

Biden gives new hope to refugees fleeing religious persecution
NPR

Two killed in stabbing spree at San Jose church
The Mercury News*

Faith groups are vital to the social safety net. But volunteers they rely on are aging and their denominations are shrinking
Religion News Service

Florida bans on conversion therapy for children voided by U.S. appeals court
Reuters

Tennessee’s Down syndrome abortion ban can be enforced, appeals court rules
CNN

Abortions resume in South Dakota after a seven-month halt
CBS News

State senator files bill to ban abortions in Arkansas
Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette*

Secret plans helped Brooklyn synagogue pull off massive, maskless wedding
New York Post*

Black clergy, United Way to launch anti-coronavirus effort
The Associated Press
 

China targets Muslim scholars and writers with increasingly harsh restrictions
NPR

France’s dragnet for extremists sweeps up some schoolchildren, too
The New York Times*

Muslim teen shoots and kills minority Ahmadi man in Pakistan
The Associated Press

Teen who left UK to join Islamic State should not be allowed back, Supreme Court told
Reuters

‘Let us disobey’: UK churches defy lockdown with secret meetings
The Guardian

Anger, fear and sorrow consume Armenians leaving land returned to Azerbaijan
The Wall Street Journal*

COVID-19 deaths of Serbian clerics highlight virus worries
The Associated Press

Thousands attend Pakistani cleric’s funeral despite COVID-19 curbs
Reuters

Global tech giants threaten to leave Pakistan over new rules
The Associated Press

Hindu leader asks Brazilian clothes brand to remove image of Lord Ganesh
Reuters
 

At the end of a tough year, spiritual leaders offer some ways to prepare yourself for whatever comes next
The New York Times*

‘American Catholic’ review: Doctrine and democracy
The Wall Street Journal*

How Samuel Paty’s murder reignited France’s free speech debate
The Guardian

In what moral universe does Biden require a Catholic task force when Trump got a free pass?
Los Angeles Times*

The spiritual mysteries of ‘The Mandalorian’
CNN

AOC’s favorite biblical story is mired in a dark, anti-Jewish past
National Catholic Reporter