During the past several weeks, I have been making the argument that progressive movements in America need to strengthen their connection to communities of faith and center their work in the church, as earlier progressive movements have done. In the past decade, millions of Americans have taken to the streets on behalf of social justice, but this has not led to much in the way of real change. The accomplishments of the civil-rights movement in the nineteen-fifties and sixties and of the Sanctuary Movement in the eighties depended, in part, on the infrastructure, moral clarity, and greater purpose of the church.
But this argument raises a question that I haven’t addressed. If it’s true that those earlier movements drew inspiration and leadership from the church, and if it’s also true that young liberals are increasingly secular, then where does that progressive energy come from? Why do young people participate in politics today, either through voting or through protest, in high numbers? What institution taught them a sense of morality, gave them words to express their outrage, and offered them the space and infrastructure to imagine a different world?
The answer is obvious: the university. In the past thirty or so years, the academy has replaced the church as the center of the liberal moral imagination, providing the sense of a community bound by ethics, a firmament of texts and knowledge that should inform action, and a meeting space for like-minded people. This isn’t an entirely new development, of course—American history is full of student-protest movements—but, rather, a consolidation of the university’s influence. Young people not only stopped going to church in large numbers, they also got fewer and fewer union jobs—and unions were the other institution in America that has historically produced a great deal of progressive change. College, particularly for middle-class and upper-middle-class kids, is now often the first and perhaps only place where young people are told that they are part of a community of their choosing, one that will prepare them to be “leaders of tomorrow” and instill in them a moral and ethical code of conduct.
So, if we accept that the university has become the incubator for social-justice movements in America, is it actually good at this job?
I began thinking about this question while reading about the effects of education on political polarization. It’s a familiar story by now: the more years of education you’ve received, the more likely you are to be a Democrat. In the past few election cycles, this correlation has become more robust. A number of conservative commentators, including Roger Kimball, Peter Wood, and Chris Rufo, maintain that political conformity overtook élite institutions of higher learning and turned every seminar room into some radical struggle session where students dutifully read Karl Marx and bell hooks. Even if you disagree, as I do, with their prescriptions to root out so-called radicalism wherever they find it, you can recognize that what they’re describing is not imaginary. In 1969, around the height of anti-Vietnam War protests and the Third World Liberation Front movement on campuses, the faculty at American universities were closer in political alignment to the general public. This held true until the end of the century, when a combination of factors—including the expansion of the social sciences, which tend to attract more liberals—led to the left-leaning academy that you see today. The extreme effects of this shift have been especially visible at élite universities; according to one conservative group’s report, seventy-seven per cent of faculty at Yale, for example, are or have largely supported Democrats, compared with just three per cent who are Republicans. But most forms of higher education have seen at least a doubling of its liberal-to-conservative gap since the nineties.
Wood argues that colleges are not only staffed with a disproportionate number of radicals who indoctrinate the students but also have turned everything from dormitory management to the dining halls over to the left. In this view, even students who might disagree with their radical professors will eventually succumb to progressive politics because it is embedded in every part of campus life. Wood and others—such as John McWhorter, who, in his book “Woke Racism,” contends that “wokeness” has become a religion on college campuses—understand that the contemporary university functions in some respects as a church, and they believe that it has taken up a dangerous and wrongheaded set of doctrines. (Wood co-authored a three-hundred-and-seventy-page study on my alma mater, Bowdoin College, because he believed that the school had become hostile to the teachings of Western civilization.) These critics do not want to change the basically religious function of the university so much as they want to swap out the sermons.
I am talking about a coordinated campaign launched by the religious right to overturn gay marriage, arguing it harms children. The effort is a direct attack on the Supreme Court’s 2015 Obergefell vs. Hodges decision making same-sex marriage a fundamental right of equality under the 14th Amendment, but also seeks to engage churches on the issue and change public opinion.
Good luck with that last part. Most Americans support marriage equality. But the Supreme Court? That’s much iffier these days.
But what disturbs me the most, while we wait for litigation, is that the campaign is yet another disingenuous ploy by MAGA to use children as an excuse for attacking civil rights, and attempting, Christian nationalist-style, to impose religious values on general society.
MAGA frames so much hate — especially around immigrants and diversity — as protection of children, and through decades’ worth of conspiracy theory has attempted to paint LGBTQ+ parents as deviant and predatory. (QAnon, for example, was all about saving kids from gay and Democratic predators.)
In reality, it’s the MAGA folks who are traumatizing children.
“Our children are afraid. They’re terrorized,” Chauntyll Allen told me. She’s the St. Paul, Minn., school board member who was arrested recently for her part in the church protest of a pastor who is also an ICE official.
“And we’re not just talking about immigrants,” she continued. All kids “are watching this, they’re experiencing this, and they’re carrying the terror in their body. What is this going to do for our society in 20 years?”
This campaign to undo marriage equality, far from protecting kids, is just another injury inflicted on them for political gain. It features twoCalifornia cases that are meant to show how terrible any form of same-sex parenting is, but mischaracterizes the facts for maximum outrage.
The campaign also specifically targets in vitro fertilization and surrogacy as dangerous gateways to promoting LGBTQ+ families, an increasingly common position in far-right religious circles that would like to see more white women having babies through sex with white husbands.
Attacking marriage equality isn’t about protecting children any more than deporting immigrants is about stopping crime. Allowing it to be framed that way actually puts in danger the stability of the approximately 300,000 kids nationwide who are being raised by about 832,000 couples in same-sex marriages.
It endangers the physical and mental health of LGBTQ+ kids in any family who are growing up in a world that is increasingly hostile to them — with gender and identity hate crimes on the rise.
And it endangers everyone who values a free and fair democracy that separates church and state by eroding the rights of the vulnerable as precedent for eroding the rights of whomever ticks them off next. If LGBTQ+ marriages aren’t legally protected, how long before racists come for the Loving decision, which legalized interracial marriage?
If you doubt the MAGA agenda extends that far, when Second Lady Usha Vance recently announced her fourth pregnancy, one lovely fellow on social media wrote, “There is nothing exciting about this. We will never vote for your race traitor husband.”
Hate is a virus that spreads how it pleases.
Those behind the effort to undo marriage equality say that by legalizing the ability for LGBTQ+ folks to tie the knot, America put “adult desires” ahead of children’s well-being, which is dependent on being raised in a home that includes a married man and woman.
Never mind the millions of kids being raised by single parents, grandparents (looking at you, JD Vance) or other guardians who aren’t the biological John-and-Jane mommy and daddy of conservative lore. Never mind the many same-sex marriages that don’t include kids.
“Americans need to understand the threat that gay marriage poses to children and that natural marriage is directly connected to children protection,” Katy Faust, the leader of the campaign, said in an interview with a Christian news website.
Of course, the campaign also makes no mention of the hundreds of children currently held in detention camps around the country — on some days, the number of children locked up just by ICE (not Border Patrol or in the care of other agencies) has skyrocketed to 400 under Trump, according to the Marshall Project.
Outside of lockup, Black and brown children are being traumatized daily by the fear that they or their parents will be taken or even killed by federal agents. Thousands of kids across the country, including in California, have stopped going to school and other public places for fear of endangering themselves or their families. Don’t expect to see these folks campaigning to protect those kids.
The campaign also ignores the fact that U.S. Department of Justice funding to combat sex crimes against children was just slashed, leaving victims and prosecutors without crucial resources to fight that real and undoubtedly harmful exploitation of our youth by sex traffickers.
And Epstein. I cannot even start on save-the-children folks who seemingly ignore the victims of the sex crimes detailed in those files — many of them children at the time — while wringing their hands over families who don’t look like their own. It is a mind-blowing amount of hypocrisy.
But of course, none of this is about saving children — yours, mine or anyone’s.
But framing it around protecting children is a powerful manipulation — a last-ditch effort as same sex marriage does in fact become more accepted. Because who doesn’t want to save our kids? From whatever.
Don’t be surprised if this effort gains traction in coming months. As we head into elections, the MAGA machine will attempt to turn the lens away from immigration and back to old-school issues such as feminism, abortion and same-sex marriage, which time and again its base has been willing to vote on regardless of what else is happening.
Because they actually don’t care about kids. They care about power, and they’re perfectly willing to exploit kids to get it.
When I was working with refugees in Lebanon and Turkey and the Iraqi crisis, Rwanda, other places—you know, when everything’s taken away from you, God is all you have left. So we need a way to speak about who God is and who we are before God, and I think theology gives us a way of doing that.
I’ve noticed something similar in debates around homelessness and immigration: the church does enormous amounts of work on the ground, but theological questions seem to have been pushed out of the broader public discourse.
I did my graduate work at Berkeley, so when I was in California, I can remember one day I woke up and, literally, on the other side of the bed where I slept, outside the window, was a homeless person. And for me that began a long journey of trying to understand theology from the other side of the wall—not just from the perspective of a library or a room but from the streets and from the people who are living on the edge.
What you see in the church’s teachings called the seamless garment of life runs through homelessness, runs through immigration, runs through the elderly, runs through all other life issues. When I spend time speaking to migrants at borders around the world, I often ask them, What is it that you would want people to hear? Or if you could preach on Sunday, what would you want people to know? And often it’s about dignity. It’s about saying, We’re human beings here, and you’re treating us like we’re dogs.
The issue is these people have become nonpersons. I mean, they’re just not even seen. And I think part of the work of the church is saying, Actually, these people belong in a human community, and they belong to be seen, and therefore they belong in the discourse as well.
You make this core argument that all people are created in the image of God, Imago Dei. That’s something that many people would say they believe. But when you see the news right now, the horrific videos coming out, the responses to them—do you feel that idea is in crisis?
What we’ve also included in that understanding is that in the fall, we lost the likeness, but we never lose the image. There’s a deep core within us that’s indestructible—our worth and our value before God.
One of the things I often say is that if we can’t see in the immigrant or in the homeless or in people who are considered different from us something of ourselves, we’ve lost touch with our humanity. So I think that’s what’s at stake. We’ve deported our own soul, if we’ve really lost touch with our own humanity.
You argue that every person should have everything necessary for living a truly human life. What does that look like in practice if it’s not simply open borders?
The church recognizes that nations have the right to control their borders, but it’s not an absolute right. It’s subjugated to a larger sense of what’s called the universal destination of all goods. And what does the church mean by that? In practice, that everything belongs to God, and when we die, we’re gonna have to give up everything anyway. So there’s a way in which we’re, at best, stewards in this life, not owners of anything in an absolute way. And even our nationalities and our national identities have only a relative importance in light of a larger vision of what the kingdom of God is about.
The question is, what’s the narrative that shapes our consciousness on this? If the narrative is, This is my stuff, this is my country, this is where I belong, this is what I own, and I have to defend it and protect it—that’s one way of understanding it. But if the narrative is, Everything I have is a gift, and when I die, I’m going to give everything up, that I’m a steward and not an owner, and I can be judged by how I use what I’ve been given—that’s a different way of inhabiting the world. If the narrative is about how do we move closer to communion with God, and in closer connection with each other, with a life and a faith that does justice, in terms of caring for one another, that’s a very different way of inhabiting the world.
I can’t say my affiliation with Christianity was very strong, but I did develop a positive association with the idea of moral community—the idea that we could get together, support each other, and try to do something good for one another and for the world. That seemed like an important thing for us to be doing.
When did you start thinking about the role of religion in your animal-rights activism? I ask because the organization you started, Direct Action Everywhere, feels explicitly secular.
I remember having a conversation around 2015 with Doug McAdam, a sociologist at Stanford who studies political movements. For the most part, he thought that DxE was a fascinating demonstration of grassroots mobilization and community-building. But he said one thing that really hit me hard, and made me think we might be on the wrong path: “You’re not really harnessing any particular identity. And movements that don’t have identities behind them just don’t succeed, because they can’t sustain themselves over the long term.”
Fundamentally, what moves people is when they believe they’re fighting for something that’s part of them. If it’s purely about ideology, not about identity, it’s just not going to create sustained mobilization. The example he gave me was the Black church. He told me to read “The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement,” by Aldon Morris.
I already knew a lot about Martin Luther King, Jr., and how the movement collapsed in the late sixties partly because of the loss of faith. There wasn’t the same sense of community and commitment. Doug shared this acronym with me, WUNC, coined by the sociologist Charles Tilly. It stands for “worthiness, unity, numbers, and commitment.” When you have those four attributes, you have a successful movement.
I realized there wasn’t a sense of worthiness in our movement, partly because there wasn’t a commitment to some greater moral purpose. In the late stage of the civil-rights movement, it became nihilistic—the Weather Underground, the Vietnam War tearing at the fabric of people’s commitment to nation, to community, to church. Our movement just never had that deep sense of moral purpose that made people feel like, O.K., these people are praiseworthy people.
You don’t think “Don’t kill animals” is a worthy cause?
I think it’s a worthy cause. I don’t think people see us as worthy people. There’s a big difference. It’s not enough to have a good cause. You have to have people believe you’re good people. If anything, it’s almost the opposite—even though people think we’re a good cause, they find us annoying and pedantic.
I remember when Ta-Nehisi Coates went on Ezra Klein’s show after he read “Why We’re Polarized.” He called it a “cold, atheist book.” I think, even when animal rights is at our best, people see us as a cold, hard-atheist movement. There’s sentimentality and emotion about suffering in animal-confinement facilities, but there isn’t this sense that we’re a morally meaningful, upstanding contingent of the broader human community.
I agree that the public thinks you guys are freaks or agents provocateurs trying to advance a marginal cause. How does affiliation with the church change that?
I think it’s a complete antidote to that “freak” allegation. It’s hard to say whether this is a cultural artifact of the past ten thousand years or whether there’s something inherent in humanity—the desire for divine purpose. But, regardless of whether it’s socialization or something inherent, most humans on Earth see the divine as the most morally praiseworthy thing in our communities. This is even true of the cold, hard atheists—the effective altruists. They don’t call the divine God. Their divinity is some form of very strict utilitarianism.
A shared narrative has to involve a story that doesn’t just matter to me. We all have stories about ourselves that are funny or interesting or inspiring, but a lot of times they only matter to us. And there are some stories that affect all of us—the nation-state, universities, sports teams.
The other thing that’s important is a sense of power beyond our comprehension and control. I think that might be inherent to human beings—there’s something about that we almost want to worship.
Two activists arrested in connection with a protest at a church where the leader of a local Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office serves as a pastor were released from custody on Friday afternoon.
The protest happened Sunday, as a group joined the Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, before chanting “ICE out” and “justice for Renee Good.”
Former Twin Cities NAACP president Nekima Levy Armstrong, St. Paul School Board member Chauntyll Louisa Allen and William Kelly were arrested Thursday, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
CBS News learned that Levy Armstrong and Allen were released from law enforcement custody at the Sherburne County Jail in Elk River, Minnesota, on Friday.
The Racial Justice Network, a grassroots organization led by Levy Armstrong, said in a social media post that federal judges ordered the “immediate release” of her and Allen. The group also posted a seven-minute video of Levy Armstrong’s arrest.
It’s unknown whether officials have ordered Kelly’s release.
Bondi cited 18 U.S. Code § 241 in her announcement, and said it pertained to when “two or more persons conspire to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution or laws of the United States.”
“I surrendered myself peacefully, deliberately, and with intention,” Levy Armstrong said in a written statement about her arrest. “I demanded dignity, humanity, and respect, not just for myself, but for every person who has ever been brutalized, silenced, or disappeared by unchecked government power. We stood in protest because families are being torn apart, communities terrorized, and constitutional rights trampled. And we will not be intimidated into silence.”
Cities Church is seen in St. Paul, Minn. where activists shut down a service claiming the pastor was also working as an ICE agent, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026 in St. Paul, Minn.
Angelina Katsanis / AP
Levy Armstrong, who is also an ordained minister, wrote about the protest on Facebook, saying, “It’s time for judgement to begin and it will begin in the House of God!!!”
A shooting outside a church in Salt Lake City Wednesday night left at least two people dead and several more wounded, authorities and church officials confirmed.
Salt Lake City police said in a social media post that along with the two people killed, at least six more were wounded. At least three of those injured were in critical condition, police said.
Police respond to a fatal shooting in a parking lot of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City on Jan. 7, 2025.
Rio Giancarlo/The Deseret News via AP
In a statement, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints confirmed that the shooting occurred outside a church building while a funeral service was being held inside.
“We are aware of a serious incident that occurred outside a Church meetinghouse at 660 North Redwood Road in Salt Lake City tonight as a memorial service was being held in the chapel,” the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wrote on social media. “The Church is cooperating with law enforcement and is grateful for the efforts of first responders.”
The suspect or suspects involved in the shooting remain at large, police said.
The circumstances leading up to the incident were still unclear. The FBI said in a social media post that it was aware of the incident and was offering support to local law enforcement.
BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. — Four days after hurricane‑force winds tore through Boulder County, families still without power are leaning on neighbors and volunteers to get through the cold, dark aftermath.
Boulder County was hit with gusts reaching 112mph on Friday morning, causing extensive damage and severe power outages.
“It’s really hard. It’s pretty hard times,” said Mayte Cerceda, a Boulder County resident who woke up in the dark this morning as she and her family entered day 4 without power. “At night it’s really cold.”
The one question she and her family have been asking is “When will the power be back?”
Cerceda said her family spent Saturday morning throwing out all the food in their fridge, completely clearing it out, after losing power on Wednesday.
She said her family couldn’t find a solution during this difficult time.
That’s when Pinewood Church got involved to help.
“My family went on a walk in our neighborhood last night after some of the winds had died down. It was so intense, like going outside. It was so windy,” said Jess Manuel, the Lead Pastor at Pinewood Church and a Boulder County resident herself.
“We started seeing trees on cars and houses, and so that’s kind of when it hit us. ‘Hey, we don’t see anyone out here. We should try to see what kind of relief efforts we can do,” she recalled.
Pinewood Church announced Saturday that it would begin relief efforts for people impacted by the strong winds.
They brought volunteers together to repair damage and pack food for those who lost theirs during the outages.
Manuel said she wants people to know they are not alone.
“We have teams that are willing and ready. We have about 150 people on our serve team that are ready to go as soon as they get the message,” she exclaimed.
But while they’re lending a helping hand, Manuel and some of the other volunteers are dealing with similar situations at home.
Local
Back‑to‑back windstorms batter Colorado, leave tens of thousands without power
Manuel said she lost power on Wednesday, then it came back on for a little while on Thursday night before immediately turning off again.
“We don’t have a signal at our house. We don’t have Wi Fi,” she said. “The entire rubber roof of our house is completely gone, and so thankfully, it didn’t rain last night.”
“I think that was kind of everyone’s story. Even if you weren’t in the shut off, you kind of got shut off,” she said.
Mike Hegarty, one of the volunteers who showed up with Pinewood Church for relief efforts Saturday morning, said he did not have power either, saying he lost it early Friday morning.
Regardless, he believes it’s important to help others.
“This was just sort of a natural thing for us when there’s an emergency,” he said. “I’m just happy to be here, happy to be able to help the community.”
He and others are helping families like Cerceda’s find a solution.
“It makes us feel good, because now we have a little bit of a source of help,” Cerceda said.
To volunteer with Pinewood Church, text VOLUNTEER to +18332854418 or visit their website.
Boulder County residents enter day four without power as community steps in
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Social media videos of a Catholic priest turning away Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from his church are garnering support and thousands of shares, but they were generated with artificial intelligence tools.
An Instagram video with 22,500 views as of Dec. 5, shows a passionate priest blocking ICE agents from entering his parish and giving a speech on the steps of the church, with a crowd of parishioners behind him.
“You’re not welcome here, not today, and not on this church. I don’t know what god you worship, maybe an orange one, but my god is love,” the priest says in the Dec. 1 video post. “Now go and don’t come back.”
A background voice says, “Preach it bishop” and “hallelujah.”
@politifact Don’t fall for it! Videos of a Catholic priest turning away ICE agents from his church aren’t real. While the posts garnered support and thousands of shares, they were generated with artificial intelligence tools. AI-video detectors determine the footage was AI-generated. We also found the user that posted the clips sells courses on how to earn money with AI videos. #AI#priest#ICE#church#video♬ original sound – PolitiFact
Some people in the comments commended the unidentified bishop for his bravery to stand against law enforcement. Other commenters wrongly identified him as Chicago Auxiliary Bishop José María Garcia-Maldonado, whom ICE prohibited from giving detained Catholics holy communion back in November.
Churches have warned parishioners of ICE presence and have spoken against it in their local communities. But this video isn’t real.
The same user postedothervideosof priests with similar scripts at different churches on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. According to the user’s social media profiles, he sells multiple courses on how to earn money with AI videos made with AI video generators such as Sora 2 and Veo.
The videos look convincing, but there are some generative AI giveaways:
We didn’t find credible news articles pertaining to the incident, specifically in local news outlets from cities such as Chicago, New Orleans and North Carolina, where the federal government has conducted recent ICE operations.
PolitiFact ran the Instagram video through Hive Moderation, which helps determine whether videos were generated with artificial intelligence. These programs are imperfect, but Hive Moderation concluded that the video is “99.9% likely to contain AI-generated or deepfake content.”
In 1972, fewer than 3% of Americans identified as nondenominational Christians. Now it’s 14%, or nearly 40 million people, according to the General Social Survey. Maurice DuBois visited a nondenominational church in St. Louis, Missouri.
Congregants of an east Charlotte church scattered into the woods Saturday when masked federal agents arrived and detained one of their members, according to witnesses.
About 15 to 20 church members were doing yard work on the property off Albemarle Road while their children played games and their spouses cooked meals. Agents parked just outside a closed gate leading to the church parking lot and ran into the yard, said the pastor, who did not want to identify himself or his church.
The agents asked no questions and showed no identification before taking one man away, whose wife and child were inside at the time, the pastor said. They attempted to grab others, too.
“Right now, everybody is scared. Everybody,” he said. “One of these guys with immigration, he say he was going to arrest one of the other guys in the church. He pushed him.”
Inside the church, women and children sobbed as they wondered whether their loved ones had been taken. Some yard workers fled into the surrounding woods when officials arrived, including 15-year-old Miguel Vazquez.
“I thought, ‘Wait, why am I running? I’m a citizen,’” Vazquez said. He was friends with the man who was taken and worries about the family he left behind.
Miguel Vazquez, 15, witnessed U.S. Border Patrol agents arresting a person at a church while he was cleaning outside on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. He ran and came back later. KHADEJEH NIKOUYEH knikouyeh@charlotteobserver.com
The church is suspending services and yard work until members feel safe to gather again without the threat of immigration raids, Vazquez said. Church members were aware the U.S. Border Patrol was planning an operation in Charlotte this weekend but didn’t think twice about their place of worship.
“We thought church was safe and nothing gonna happen,” Vazquez said. “But it did happen.”
Nick Sullivan covers the City of Charlotte for The Observer. He studied journalism at the University of South Carolina, and he previously covered education for The Arizona Republic and The Colorado Springs Gazette.
It wasn’t Sunday service at Westwood Community Church, but the main auditorium was still full. In the seats – church leaders from across the Twin Cities and beyond.
Saturday’s event wasn’t focused on growing faith, but protecting it. Hosted by Kingswood Security Consulting, more than 100 churches came to learn about the latest in securing places of worship.
Fresh in the minds of many – the attacks at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis nearly two months prior.
“Since annunciation, I’ve had 50 phone calls from a variety of churches,” said Jim Theis, Westwood’s director of facilities and security. “(You’re wondering) How did it happen? And then I go, why did it happen? And what could we have done to prevent this?”
For Kingswood founder Simon Osamoh, the Annunciation attack pushed many churches to reconsider their security plan – or consider one for the first time.
“I think the annunciation shooting really created a sense of urgency,” he said. “People are now starting to say that we can’t deny the dangers in the modern world – and what does that look like in a house of worship?”
Saturday’s seminar featured security vendors on site – and partnerships with the BCA and Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office.
“You’re always thinking about, how can I prevent this from happening again?” said Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt. “I don’t think people understand how not just the community, but the people in public safety – how that carries with us.”
VATICAN CITY (AP) — King Charles III and Queen Camilla prayed Thursday with Pope Leo XIV in an historic visit to the Vatican to forge closer relations between the Church of England and the Catholic Church, a welcome spiritual respite for the royals from the turmoil at home over sexual misconduct allegations against Prince Andrew.
Charles, who is the titular head of the Church of England, and Camilla sat in golden thrones on the raised altar of the Sistine Chapel, in front of Michelangelo’s “Last Judgment,” while Leo and the Anglican archbishop of York presided over an ecumenical service.
The event marked the first time since the Reformation that the heads of the two Christian churches, divided for centuries over issues that now include the ordination of female priests, have prayed together.
The accompanying music reflected the Catholic and Anglican musical heritage: Hymns were sung by members of both the Sistine Chapel choir and visiting members of two royal choirs: the St. George’s Chapel choir of Windsor Castle and the children’s choir of the Chapel Royal of St. James’s Palace.
Respite from scandal
The visit comes as the U.K. royal family is once again under intense scrutiny over Prince Andrew’s ties with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The scandal that has long dogged the king’s brother was reignited this week after a memoir by Epstein and Andrew accuser Virginia Giuffre was published.
The 65-year-old prince has said he will stop using his titles, including Duke of York, but has “vigorously” denied Giuffre’s claims. Buckingham Palace and the U.K. government are under pressure to formally strip Andrew of his dukedom and princely title, and kick him out of the 30-room mansion near Windsor Castle where he lives.
Charles’ and Camilla’s visit had actually been planned for earlier this year, but was rescheduled after Pope Francis got sick and then died. Charles had strongly wanted to visit the Vatican during the 2025 Holy Year, a once-every-quarter-century celebration of Christianity.
Step toward unity
Anglicans split from the Catholic Church in 1534 when English King Henry VIII was refused a marriage annulment. While popes for decades have forged warm relations with the Church of England and the broader Anglican Communion on a path toward greater unity, the two churches remain divided.
The Sistine Chapel service, though, marked a historic new step toward unity and included readings and prayers focused on the unifying theme of God the creator.
Later Thursday, Charles traveled to a pontifical basilica that has strong, traditional ties to the Church of England, St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, to receive a new formal recognition. The title “Royal Confrater” is a sign of spiritual fellowship and was reciprocated by Charles: Leo was given the title of “Papal Confrater of St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.”
At the basilica, Charles sat in a special chair decorated with his coat of arms, bearing the Latin exhortation “Ut Unum Sint” (That they may be one), the mantra for Christian unity. The chair was given to him and will remain in the basilica for Charles and his heirs to use, officials said.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Catholic archbishop of Westminster, said that the king’s visit strengthens the relationship forged by Queen Elizabeth II, who came to Rome six times during her reign, including during the 2000 Holy Year.
“Pope Leo and King Charles coming together before God in prayer is an example of a genuine and profound cooperation,” he told The Associated Press. He recalled that Charles accepted his constitutional role as supreme governor of the Church of England, “but also his role in protecting freedom of religion and the important role of faith in society across his kingdom.”
The visit comes just weeks after the election of the first female archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally. She didn’t join the king and queen at the Vatican, since she hasn’t been formally installed as the Church of England’s spiritual leader. In her place was the archbishop of York, the Most Rev. Stephen Cottrell.
Anglican Communion strains
While the king copes with tensions over the Epstein scandal at home, Mullally’s election has heightened tensions within the Anglican Communion abroad. The archbishop of Canterbury is considered the “first among equals” in the Anglican Communion, which has more than 85 million members spread across 165 countries. But following Mullally’s appointment, a long-building schism in the Anglican Communion appears close to a final rupture.
An organization of conservative Anglican primates — representing a majority of the communion’s membership, primarily in Africa — announced that it’s rejecting all of the bureaucratic links that have historically connected the Anglican Communion.
The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, known as Gafcon, says it’s forming a new structure, although it claims it represents the historic Anglican Communion in a “reordered” form.
Its statement denounced the LGBTQ-affirming stances of some parts of the Anglican Communion as precipitating the break, a reference to positions taken by the Church of England and the Episcopal Church in the United States. But it closely followed another Gafcon statement lamenting Mullally’s appointment, saying that many believe that only men can be bishops and rejecting her office as a defining point of Anglican unity.
The Gloucester Daily Times aims to be accurate. If you are aware of a factual error in a story, please call Times Editor Andrea Holbrook at 978-675-2713.
A quotation in a story, “At-large candidates debate spending,” published Monday online and in print, requires correction. “So there is not a lot of slack to play with,” said incumbent Councilor at-Large candidate Jason Grow during a debate at the Lanesville Community Center on Thursday, Oct. 16.
President Dallin H. Oaks, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, speaks during a morning session of the 195th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on Oct. 4, 2025. (Isaac Hale/The Deseret News via AP, file)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Dallin H. Oaks, a former Utah Supreme Court justice, was named Tuesday as the new president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its more than 17 million members worldwide.
Oaks’ selection to lead what is widely known as the Mormon church follows the recent death of his 101-year-old predecessor, Russell M. Nelson. His ascension is not a surprise; a longstanding church policy says the longest-tenured member of a top leadership body called the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles becomes the next president. The tradition is meant to ensure a seamless transition and prevent internal or public lobbying.
“I accept with humility the responsibility that God has place upon me and commit my whole heart and soul to the service to which I’ve been called,” Oaks said.
As president, Oaks is considered a prophet and seer who will guide the church through divine revelation from God alongside two top counselors and members of the Quorum of the Twelve. He’ll set policy and oversee the church’s many business interests.
The church’s leadership transition comes as many of its members have been shaken by a deadly attack on a Michigan congregation, and are grappling with the high-profile assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in Utah, where the denomination is based.
At 93, Oaks will be one of the church’s oldest presidents. He will serve in the role until he dies. Tenures for past presidents have varied, with the longest reaching nearly 30 years and the shortest being just nine months.
Experts are doubtful Oaks will pivot sharply from Nelson’s approach to leadership because he was one of Nelson’s closest advisers. But experts say Oaks might shift from Nelson’s focus on the faith’s global footprint to domestic issues.
For his top counselors, Oaks selected Henry B. Eyring, who also served in that role for Nelson, and former lawyer D. Todd Christofferson, the church’s seventh most senior apostle.
While serving on a lower leadership panel in the 1990s, Christofferson was involved in negotiations with Jewish leaders regarding the posthumous baptisms of Holocaust victims. In 1994, following intense criticism from the Jewish community, the church agreed to end the ceremonial baptism of Holocaust victims. After it was revealed that they continued, church leaders again spoke out against the practice in 2012.
“I confess that this is not what I expected when I woke up this morning,” Christofferson said during Tuesday’s announcement. “But I am deeply honored by this calling and the trust that it carries.”
In the first major difference from Nelson’s presidency, Oaks announced during the faith’s recent general conference that the church will slow the announcement of new temples.
He also emphasized the importance of family while acknowledging that not all families look the same. In a departure from his typical sermons, which often appeal more to reason than emotion, Oaks shared a story about the day his grandfather told him at age 7 that his father had died. He went on to describe the value of being raised by a single mother and others who stepped into parental roles for him and his siblings.
Oaks is known for his jurist sensibilities and traditionalist beliefs on marriage and religious freedom. He has been a driving force in the church against same-sex marriage and in upholding a teaching that homosexuality is a sin — a position that causes uneasiness among LGBTQ+ members and their allies.
He said in 2022 that social and legal pressure would not influence the church to change its posture on same-sex marriage and matters of gender identity.
Yet in recent years, Oaks has been part of some key church moves that suggest he might not make the topic a centerpiece of his administration, experts say. Oaks was Nelson’s closest adviser in 2019 when Nelson rescinded a policy that banned baptisms for children of gay parents and labeled same-sex couples as sinners eligible for expulsion.
Oaks has also been a strong advocate for civil public discourse.
Early on as an apostle, he was involved in a crackdown on far-right extremism that resulted in some excommunications. In 2020, he gave a speech about having faith in elections without resorting to radicalism or violence.
Tamara Wallace has resigned as the mayor of South Lake Tahoe after her recent admission that she stole money from a church where she worked as an administrator.In a letter to local media earlier this month that included the confession, Wallace said she had been recovering from a suicide attempt and reflecting on the traumatic experiences in her life. She said she aimed to pay back “every cent I have taken.”The El Dorado County district attorney said it was investigating the stolen funds and Wallace’s confession.Wallace submitted her resignation on Monday night, which was effective immediately, the city said. In her letter, Wallace also urged South Lake Tahoe Pro Tem Cody Bass to resign, following his recent arrest. Bass was arrested on Sept. 25 in connection with an alleged assault and threats at a bar where he had been banned. Deputies reviewed surveillance footage and determined Bass was the aggressor. He’s charged with misdemeanor assault, trespassing and harassment.In a previous statement to KCRA 3, Bass said, “I can guarantee my community I did nothing wrong, I believe in due process, bring on the trial.”The city of South Lake Tahoe said its next council meeting is set for Oct. 21. The agenda will include a “council reorganization to select a mayor and mayor pro tem” and “methods for filling the vacant city council seat,” the city said.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
In a letter to local media earlier this month that included the confession, Wallace said she had been recovering from a suicide attempt and reflecting on the traumatic experiences in her life. She said she aimed to pay back “every cent I have taken.”
The El Dorado County district attorney said it was investigating the stolen funds and Wallace’s confession.
Wallace submitted her resignation on Monday night, which was effective immediately, the city said.
In her letter, Wallace also urged South Lake Tahoe Pro Tem Cody Bass to resign, following his recent arrest.
Bass was arrested on Sept. 25 in connection with an alleged assault and threats at a bar where he had been banned.
Deputies reviewed surveillance footage and determined Bass was the aggressor. He’s charged with misdemeanor assault, trespassing and harassment.
In a previous statement to KCRA 3, Bass said, “I can guarantee my community I did nothing wrong, I believe in due process, bring on the trial.”
The city of South Lake Tahoe said its next council meeting is set for Oct. 21.
The agenda will include a “council reorganization to select a mayor and mayor pro tem” and “methods for filling the vacant city council seat,” the city said.
On a recent Sunday morning in Provo, Utah, a small congregation of about two dozen people gathered in a church hall for ward services. At the front of the room stood the bishop, who blessed the bread and water in Spanish before passing the trays around for the congregation. The melodic sounds of the piano reverberated across the room as members sang “Welcome Home” — a new hymn for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Ward services like this have brought a consistent comfort and sense of community for Izzy, who came to Provo to study at Brigham Young University a few years ago. But lately, the increased possibility of ICE raids across the country has made him nervous.
“I just couldn’t focus. Just instant anxiety and fear. I worried about my family, and how I was gonna get through this year or the next four or three,” Izzy said. The prospect of an ICE recruitment fair nearby also disturbed him.
When he was just a toddler, Izzy and his parents came from Venezuela to the United States in search of a better life. Then one Christmas, Mormon missionaries brought gifts to their home in West Valley. He and his family were sealed in Utah. He was accepted into the DACA program, Deferred Action for Child Arrivals, years ago.
For many Latino members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, there is an ambivalent sense of the Church’s stance on immigrants. There is discontent about how explicit the Church has been in condemning ongoing ICE raids, compared to Catholic leaders for example, while others have focused on providing individual help to those in need.
The church has previously issued statements regarding immigration in 2011 and 2018 about the separation of families at the U.S.-Mexico border. But its most recent statement published in January listed three points in order. While it reads similarly to past statements on loving thy neighbor and concern about keeping families together, the first point this time notably focused on “obeying the law.”
When The Times reached out to ask about why the new statement was numbered and in this order, the Church declined to comment.
The Salt Lake Temple in Salt Lake City, Utah.
(Isaac Hale / For The Times)
Dr. David-James Gonzales, a ward leader and history professor at BYU who studies Latino civil rights and migration, notes that the political climate has shifted on immigration in 2025.
“This issue is one of the most polarizing issues nationally and it has split the Church,” he said, adding that it’s fair to question the way the statement is written. “If I’m analyzing it as a historian, it’s speaking to this moment that the Church needs to make clear to this administration that it’s not a sanctuary church.”
The Church does not release publicly any demographic data, but according to a 2009 Pew Research Center report, 86% of the Church’s membership is white. Latinos are some of the fastest growing members worldwide, thanks to missionary work in countries like Mexico, Brazil and Peru.
Yet despite the growth in Spanish-speaking wards and a more diverse Mormon community, many interviewed for this story still feel they face challenges of racism and belonging.
This January, Brigham Young University shut down its “Dreamers” resource hub for undocumented students, after facing backlash from state leaders who complained that their tithings — or 10% obligated donations to the Church — were being used for illegal immigrants. Nori Gomez, the founding member of the Dreamer resource center, said the program’s offices started receiving threatening phone calls. The university eventually removed the resource page.
“It was the highlight of my BYU experience,” she said. “But with how much universities are being attacked right now, I don’t agree with it, but I see why.”
Students like Izzy had found a sense of community among other DACA recipients through these online resources. Shutting the center down added another chilling effect for church members.
For former LDS leaders like Dr. Ignacio Garcia, a retired Latino studies professor and former bishop at a local Spanish-speaking ward, the Church’s silence has been disappointing.
“The Church’s struggle has a lot to do with some of its members, some of its very conservative white members,” Garcia said. “[These congregants] will love you as an individual member in your ward, but then go out and condemn all immigrants.”
In July, following hours of public comment from more than 100 community members opposing ICE’s presence in Utah, the Utah County Commission voted unanimously to enter a cooperative agreement with ICE to share data and work on a joint task force with local police. The county sheriff argued that a collaboration would allow more leeway for local officials to inject “Utah County values” into enforcement and public safety rather than allowing complete federal oversight.
Evelyn R. has worked as a trainer in Provo for young Mormons who are about to embark on their 18 to 24-month missions domestically and abroad. As a DACA recipient herself who previously served a Spanish-speaking mission in Georgia, she has overheard mixed feelings from attendees at the center about how undocumented people can even be baptized.
“[One girl said] you’re not really going to get anywhere with these people because they can’t get baptized. Because in order to be a member of the Church, you need to be abiding by the laws of the land, which is Article 12 of the faith,” Evelyn said.
Article 12 refers to a revelation written by Joseph Smith, stating, “we believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.” The article has guided members to be good citizens in their communities.
Evelyn said she had to ask her mission president if this was true. He reassured her that being undocumented did not gatekeep someone from belonging. It’s a stance that the First Presidency, the Church’s highest officials, also affirmed, saying that being undocumented should not itself prevent “an otherwise worthy Church member” from entering the temple or being ordained to priesthood, and calling upon congregation members to avoid being judgmental. As a convert to the Church and someone who comes from a diverse background, she said mixed responses like this were really hard to hear.
“God doesn’t care about our status or who we are, where we came from in order to be a member of the Church,” she said. Some days, she feels that she can identify as a member of the Church, but not necessarily as part of larger “Mormon culture” — one that might be predominantly white and more conservative on politics in Utah.
“We’re teaching principles and the doctrine of Christ,” she said. “I don’t think we’re necessarily learning how to apply those things.”
People pass portraits of previous members of the First Presidency before the 195th Semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Oct. 4.
(Isaac Hale / Associated Press)
Luna Alvarez-Sproul, 25, works as a school teacher in Draper, Utah, where she often translates documents into Spanish for parents. She spent 18 months serving a Spanish-speaking mission in Salmon, Idaho, where many ranch hands were seasonal employees from Latin America.
“As a missionary, we didn’t have to receive special permission from somebody in order to baptize an undocumented individual,” she recalled. “But there [are] so many members of our church that don’t believe that they should be here with their families, which I feel is contradictory in and of itself.”
When guidance can vary so much, some church leaders have taken a more locally-focused ward approach — such as delivering food aid to members, helping out with rent or even sharing personal contacts with immigration lawyers. But addressing topics like the ICE raids during a service is likely taboo.
“Leaders are trained and asked to be very careful about how they address it. And I think that puts them in a really hard situation, especially when they have members of their congregation that are affected by this,” Izzy said.
The frustration may also have to do with reconciling religious principles with the views that are held by many people in the Church.
Other members disagree about an institution-wide response. Julia, who asked to use a pseudonym due to her undocumented status, has seen firsthand the ways that individual actions have been kind to her.
“I don’t think the Mormon Church should be responsible for us. The gospel teaches us to be independent,” she said.
Utah also has infrastructure for many undocumented people to succeed in their daily life, she noted; it was the first state in 2005 to implement the “driver’s privilege card,” a driver’s license specifically for those who were undocumented, allowing them to commute to work and obtain insurance.
People wear “We Are Charlie” shirts at a vigil for political activist Charlie Kirk on Sept. 12 in Provo, Utah.
(Michael Ciaglo / Getty Images)
Just a few miles away in Orem, conservative influencer Charlie Kirk was shot at Utah Valley University during a debate less than a week before I conducted these interviews. Hundreds of students and local community members attended vigils, laying bouquets of fresh flowers and American flags alongside crosses and the Book of Mormon on university lawns. “If you want unity, say his name UV,” one poster said. Others were adorned with Bible verses as the air echoed with different Mormon hymns.
The LDS Church released a statement condemning the violence and lawless behavior.
Isa Benjamin Garcia spent some time reflecting on the week’s tragic events after the Sunday ward service. As a daughter of a Mexican immigrant, she became more worried when President Trump rescinded a Biden-era policy that excluded churches and schools from immigration raids.
“There’s a lot of rhetoric around violence, but it’s not acknowledged all the other violence that has been and is,” she said, referring to ICE raids, including an incident where a day laborer died after running away from ICE in California.
Other members echoed this sentiment. “Something I’ve been wrestling with over the last few months is why the Church doesn’t say, ‘This is wrong.’ Like this isn’t what Christ would have us do,” said Benjamin Garcia.
People visit a memorial honoring Charlie Kirk at Timpanogos Regional Hospital in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 11.
(Laura Seitz / Associated Press)
In August, BYU’s Office of Belonging launched an immigration-focused eight-week course to help people gain a “basic understanding of complex immigration policies.” The goal is to equip more nonprofit workers to become partially accredited to represent clients in front of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Gonzales, the ward leader and professor at BYU, believes this step speaks volumes about the Church’s efforts, despite challenges earlier this year with the takedown of its Dreamer center.
“My heart was warmed seeing that,” he said. “BYU is a part of the Church and is a university that stands to help promote the Church’s ecclesiastical mission. I think that’s a form of messaging through one of its institutions.”
Ultimately, when facing these hurdles and different interpretations of what the Book of Mormon or the Church says, members focus on their relationship to the gospel.
“We also believe that we are the Church, and we believe that it is our responsibility to make it better. And that is what God is asking of us, and that’s what Christ is asking of us,” Benjamin Garcia said. She then paused.
“Despite feelings of frustration or questions, what keeps a lot of us here, despite any of that, is that we have a conviction.”
To bring unique Jesus-themed Christmas Trees to Southwest Florida community in free family event
NAPLES, Fla., October 9, 2025 (Newswire.com)
– The Naples Festival of Trees & Christmas Market announced today that it has partnered with The Salvation Army of Collier County to serve as the premier sponsor and host site for a unique event that brings together a diverse group of area Christian non-profits and missions.
The Naples Festival of Trees & Christmas Market will be held on Saturday, November 15, 2025, from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Salvation Army Naples Campus, 3180 Estey Avenue, Naples, FL 34104. It will feature a hall of Jesus-themed trees in an event that allows area non-profits and Christian ministries to sell their trees at silent auction while retaining the proceeds to benefit their work. Online bidding for the Jesus-themed trees will open a week before the event.
The event coincides with the Salvation Army’s annual red kettle kick-off, which raises hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial support annually at the holidays for families in need.
Tree decorating parties and get-togethers are under way as donors create trees with themes related to Jesus’s birth, ministry, Words, parables and miracles with themes that include: “Jesus Loves the Little Children,” “O Holy Night,” “Loaves & Fishes” and “The Light of the World.”
“We are thrilled to help area non-profits support their work financially while at the same time using Christmas trees as a canvas to tell people about Jesus,” said Gina Edwards, Tree & Silent Auction Chair. “We invite the community to bid early and often to purchase these trees and place them in public spaces and private homes for the Christmas season.”
A Growing Holiday Tradition In addition, the Festival features:
A European‑style Christmas Market with 35+ booths offering artisan crafts, handmade decor, stocking stuffers, sweet treats, and a “Christmas Thrift” boutique;
Volunteer organizers of Night to Shine Southwest Florida, Tim Tebow’s prom that serves more than 600 special needs kids & families, will be decorating their tree “O Holy Night” on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025 from 4 to 5 p.m. at the Salvation Army Sanctuary at 3180 Estey Ave., Naples, Fla. 34104. Contact Sherri Eppich 239-269-8831
Volunteers with Project Outreach will decorate their Jesus-themed tree on Monday, Oct. 20 from 6 to 8 p.m. at 3845 Beck Blvd. #814, Naples, Fla. Contact Tina Raymond at 239-777-0076.
Two years after the October 7th attacks in Israel, there remains a strong wave of hate in America.
According to the FBI, nearly 70% of reported religious-based hate crimes targeted Jews in 2024, a stark contrast to how Jews only make up 2% of the U.S. population.
“We are already at the highest state of security that we can possibly be at,” Ethan Roberts, Deputy Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, explained to WCCO News. “Security is multi-layered as always. It’s the partnership of local law enforcement. It’s private security, it’s of course JCRC security. It’s the awareness that we ask of all the congregants.”
“We’re seeing more vandalism, we’re seeing more arson, we’re seeing more violence,” Kris Moloney, an army veteran and current church security consultant, lamented to WCCO News. “Churches have kind of had to be a little more intentional about what they do to ensure their guests and visitors and congregants are safer.”
Moloney said his Minnesota-based firm advises houses of worship across the country, said he encourages communities to establish security committees to gameplan for services and events.
“You know all this stuff can be done by, shall we say, normal people – not law enforcement, not military – just normal people can make all the difference in the world by paying attention.”
Jonah Kaplan is an award-winning journalist who has built a strong reputation for his balanced reporting, thoughtful interviews, and deeply researched coverage of high-impact issues affecting the community. His work appears on all of WCCO’s newscasts and is often featured on CBS News’ programs and platforms, including the CBS Evening News, CBS Mornings and CBS 24/7.
