News Article

By Hemant Mehta Earlier this year, Scotland was on the verge of banning the “crime” of blasphemy. The nation had proposed a new Hate Crimes Bill, designed to modernize the law, that included a clause abolishing “blasphemy” as a crime. That was great news! But the draft bill included a section that criminalized “stirring up hatred” against various groups… …

By Jon Cohen and John Travis A third COVID-19 vaccine candidate has convincing evidence that it works, and it may be easier to distribute and cheaper than the two other vaccines already shown to protect people. Developed by the company AstraZeneca in partnership with the University of Oxford, the vaccine had an average efficacy of …

By Spencer James, Hal Boyd, and Jason Carroll From a global pandemic and nationwide protests to a contested presidential election, this year seems tailor-made to expose America’s partisan fault lines. Those hoping for a blue or red wave to unite the country on election night were undoubtedly disappointed. What the returns revealed instead was a …

By Olivia Christensen During the days immediately after the election, most of which I spent doomscrolling through social media on my phone in a kind of trance, my childhood best friend sent me a clip. Her caption was simple: “When people ask me why I don’t go to church anymore.” I gave the wry chuckle …

By Bil Browning Byron and Keira Hordyk, an Australian evangelical Christian couple who applied to be foster parents, are suing for “religious discrimination” after they were denied. They say the foster agency’s decision wasn’t based on whether or not they can provide a loving home to a child but instead on their anti-LGBTQ religious beliefs. The couple …

By Dennis Overbye Once upon a time, Albert Einstein described scientific theories as “free inventions of the human mind.” But in 1980, Stephen Hawking, the renowned Cambridge University cosmologist, had another thought. In a lecture that year, he argued that the so-called Theory of Everything might be achievable, but that the final touches on it …

By Michael Stone Anti-Science: Conservative Christians are rejecting science and choosing to ignore holiday COVID restrictions, placing themselves, those they love, and everyone else at risk. For example, Trump-loving megachurch pastor Robert Jeffress says he will ignore the scientists advice about Thanksgiving gatherings, declaring: I’m Listening to God, Not the WHO Newsweek reports: Pastor Robert Jeffress, …

By PRRI Staff In the wake of President Donald Trump’s 2020 electoral loss, one key question is what kind of future the unique style of politics he carved out has in the Republican Party. Colloquially, this question is often put this way: What becomes of Trumpism after Trump? To answer that question, it is important …

By Hemant Mehta This morning, the Supreme Court announced it would not hear a case brought to them by Satanists who were hoping to overturn Missouri’s medically unnecessary abortion laws. There was no explanation offered with the dismissal, as is typical. There simply weren’t enough judges who wanted to hear this case. Here’s the backstory: As the law stands …

When John Kerry served as President Barack Obama’s secretary of state, he helped steer the negotiation of the Paris Agreement on climate change, locking down commitments from nearly 200 nations — including his own — to begin to reverse the dangerous warming of the planet. Now his diplomatic task may be even tougher. On Monday, …

By Alexandra Witze One of astronomy’s most renowned telescopes — the 305-metre-wide radio telescope at Arecibo, Puerto Rico — is closing permanently. Engineers cannot find a safe way to repair it after two cables supporting the structure broke suddenly and catastrophically, one in August and one in early November. It is the end of one …

By Hemant Mehta A Nativity scene outside a former Indiana courthouse will remain up this winter even though it was declared unconstitutional earlier this year. But that victory for conservative Christians may not last for long. Some background is helpful here: All of this takes place in the city of Brownstown at the site of …