Two Episcopal Churches Vandalized With Racist Messages

This is from the week after the election. Thankfully, no further stories have come out about vandalism at Episcopal churches, or at other “liberal Christian” houses of worship.

Content Warning: racist, antisemitic, and homophobic language used in vandalism. Episcopal churches in Maryland and Indiana were vandalized with pro-Trump, racist messages last night.

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In better news, an Islamic mosque was hit with messages of love and support.

Diana Butler Bass published a piece in the Washington Post about how this Advent feels quite blue, rather than red and green or purple and pink. And she points out that blue is a color of both night and day.

Blue HOPE Advent Banner

We begin Advent with our hopes high, but in hopeful blue rather than penitential purple. And perhaps we’ll begin to bring them into clearer focus as we go towards the Nativity. Keep hope burning brightly, as we journey toward the Nativity in a somewhat “blue mood.”

Analysis and round-up of recent coverage on church decline

Image courtesy The Episcopal Cafe

The Christian Science Monitor has written a thorough piece on church decline, highlighting phenomena that may not surprise long-time readers of the Café; a partial list of those highlights follows: studies show that church attendance is cyclical and current numbers resemble the ’40s, that the faithful are more actively devout than they were in the ’50s & ’60s, the false binary between science and religion, and that the pathways to and expressions of faith remain diverse and plentiful.

As part of the piece, they interviewed a number of believers from different traditions, who share their stories and bear witness to their faith.

You can read the personal narratives, statistical data, and analysis, on the Christian Science Monitor Blog.

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