Weekly religion news roundup (July 3-9, 2026)
Photograph by Utsav Srestha via Unsplash
Hannah Estifanos
Pope Leo on eve of US 250: Keep working for liberty despite ‘ever new challenges.’ Pope Leo XIV urged Americans July 3 to renew their commitment to the nation’s founding ideals of human dignity, religious freedom and the common good. He called on the country to continue striving toward the promise of liberty and justice for all, while acknowledging that the American experiment remains “a work in progress.” (National Catholic Reporter)
New AP-NORC poll reveals sharp divides among US Jews over Israel and Gaza. As Israel’s actions continue to divide America’s Jewish communities nearly three years into the latest war in Gaza, a new AP-NORC poll reveals that some of the biggest gaps are between religious and secular Jews. (Associated Press)
Funeral events for Iran’s slain Supreme Leader Khamenei under way in Iraq. Khamenei’s coffin made its way through the streets of Najaf to the shrine of Imam Ali, Prophet Muhammad’s son-in-law. (Al Jazeera)
Ahead of midterms, faith leaders seek fair access to the voting booth. Four months before the midterm elections, Minnesota faith leaders who previously have protested against federal immigration agents have unveiled a multistate initiative to ensure fair elections. (The Christian Century)
US megachurches report strong rebound from pandemic. Most American megachurches have rebounded well from the COVID-19 pandemic as more than 80% reported they are flourishing, according to a new report by Hartford Institute for Religion Research. (Baptist News Global)
Each week in The Christian Citizen, we publish a Religion News Roundup with summaries of religion news stories and links for those who want to read more.
How a 198-year-old New Orleans synagogue became one of America’s fastest-growing Jewish communities. A Reform synagogue on the Mardi Gras route — with no dues and fluid denominational lines — is a catalyst for Jewish life after catastrophe. (Religion News Service)
Austrian court rules ski resort hotel’s burkini ban is discriminatory. Hotel did not allow two Muslim women to wear full-body bathing suit, which has become bugbear of European far right. (The Guardian)
Pastor freed from prison in China weeks after Trump requested his release. Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri and 17 other leaders of the underground Zion Church were detained in October in one of China’s largest crackdowns on a single church in decades, raising worries over an escalation in the government’s curtailing of religious freedom. (Religion News Service)
Gambian mothers fear for their daughters as court weighs FGM ban. As The Gambia’s Supreme Court prepares to rule on the FGM ban, mothers fear the law could be weakened. (Al Jazeera)
US charges Indian criminal gang leader with organising murder of Canadian Sikh activist. Lawrence Bishnoi, who is in prison in India, is accused of orchestrating the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023. (The Guardian)
Hannah Estifanos is the copyeditor of The Christian Citizen.
The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of American Baptist Home Mission Societies.
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