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Bob Smietana

Bob Smietana is a Religion News Service national reporter.

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US mosques have more than doubled since 9/11. But Muslims say opposition is fierce

In late 2009, Daisy Khan and her then-husband hoped to build a place of healing for a city still grieving over the hateful acts of the 9/11 terrorists....
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Samaritan's Purse turns down $300M from State Department for humanitarian relief

Just three weeks ago, the US State Department announced it had a ...
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After cuts, Trump administration gives $2B to Christian groups for global aid

The Trump administration ...
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Survivors demand apology after SBC leaders call abuse crisis a hoax

A group of abuse survivors, advocates, and pastors have called on a pair of Southern Baptist leaders to apologize for calling the denomination’s abuse crisis a hoax....
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Faith-based AI company Gloo faces moment of truth after $48m in losses

Scott Beck has long hoped the faith-based tech company he founded in 2013 would help churches and other Christian groups harness technology to spread God’s word and help save the world....
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Eli Lilly sues church leaders for alleged $200 million 'sham' drug program

A group of leaders in the Church of God in Christ have been accused in a lawsuit of defrauding a major pharmaceutical company out of more than $200 million in rebates for diabetes drugs....
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Church attendance up for the first time in decades, according to new report

The past 25 years have been rough for churches and other houses of worship in the US....
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For 2026 Super Bowl, 'He Gets Us' ad goes more personal, less political

Back in 2021, a group of evangelical families, including the founders of Hobby Lobby, began funding ...
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Evangelicals divided over what faith demands as immigration tensions deepen

For years, leaders of the Evangelical Immigration Table have summed up the Bible’s view of immigration in three words: Welcome the stranger....
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Bible sales keep growing, even as many in the US lose their religion

Many people in the US may have lost faith in organized religion, but according to recent data, they still love the Good Book....

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Churches can endorse politicians, IRS says in court filing

For years, conservative legal groups have argued that an IRS rule barring churches from endorsing candidates was unconstitutional. Now the IRS agrees....
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California congregations vow to help neighbors even as their buildings are lost to fires

Like many of their neighbors, leaders of the Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center watched in horror this week as wildfires destroyed homes, businesses and entire neighborhoods in Southern California...
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Richard Hays, influential scholar who changed his mind on same-sex marriage, dies at 76

Richard Hays, a renowned New Testament scholar and former dean of Duke Divinity School known for his influential books on Christian ethics and his change of mind about same-sex marriage, died Janua...
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Faith leaders, activists, the pope urge Biden to empty federal death row before Trump term

A group of faith leaders, activists, law enforcement officials, and families of murder victims has called on President Joe Biden to spare the lives of about 40 inmates currently on death row in fed...
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Tony Campolo, sociologist and famed Red Letter Christian, dies at 89

Tony Campolo, an American Baptist minister and sociologist who spent decades trying to convince evangelicals and other Christians that their faith should motivate them to address social ills like p...
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After Hurricane Helene, faith groups ramp up disaster relief

Even before Hurricane Helene made landfall in the United States, near Tallahassee, Florida, on September 26, faith-based disaster groups were on the move....

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