Michael J. O’Loughlin

The Atlantic Cities blog asks some interesting questions about the efforts of community groups to label church buildings as landmarks making efforts to sell and raze the structures impossible for struggling congregations From the post In cities nationwide churches are struggling to maintain the

For a glimpse into the lives of those most affected by the nation s economic woes check out the 60 Minutes segment Hard Times Generation Families living in cars Reporter Scott Pelly traveled to Florida to interview some of the families who spend days or weeks livning in their cars when money ru

This morning I opened the New York Times like I do every Saturday morning and turned immediately to the Op-Ed page to learn how I should think for the day kidding of course nbsp First I read the column by regular contributor Gail Collins entitled ldquo Republican Financial Plans rdquo in wh

You might remember a post about the Mormon ad campaign I spotted in New York a couple months ago Today the New York Times reports that the campaign is going national After Sunday worship in recent months Mormon bishops around the country gathered their congregations for an unusual PowerPoint pr

The Chicago Tribune reports that three dioceses in Illinois Joliet Springfield and Belleville have decided to end their foster care program rather than placing children in homes with same-sex couples Calling off legal efforts aimed at keeping Catholic Charities of Illinois in the foster care bu

The Pew Forum on Religion amp Public Life provides a portal into their data on all questions of religion and politics in the scope of the upcoming 2012 presidential election Visit the site here The most recent analysis breaks down the preference of religious voters for the current crop of GOP ca

I ve read a couple different stories over the last few days that offer a glimpse into the polarization of the Catholic Church on certain issues in this case homosexuality and the place of gay people in the Church First was the news that The Pilot the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Boston ran an

Starbucks is joining up with a network of nonprofit groups whose aim is to offer credit to individuals and businesses inunderserved communities to jumpstart job growth NPR reports Starbucks is teaming up with a network of community-based financial institutions to help create jobs Beginning Tuesda

Beginning tomorrow residents of Wisconsin will be able to apply for a permit allowing them to carry concealed weapons but nbsp the state s Catholic bishops are urging residents to leave their guns at home while attending Mass The Associated Press reports Wisconsin s bishops are urging parishione

Grisly haunted houses aren t my thing but perhaps even more disturbing is the uniquely fundamentalist Christian creation of Hell House an attraction that has been described as a modern day fire and brimstone sermon Brian Kirk at Patheos describes it Instead of vampires and werewolves guests are