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Centuries-old Catholic procession in Brazil sparks controversy with KKK comparison

Procession of the Torches in Goias, Brazil, 2017

São Paulo, Brazil A centuries-old Catholic procession organised on Holy Thursday in the Brazilian city of Goiás sparked controversy this year after some social media users compared it with a Ku Klux Klan parade. The attacks on the Procession of the Torches received an indignant response from participants, who emphasise that the event is much […]

Alabama Governor apologises to ’63 church bombing survivor

Sarah Collins Rudolph and George Rudolph

AP Alabama Governor Kay Ivey has apologised to a survivor of a racist 1963 church bombing that killed four Black girls, calling the blast an “egregious injustice”, but declining Wednesday to pay restitution without legislative involvement. Ivey, responding to a request submitted by an attorney for Sarah Collins Rudolph, said the bombing of the 16th […]

Alabama Southern Baptist pastor resigns after speaking at party for a KKK leader

Will Dismukes

RNS A Southern Baptist bi-vocational pastor who gave an invocation at a celebration honouring the first grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, stepped down from his rural Alabama church earlier this week. Will Dismukes, who is also a Republican state representative for the city of Prattville, 22 kilometres north-west of Montgomery, boasted on a […]

In the US, Faith Not Fear crosses bring cheer – and critics

Faith Not Fear1

RNS Inspired by a family in Georgia, a Christian movement to erect crosses decorated with Christmas lights during the pandemic has taken off nationally as a symbol of positivity and prayer. As part of a grassroots initiative people are calling both Faith Over Fear and Faith Not Fear, lit-up crosses are appearing in frontyards from Kentucky to Louisiana to Ohio. […]