In this week's roundup we write about about Lunar New Year becoming a state holiday, an upcoming Black-owned business and resource fair, Nirvana Day celebrated at a Buddhist temple, an Idaho bill proposing teachers do not have to use students preferred pronouns and a convent transforming into a assisted living facility.
A bill being debated in the legislature would pause hospital system consolidation to preserve patient access to specific forms of care. Opponents argue, “God Bless mergers.”
In his decade as pope, Francis has tried to usher in a more positive, frank approach to the topic of sex in the Catholic Church, urging the institution to reckon with the real-life experiences of faithful today and addressing topics ranging from pornography, abstinence and dating apps to orgasms.
With Ash Wednesday falling on Valentine’s Day this year, West Central Abbey found a way to couple their usual Lenten season kick-off with something unique to the holiday. “Our plan is to make Valentines from God for each other,” the Rev. Katy Shedlock said in an email.
New statistics from the Pew Research Center show atheists are mostly male (64%), mostly under the age of 49 (seven-in-ten compared with about half the U.S. adults overall (52%)), more likely to be white (77% vs. 62%) and have a college degree (48% vs. 34%).
For the first time since 2018, Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day fall on the same day. It has happened three times in the last century – 1923, 1934 and 1945 – and will happen again in 2029 for the final time this century.
Christian Wiman, a poet, author and editor of over 10 books, will be discussing the relationship between faith and art in March at Whitworth University.