(RNS) — When Catholic bishops threatened to deny Communion to then-presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004 over his abortion stance, the ensuing media frenzy was described as “haunting” the Democrat’s campaign for months.

But this year, when Vice President Joe Biden was denied Communion at a Catholic church in South Carolina for roughly the same reasons, coverage barely lasted a week.

According to experts, the practice — at least as a political statement if not a theological one — may be played out.

“The challenge of Catholics who campaign for policies that violate fundamental Catholic teaching is real, but not new, nor confined to abortion,” John Carr, director of Georgetown University’s Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life, said in an email. “Refusing communion for public positions was widely discussed and rejected by almost all bishops and pastors years ago.”

Indeed, denying Communion may have lost some of its shock value in today’s political climate, where avoiding Eucharistic rejection has become a normalized part of campaigns for many Catholic politicians. In a world where U.S. Catholics have long accepted ideological divides on abortion — and where many Catholic officials decline to discuss the topic of Communion refusal — the once deeply controversial practice appears to be more theological curiosity than campaign killer.

The latest…

U.S. Attorney General William Barr is receiving heat from a liberal Christian group for a recent speech at the Notre Dame University Law School in which he praised religion as a basis for the country’s moral system.

“The Founding generation were Christians. They believed that the Judeo-Christian moral system corresponds to the true nature of man,” Barr, a devout Catholic, said, according to Fox News. “Those moral precepts start with the two great commandments—to love God with your whole heart, soul and mind; and to love thy neighbor as thyself.”

The progressive group, called Faithful America, believe the speech did not accurately represent all of the county’s faiths.

“William Barr’s October speech was one of the worst examples of toxic Christian nationalism we’ve seen yet. The nation’s chief law enforcement officer declared that only religion provides sound values…then accused ‘militant secularists’ of gleefully attacking religion; going on to blame atheists and progressives for mental illness, the opioid epidemic, gun violence, and more,” a petition from Faithful America said. “Vengeful remarks like Barr’s twist Jesus’s values of love and inclusion beyond recognition and give Christianity a bad name. They also violate his Constitutional duty to guarantee justice to all Americans, not…

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed recently announced that violent tensions in his country have risen with thousands displaced and over thirty churches burnt in the past two years, according to CBN. Over the weekend, nearly 90 citizens were also killed in a violent protest over religion and ethnicity.

According to the Guardian, the protest was sparked by activist Jawar Mohammed who claimed that government officials were trying to silence him. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission estimates that 10 out of the 89 deaths from the protest were caused by government security forces. Churches and at least one mosque were also hit during the attack.

The protestors killed were from the Oromo and Amhara ethnic groups and were both Muslim and Christians, as reported by Reuters. Over 400 people were also arrested.

The announcement shows the long road ahead for Ethiopia and Abiy to bring peace.

“We have to stop those forces who are trying to pull us two steps back while we are going one step forward,” Abiy said at a press conference.

The Prime Minister recently made headlines as the recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize, according to Christianity Today. The 43-year-old activist is known for his reconciliation efforts. He ended a border war with the neighboring country of Eritrea and released thousands of political prisoners, as well as brought healing to a division in the…

Democrats and Republicans from the U.S. House of Representatives sent a bipartisan letter to the United Nations Secretary-General, asking the Lebanese government to disarm “all armed groups in Lebanon.”

The letter comes after Hezbollah continues its violence against Israel.

“Hezbollah has built a murderous capability aimed at Israel’s civilian population,” the letter reads. “In the thirteen years since the unanimous passage of the Security Council resolution, Hezbollah, with the assistance of Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, has amassed a deadly arsenal of about 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel.”

Hezbollah is backed by Iran, the country the letter called “the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.”

“Iran is currently exacerbating this threat by transferring precision-guided munitions to Hezbollah and building munitions factories in Lebanon for the benefit of the internationally-recognized terrorist organization,” the letter says.

In September, Hezbollah launched a missile strike against IDF vehicles near the Lebanese border. There were no injuries.

The group has also used its resources to dig underground tunnels that allow Hezbollah terrorists to enter Israeli cities.

The letter asks the U.N. to step in and help stop Hezbollah’s actions, urging the U.N. General Secretary to “lead an international effort…

Kanye West’s latest gospel-infused Jesus is King album has topped the Billboard 200 chart and the Top Christian Albums chart.

According to CBN News, the fashion mogul turned evangelist launched the album on Oct. 25, becoming his ninth consecutive album to debut at the No. 1 spot on Billboard 200. He’s tied with Eminem for the most records to hit the top of the charts.

For the first time, West also hit the No. 1 spots on the Top Christian Albums and Top Gospel Album charts as well.

“West is the latest artist to cross to No. 1 on the faith-based tallies after establishing stardom at other genres,” according to Billboard. “Among others, the King of Rock & Roll, Elvis Presley, and country icons Alan Jackson and Reba McEntire all boast Top Christian Albums No. 1s since the start of 2017.”

The album’s success prompted a massive increase in faith-based Google searches, according to Faithwire. People searched for “Jesus” and “What do Christians believe?” shortly after the album was released.

The American Bible Society saw the opportunity to reach out to those seeking with free copies of the Bible. 

“When we see an influential cultural figure like Kanye inspire young people to curiously seek out answers to their faith questions,” John Plake, director of ministry intelligence for ABS said, “we see an opportunity to step…

The director of the popular faith-based movies Overcomer and War Room says he and his brothers are scheduled to begin shooting their next film in 2020 – and that this time, their film will be based on a true story. 

Director Alex Kendrick told Christian Headlines the yet-unnamed film is “in development right now,” although it is in the early stages.

Kendrick and his brother, Stephen, released their sixth movie, Overcomer, this year. It opened at No. 3, earned an A+ CinemaScore rating from moviegoers, and grossed $34.6 million. Overcomer releases on home digital platforms Nov. 26 and Blu-ray and DVD Dec. 17. Another brother, Shannon Kendrick, was a producer in the last two films.

Alex Kendrick said he isn’t certain if he will direct the new film or if he will pass that role to someone else. He has directed all six movies he and his brother have made.  

“We know we’re going to executive produce it,” Kendrick told Christian Headlines. “But we’re also using this next one to give [an opportunity to] some of these young Christian filmmakers that are so talented – and we’re trying to help mentor them. They will have a larger part in the next one.

“We will continue making movies ourselves, but at the same time, we’ve got to start passing the torch and investing in other filmmakers [who will] continue doing this for decades…