Archive
RNS: Flory on Harvest Crusade Transforming Into a Cinematic Experience
Tens of thousands of people gather in Anaheim’s Angel Stadium every August for the Harvest Crusade, a weekend-long evangelistic event featuring Christian music artists and special guests. But this year, amid a …
Deseret News: Flory on Justin Bieber’s Christianity
Why does it seem that everyone is buzzing about Justin Bieber’s faith? Deseret News interviewed Richard Flory on the allure of celebrity Christians. Here is an excerpt: That’s been the case for …
The Roaring 20s: Religion Trends to Watch in 2020 and the Next Decade
The 1920s was a decade of change, and we see the 2020s as reminiscent of the cultural flux of that period. When people think of the 1920s, many imagine a golden era …
Deseret News: Richard Flory on the Instagrammable Bible and Kanye’s Christianity
Young Christian entrepreneurs are bringing an Instagram aesthetic to the Bible. Alabaster Co. produces books of the Bible with large, artistic images. The Deseret News asked Richard Flory, CRCC’s Senior Director of …
The Monthly: Flory on the Popularity of Hillsong’s Christine Caine
Megachurch Hillsong has recently been attracting a growing number of worshippers, and Christine Caine has emerged as a rising star among America’s evangelical circuit, selling out theaters and megachurches across the country. …
KCRW: Flory on the Popularity of Hillsong and Celebrity Christianity
Hillsong Church and other popular evangelical churches are attracting celebrities and large number of young Christians, but their stances on social issues are more conservative than many attendees may realize. KCRW’s Press …
Medicine, Masculinity and Marketing: Trends to Watch in Religion in 2019
In the past year, we have seen our 2018 trends to watch come to fruition with stories of the supernatural, trust in institutions, activist healers, faith-based political organizing and women stepping up …
How Can Christians Support Donald Trump?
This piece was originally published by Religion News Service. As a student of American evangelicalism, I am frequently asked how Christians can support Donald Trump. I stop myself from going into lecture …
Human Trafficking Reconsidered: Rethinking the Problem, Envisoning New Solutions
Human Trafficking Reconsidered: Rethinking the Problem, Envisoning New Solutions Kimberly Kay Hoang and Rhacel Salazar Parreñas, editors (Abe Books: 2014) This unique collection of original essays investigates …
Pacific Standard: Flory on Evangelical support for Trump
The Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies have revealed a split among Christians, with some providing sanctuary to immigrants in danger of deportation and others maintaining their support of the president. Pacific Standard quoted …
The Varieties of American Evangelicalism
Donald Trump’s ascent to the presidency has brought the culture, fault-lines and political commitments of American evangelicalism into sharp relief. How did a candidate whose lifestyle and morals starkly contradict conservative Christian …
5,000 Pies: Serving Pizza and Faith in Long Beach
5,000 Pies is a small, storefront restaurant and “social enterprise” operated by Fountain of Life Covenant Church in a multi-ethnic and economically challenged neighborhood on the west side of Long Beach, California. …
Evangelicals Versus Oil: Environmental Justice in South Los Angeles
This article originally appeared in the June 2018 issue of Sojourners magazine. Sentinel Peak Resources recently announced its intention to abandon petroleum production at its Jefferson Boulevard site. The families arrived early …
LA-Times Op-Ed: The Leaner, and Arguably Meaner, Evangelical Church
This Op-Ed originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times on May 31, 2018. Franklin Graham, the evangelical preacher and son of Billy Graham, is in the midst of a 10-city tour of …
Forward: Richard Flory on The Jerusalem Embassy Ceremony
While the opening of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem is a political victory for Trump, it is a religious victory for evangelicals. Trump appealed to this group of evangelicals—a group who …
NBC: Richard Flory on Bringing Environmentalism to Evangelicals
White evangelicals have often dismiss climate change as a critical issue, but NBC News reports that some pastors and environmentalists in the community are hoping to re-contextualize the issue and help evangelicals …
Billy Graham Coverage: Richard Flory on Evangelical Politics
The death of “America’s pastor” Billy Graham at age 99 has brought reflection on the politics of American evangelicalism. Richard Flory, CRCC’s senior director of research and evaluation, spoke with FiveThirtyEight and Congressional Quarterly …
Billy Graham Coverage: Richard Flory on the Business of Evangelicalism
Billy Graham left a legacy in the evangelical world not only in terms of his preaching, but also in terms of the organizations he founded or inspired. Following his death on February …
Evangelicalism Is *Still* in Crisis – An Update on 2017 Trends to Watch
In our 2017 religion trends to watch, one of our snarky headlines read: “New Species of Evangelicals Discovered.” As we pointed out under the headline, the divisions in Evangelicalism have long existed. …
USA Today: Evangelicals’ Victories and Defeats in Trump’s First Year
Conservative Christians have had unprecedented access to the White House and won many political victories under the first year of Donald Trump’s presidency, USA Today reported. At the same time, they may …