Archive
The Wild, Wild West of Mindfulness
Diana Winston’s post-college spiritual journey was something of an anachronism. After she graduated from Brown in the late 1980s, Winston traveled to Southeast Asia, where she spent several years working with Theravada …
Want to Build a More Resilient City? Bring Faith to the Table
Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti recently announced his commitment to hire a Chief Resilience Officer, who will be tasked with increasing the city’s ability to recover from man-made and natural disasters. This …
The Tidal Wave of Indifference: I Don’t Church, I Brunch
A lot has been written recently about the spiritual-but-not-religious crowd, or the “religious nones”–people who have no particular religious affiliation–and how their numbers are rapidly growing in the U.S. Recent reports place …
Heart of Dharma: Comparing Buddhist Practice, East and West
A dozen or so Vipassana (Insight) practitioners have just ended a session of “sitting” (meditation) and discussion in one of the numerous Insight meditation centers in Los Angeles. In light of the …
Iceberg Lettuce vs. Arugula: Religion and Gentrification in Los Feliz
Last week I took a walk on the gentrifying edge of Los Feliz with the pastor of a local church that mainly ministers to the down-and-out. We talked about the urban landscape …
Meditation and Authenticity: Everything Old Is New Again
A mindfulness teacher loosely associated with Against the Stream described his unconventional approach to meditation–keep a notebook close at hand to record your thoughts and feelings–as a more faithful reflection of the …
The Burbs Are All Right: Religion, Sprawl and L.A.’s Urban Logic
As a part of our Religious Competition and Creative Innovation project, our research team meets once each month for “idea lunches” during which we have freewheeling discussions about what we’re seeing in …
Where They Make Manna
When Pastor Ed Carey arrived at Hope International Bible Fellowship (Hope IBF) in 1994, the situation was grim. The once-thriving congregation was down to 30 people and thinking of closing its doors. …
Aspirations for Modernity and Prosperity
Aspirations for Modernity and Prosperity Christine Gudorf, Zainal Abidin, Mathen Tahun, Authors (ATF Press: 2014) The writing of this book was supported by the Pentecostal Charismatic Research Initiative. Indonesia is the largest …
Putting Education to Work: How Cristo Rey High Schools Are Transforming Urban Education
Putting Education to Work: How Cristo Rey High Schools Are Transforming Urban Education Megan Sweas, Author (Harper Collins Publishers: 2014) The story of how the Cristo Rey Network’s values-based education model and …
A Meditation on the Nones
Anna Stephens was on a humanitarian mission to Sudan with the International Red Cross when she first read The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle. For Anna, …
Laundry Love
Several years ago—2002 to be exact—I met an incredibly interesting young pastor named Greg Russinger. At the time, Greg was leading the Bridge Communities, an innovative church in Ventura, California. What was …
From #GivingTuesday to Giving USA, New Lessons for Faith-Based Organizations
Huffington Post Religion covered the Faith+GivingTuesday+SocialGood summit, which featured CRCC’s Rev. Mark Whitlock, Brie Loskota and Nadia Roumani. The summit convened representatives from religious organizations, universities and entrepreneurs who are exploring the …
In Mellow L.A. and Suave Rio, Religious Movements are Similar (but Different)
When I walked by the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on USC’s campus this week I thought of Rio de Janeiro. The Coliseum stands as a symbol of both the 1932 and 1984 …
Working with U.S. Faith Communities During Crises, Disasters and Public Health Emergencies: A Field Guide for Engagement, Partnerships and Religious Competency
This field guide provides detailed instructions for engaging and building sustainable and competent partnerships with faith communities throughout the entire disaster lifecycle. It is accompanied by a Religious Literacy Primer. Published by …
Where the Spirit Leads: Pentecostalism and Freedom
Don Miller, CRCC’s executive director, delivered a paper titled “Where the Spirit Leads: Pentecostalism and Freedom” in Rome at a conference co-sponsored by the Religious Freedom Project at Georgetown University’s Berkeley Center …
The Many Faces of Lord Krisha in the O.C.
It’s a Friday evening in Laguna Beach, an affluent seaside city in Orange County. In a converted two-story former Baptist church a short walk from the beach, a couple of hundred lay …
From Margin to Center: A Queer (and Timely) Theological Mix in Los Feliz
Founders MCC, the Los Angeles-based mother church of the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, is literally putting new flesh on some of the Mainline Protestant establishment’s old bones. Three years ago …
The Religious Literacy Primer for Crises, Disasters and Public Health Emergencies
A companion to the Field Guide for Religious Competency, the Religious Literacy Primer is a quick-reference document which provides information on basic religious literacy for 23 of the largest religious communities in …
Coachella Valley: Creating Recovery Spirituality for the 21st Century
(Photo by Joanne DiBona) The Coachella Valley communities of Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, Cathedral City and Indio share a legacy as retreat centers for the rich and famous, spiritual seekers, …