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What is Good Friday? Here's what to know about the holy holiday
Two days before Easter Sunday is another important Christian holiday. Known as Good Friday, the holy day commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
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Filipino man to be nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager says he has signed up to be nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he says he will devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
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What is Holi and how is it celebrated? The Hindu festival of colors, explained
Holi is the Hindu festival of colors, which is celebrated to mark the start of spring in India, Nepal and the diaspora. The festival typically falls in March.
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Is the U.S. a Christian nation? Here's what the Constitution says
Conservative and Republican activists believe the United States was founded as a Christian nation. But historians say the Constitution doesn’t establish Christianity as an official religion and instead prioritizes religious freedom. What to know.
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What is Ash Wednesday and why do Christians give things up for Lent?
Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent and its observance lasts for 40 days, excluding Sundays. Here’s what to know about the Christian tradition.
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What is Three Kings Day (Día de los Reyes) and how to celebrate
Three Kings Day (Día de Los Reyes) or the Feast of Epiphany is a holiday that commemorates the day the three wise men — Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar — arrived with gifts for baby Jesus.
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What is the Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe?
The Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe commemorates the appearance of Virgin Mary to the Mexican peasant Juan Diego in 1531.
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What is Bodhi Day?
Also known as Buddha’s Enlightenment Day, the holiday commemorates when Siddartha Gautama attained awakening and became Buddha.
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What is Bodhi Day? And how do Buddhists celebrate it?
Buddhists around the world are celebrating Bodhi Day. But what does the holiday mean and how is it commemorated? Everything you need to know.
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When is St. Nicholas Day? What to know about the Christian saint that inspire the Santa Claus legend
The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas’ origin story is not. The legends surrounding jolly old St. Nicholas — celebrated annually on Dec. 6 — go way beyond delivering candy and toys to children. St. Nicholas was a fourth century Christian bishop from the Mediterranean port…
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Recordings show how the Mormon church protects itself from child sex abuse claims
After a former bishop in the Mormon church was arrested on sex abuse charges, the church used a legal playbook that keeps abuse secret, recordings obtained by The Associated Press show.
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Carlton Pearson, influential Oklahoma megachurch founder who rejected hell, dies at age 70
The founder of a former megachurch in Oklahoma known for rejecting the idea of hell and supporting gay rights has died. Bishop Carlton Pearson died Sunday in hospice care in Tulsa due to cancer according to his agent.
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Benin's Voodoo believers struggle to protect sacred forests and their perceived spirits
In Benin, the birthplace of Voodoo, practitioners of the faith believe the country’s forests are home to the spirits they seek guidance from and pray to.
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America's nonreligious are a growing, diverse phenomenon. They really don't like organized religion
Ask Americans what their religion is, and nearly 1 in 3 say this — none. That’s according to the U.S. adults surveyed by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
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Thousands of faith leaders could be deported due to green card processing change
Because of a procedural change in how the U.S. government processes some green cards, faith communities across the country may lose thousands of leaders and workers.
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What is Yom Kippur and how is it celebrated?
Yom Kippur is the most important day of the year for the Jewish faith and ends the 10-day period of repentance and reflection known as the “High Holidays,” which began with Rosh Hashanah.
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What is Yom Kippur?
Yom Kippur is the most important holiday in the Jewish religion.
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What is an exorcism?
Father Thomas Rausch explains what an exorcism is in the Catholic Church, where demonology developed and how often exorcisms actually happen.
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Hindu group seeks apology from Baskin-Robbins for beef product in ice cream
A religious leader in the Hindu community is asking Baskin-Robbins for an apology, accusing the ice cream giant of “non-disclosure of beef” in one of its popular ice cream flavors, and asking that it recall the product from stores and grocery shelves.
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Legal experts question judge's order telling Southwest lawyers to get religious-liberty training
A judge’s order requiring “religious-liberty training” by a conservative Christian group is stirring debate among legal scholars.