Religion

    One of the country’s few gender-affirming thrift stores is in Baltimore
    Trans and nonbinary people can struggle to find clothes that fit their bodies, their gender expression and their budget, but the Skylight Boutique is a thrift store stocked with items that are often difficult and expensive to obtain.
    Phillip Clark, a volunteer at skylight boutique, helps a customer find their size at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Baltimore on Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024.
    ‘Disturbing’ Mass for Trump leaves Maryland parishioners conflicted
    Polls show a majority of white Catholics support Trump.
    Parishioners pray before Mass at Our Lady of Lourdes in Bethesda on Aug. 14, 2024.
    These Maryland women were accused of witchcraft. Their crime? Having power.
    Women who possessed special knowledge, such as midwives or herbalists, were more likely to be accused of witchcraft, as were women in need, including widows and beggars.
    An illustration depicts a woman being burned at the stake for the crime of engaging in witchcraft, circa 1692. (Photo by Kean Collection/Getty Images)
    Church sues Maryland, says it can’t be investigated for discrimination
    Lawyers for the Seventh-day Adventist Church are arguing that the First Amendment allows it to ask employees to “uphold their religious beliefs.”
    Exterior of the Edward A. Garmatz United States District Courthouse in Baltimore, MD as seen on 5.20.24
    Three friends, brought together by war, reflect on a year after Oct. 7
    At least 1,200 Israeli civilians were killed and 250 kidnapped by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, while more than 41,500 Gazans have died after an Israeli offensive. Here is what three friends brought together by the conflict think a year later.
    Clockwise from left: Siddeeqah Sharif Fichman, Sumayyah Bilal, and Rebekka Paisner.
    Cecelia Williams Bryant, of Bethel AME, was ‘committed to prayer’
    Rev. Cecelia Williams Bryant was a mentor and leader in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. She died on Sept. 26 at age 77.
    Cecelia Williams Bryant helped establish the AME Church in India and the Ivory Coast, and raised her children to be “global citizens,” her family said.
    ‘Not an easy time.’ Archdiocese begins process of closing dozens of Catholic churches by Dec. 1
    Archdiocese of Baltimore has made official the closure of more than half the Catholic churches in city, nearby suburbs.
    This is St. Vincent de Paul Church. The Archdiocese of Baltimore has made official the closure of more than half of Catholic churches in the city and nearby suburbs.
    Greater Grace leaders name organization to lead sex abuse investigation
    Greater Grace officials announced that they had selected an evangelical nonprofit, GRACE, to lead an independent investigation of sexual abuse in the church.
    Photograph of long low building with unconventional church spire and cross, with empty parking lot in front. Outside of building is labeled "Greater Grace Church."
    Opinion: My mom and sister avoided a car fire. My faith in God is now restored.
    Wallace Lane’s mother’s car burst in flames shortly after she parked it after church a few months ago. She and his sister had just left the vehicle.
    Wallace Lane's mother's car caught on fire a few months ago, shortly after returning from church. She and his sister got out before it burst into flames and the incident has restored Lane's faith in God.
    Leaders of cult formed in Maryland convicted of forcing children to work 16-hour payless days
    Jenkins, who grew up in Eastern Maryland died in 2021, had been a member of the Nation of Islam until 1978, when he founded the separate United Nation of Islam.
    The U.S. Justice Department flag flies outside the department's main headquarters in Washington, D.C.
    Ex-Greater Grace members describe despair, isolation, then healing
    Former members of Greater Grace World Outreach were shunned after leaving the controversial megachurch. For many, it took decades to build a new life outside.
    Alissa Byrne Scibelli made the difficult decision to leave Greater Grace World Outreach. “It was extremely isolating,” she said.
    Organist leaves job of a lifetime as church faces uncertain future
    John Heizer has played the Sunday service at the historic Zion Church of the City of Baltimore since 1974.
    John Heizer begins his final Sunday service after 50 years of being the organist at Zion Church of the City of Baltimore on Aug. 25, 2024.
    Newly named member of Maryland hate crime commission resigns, cites ‘smear’ campaign
    Ayman Nassar said he withdrew from Maryland's hate crime commission after an “online harassment and smear campaign was launched” against him.
    Maryland  Attorney General Anthony Brown.
    Arrest made in fire outside Jewish Museum of Maryland
    Police said they identified the man and got a warrant for his arrest Friday. He has a history of fire-related crimes.
    The Jewish Museum of Maryland, at Loyd St. and Watson St. on March 2, 2023.
    Cause of fire outside Jewish Museum of Maryland under investigation
    The cause of a fire just outside the locked front gates of the Jewish Museum of Maryland is under investigation, according to the Baltimore Fire Department.
    The Jewish Museum of Maryland, at Loyd St. and Watson St. on March 2, 2023.
    Greater Grace church says it has enlisted abuse survivor who helped take down Larry Nassar
    Jim Hadley, one of the church elders, said on Sunday the church has “engaged” Rachael Denhollander as a consultant. Denhollander is a Michigan attorney and former gymnast who was the first to publicly come forward with allegations that Nassar had abused her.
    Rachael Denhollander, who was sexually abused by Larry Nassar, speaks after Nassar’s sentencing hearing in Michigan in 2018. Officials at Greater Grace World Outreach said they have enlisted Denhollander as a consultant as the church prepares to hire an independent firm to investigate its handling of sexual assault allegations.
    A developer’s sudden death puts a Mount Vernon landmark back in limbo
    A 150-year-old church overlooking Mount Vernon’s Washington Monument is for sale this month after the developer behind a controversial plan for the building died.
    The pulpit in the Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church sanctuary is photographed on July 8, 2024.
    Mediation eyed as next step in Archdiocese of Baltimore bankruptcy case
    Archbishop William Lori and Paul Jan Zdunek, chair of the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, said they’re looking to move into mediation to reach agreements on the number of claims of sexual abuse claims filed in the case, compensation for survivors, and policies and protocols to protect children.
    Paul Jan Zdunek, left, chair of the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, and Archbishop William Lori, right, provide updates on the Archdiocese of Baltimore bankruptcy case during a news conference on Monday at the offices of Brown, Goldstein & Levy in Baltimore.
    The Bible that caught a bullet in Brooklyn Day shooting
    Charlene Bowie’s Bible has a bullet lodged in Jeremiah, right between chapters 29 and 30.
    A bullet fired in the Brooklyn Day shooting went through Charlene Bowie’s upstairs window and grazed her granddaughter’s back. She later found it in her Bible.
    A community of Burmese refugees fought to keep their Catholic church open
    When the Archdiocese of Baltimore announced plans to close dozens of Catholic churches, Our Lady of Victory in Arbutus was on the list. But parishioners, including many Burmese refugees, fought successfully to save a church that many say has become like a second home.
    A community of Burmese immigrants organized pushback to the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s plan to close its church. Lun Khek, the extraordinary minister of communion at Our Lady of Victory, is pictured at a morning Mass on June 2, 2024.
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