AMSTERDAM — On April 30, 1941, a Jewish man here in Amsterdam wrote a desperate letter to an American friend, pleading for help emigrating to the United States.

Source: Anne Frank Today Is a Syrian Girl - The New York Times

RIO DE JANEIRO — When Mother Fatima Damas discovered her African-Brazilian religious beliefs would not be represented in the interfaith rooms of the Olympic Village, she was so incensed that she launched a campaign to overturn the controversial exclusion.

Source: Olympic committee pushed to include all faiths in prayer room for Olympic Village

(RNS) When Team USA members David Boudia and Steele Johnson emerged simultaneously crying and smiling from their final dive Monday (Aug. 8) at the Rio Olympics, the silver medal in men’s synchronized platform diving was theirs.

Source: Faith at the Olympics: Does it give an athlete an edge? - SpokaneFāVS

It's no secret that the Olympic Games bring together a diverse pool of people from different ethnicities and cultures — individuals who have divergent beliefs and lifestyles, particularly when it comes to the practice of faith and religion.

Source: The major role faith and religion will play at the 2016 Olympic Games

I am not worried about the future of the Jewish people. We spend our time, our brainpower and a significant amount of money attempting to solve the problem of Jewish continuity, but I am not concerned. Judaism moves, compels and speaks to a new generation of Jewish leaders.

Source: Millennial Jews Want To Shout ‘Black Lives Matter’ — As Jews - Opinion – Forward.com

ST.-ÉTIENNE-DU-ROUVRAY, France — It was the first time since a childhood school trip that Anissa Latroche had set foot in a church.

Source: Muslims and Christians in French Town Pray Old Bonds Survive Priest’s Murder - The New York Times

Lisle, Illinois: In light of the tragic events of the past weeks, the African-American, Islamic community, Sikh Americans community and the Du Page County Chiefs of Police Association joined together to remember the lives of the civilians and Dallas police officers who were recently killed. More than 200 people attended.

Source: Unity in Diversity Memorial for Dallas Tragedy | SikhNet

NICE, France — There is the Nice of popular imagination, the old-world resort dotted with palm trees and cafes that look out on the Mediterranean Sea, suffused with an incandescent light prized for centuries by artists. Then there is the other Nice, one that begins to show its face a few blocks inland from the seaside Promenade des Anglais, the majestic arc of a boulevard where 84 people were killed by a 31-year-old Tunisian immigrant at the wheel of a 19-ton truck. This Nice is home to many Muslim immigrants from North Africa, including a secular middle-class that has lived...

The share of Americans who think it is important that a president have strong religious beliefs has been steadily declining over the past two election cycles and has reached a new low in Pew Research Center polling. In 2008, 72% said this was an important characteristic. That share dipped slightly in 2012 to 67%, and now 62% say that having strong religious beliefs is an important presidential trait. Meanwhile, the corresponding share of those who disagree that it is important for a president to have strong religious beliefs has been steadily growing and currently stands at 35%....

Dallas — The pews and pulpits of Dallas were full of people seeking hope Sunday after the slaying of five police officers. Of people exorcising their anger over the latest police shootings of young black men in Minnesota and Louisiana. Of people looking for some measure of kindness and unity in a country that suddenly seems in short supply of both.

Source: Dallas residents look to churches for hope and answers in wake of police deaths - WorldWide Religious News

For the most part, the voting intentions of people in major religious groups closely resemble those seen in polling conducted at a similar point in the 2012 campaign. Roughly eight-in-ten white evangelical Protestant voters (78%) say they would support Trump if the election were held today, just as 73% indicated they would vote for Romney in June 2012. And Trump enjoys about the same level of support among white mainline Protestant voters as Romney did four years ago.

Source: Religion...

Before heading to church this past Sunday, I said something to my 14-year-old son that I had never said before: “No playing Pokémon Go during the service.” I’m not the only parent or pastor wrestling with the game that swept the nation over the weekend. It might not be Gutenberg’s printing press, but Pokémon Go is the latest technological advance to have a significant impact on church. The new augmented-reality app lays a Pokémon-inhabited layer over a map on your phone, allowing players to wander around l

Source: ...

DALLAS — Fearful that the nation is locked in a spiral of violence and discord, many Americans took what refuge they could in church on Sunday. In tiny storefronts and suburban megachurches, worshipers mourned the deaths of five Dallas police officers at the hands of an African-American sniper who was aiming to kill white officers at a demonstration against police violence. They also grieved for two African-American men killed in shootings by the police in Baton Rouge, La., and Minnesota.

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Almost at the last minute, a federal judge has declared a controversial Mississippi law unconstitutional.The law, HB 1523, would have protected religious objections to gay marriage, extramarital sex and transgender identities. The judge says it favors some religious beliefs over others and would codify unequal treatment of LGBT people.

Source: Judge Blocks Mississippi Law Protecting Religious Objections To Gay...

Eradicating hate in the world will come with eradicating ignorance and mistrust and honoring the differences of others, a humanitarian from India told a gathering Monday night at the Faculty Club at Ohio State University.

Source: Humanitarian from India at Ohio State event: ‘God loves diversity’ | The Columbus Dispatch