RELIGION HEADLINES WED 10-28

(  )  Religion is playing an ever larger role in America’s elections.  A coalition of Muslim organizations and community leaders is backing Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms for Georgia governor.  Four Muslim advocacy groups and 14 community leaders endorsed the former Atlanta mayor this week.  As mayor, Bottoms courted the local Muslim community, including hosting Ramadan Iftar dinners at Atlanta City Hall.  In Texas, a coalition of pastors has endorsed Republican Ken Paxton in his race for a seat in the U.S. Senate.  Other clergy groups are issuing formal endorsements of candidates from both parties across the nation.

(  )  An independent watchdog covering the Episcopal Church USA predicts that roughly one-in-six existing Episcopal parishes and missions will close, merge, or stop functioning within a decade.  The forecast from Anglican Watch estimates a loss of about 1,200 congregations between now and 2036.  The Episcopal Church has been shrinking for many years, ever since its leadership endorsed gay ordination and same-sex marriage.  Anglican Watch says “The Episcopal Church has thousands of congregations with two or three dozen people in the pews, a membership that skews heavily toward retirees, and a vast inventory of aging buildings.”

(  )  The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is urging the Trump administration to apply targeted sanctions to India’s RSS group for its persecution of Christians.  The RSS is a right-wing Hindu nationalist volunteer organization that is accused of fomenting hatred of India’s small Christian minority and allegedly organizing violent attacks against believers.  CeCe Heil, vice chair of the Commission, says “The U.S. government has an opportunity to hold India accountable and signal that the United States stands for religious freedom for the people of India.”  Persecution in India has been surging in recent years.