RELIGION HEADLINES SAT- 6/13/26

(SRN NEWS)  Nicholas Jacobs, a political scientist at Colby University, has been studying the Democratic Party’s 2024 election collapse and he concludes that the leadership doesn’t understand the voters.  He says that especially on social issues, “A pattern persists: Working-class voters did not move right in reactionary revolt.  Democrats moved to the left.”  Jacobs cites polls indicating that Americans who used to vote Democrat have moved to the Republican Party over issues such as abortion, the LGBT agenda, religious freedom, family values and immigration.  He adds that so far, the Democratic leadership does not seem to understand this. 

(  )  One Major League Baseball team is going all-in on the LGBT agenda.  The Los Angeles Dodgers have unveiled a permanent display honoring former players Glenn Burke and Billy Bean, who were the first two major leaguers to say they were gay.  A ceremony was held on the team’s 13th annual Pride Night this month, hours before the Dodgers hosted the Los Angeles Angels.  While MLB officials have been pushing the LGBT agenda for years, a growing number of teams are refusing to embrace it.  Across major pro sports in the U.S., there has been backlash against Gay Pride amongst both the players and fans. 

(  )  The oldest synagogue in the United States is preparing to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday.  Touro (TOOR-oh) Synagogue, dedicated in 1763, is located one-tenth of a mile from the Old Colony House, a seat of government when Rhode Island was a colony.  In 1790, the year after George Washington became the first president, the Touro congregation sent him a letter praising “a government, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.” Washington later became known for those same words when he quoted them back in a written response to the congregation, assuring them of his commitment to religious freedom. 

(  )  Several FBI analysts tied to the creation of a 2023 memo warning of a potential threat from Catholic “violent extremists” have been fired by Director Kash Patel.  The fired employees include four intelligence analysts and a supervisory analyst. The January 2023 intelligence product produced by analysts in the FBI’s Richmond, Virginia, field office emerged as a political flashpoint after it was issued.  Earlier Justice Department investigations into the memo challenged the analytical tradecraft.  The FBI says “investigative activity must not be based solely on the exercise of rights guaranteed by the First Amendment.”