RELIGION HEADLINES SUN 11-9-25

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B SECTION READERS FOR SUNDAY, 11/9

(SRN NEWS)  For the first time ever, People magazine’s annual “Sexiest Man Alive” honor goes to a homosexual.  Actor Jonathan Bailey has been named by the popular magazine for 2025.  Bailey, who has spoken openly about being gay, is the founder of the Shameless Fund, which promotes the LGBT agenda.  People is following in the footsteps of other major entertainment magazines that are relentlessly pushing homosexuality, picturing gay and transgender celebrities on their covers. Meanwhile, a growing number of beauty pageants have been awarding prizes to men who are living as women, prompting a growing backlash across the country. 

(  )  Analysts say a growing number of Americans are joining Quaker churches.  They are still a tiny minority of the general U.S population, but Quakers have been here for centuries. The Religious Society of Friends — best known as the Quakers — originated in 17th-century England.  William Penn was an English Quaker who founded Pennsylvania following the faith’s emphasis on religious tolerance.  In the U.S., Quakers became highly influential in cities such as Philadelphia and founded colleges in the state including Bryn Mawr, Haverford and Swarthmore.  Members of the group have also suffered persecution for their pacifism. 

(  )  A Dutch venue has canceled a historic Hanukkah concert because one of the singers is connected to the Israeli Army.  Amsterdam’s Royal Concert Hall is ending 10 years of Hanukkah concerts over Shai Abramson, a retired IDF member who serves as the Army’s cantor.  The concert series was first revived in 2015, 70 years after it was halted by the Nazis during their occupation of Holland.  Anti-Semitism has been on the rise in Amsterdam, which features a large population of recent Muslim immigrants.  Last year the city was roiled by pro-Palestinian protests that followed the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. 

(  )  New York City’s Jewish community — the largest in the United States — is abounding with anxiety now that the city has its first Muslim mayor.  Zohran Mamdani won over many liberal Jewish voters with vows to make the city more affordable and equitable.  But he has alarmed many others, in New York and across the U.S., with harsh criticism of Israel, including assertions that its military campaign in Gaza amounts to genocide.  The new mayor has also said he would direct the city’s police department to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York, on charges brought by the International Criminal Court.