🇺🇸 No separation of church and state? NYC mayor sparks a furor 🔌

But some praise Eric Adams' remarks at an interfaith breakfast

By Bobby Ross Jr.

Good morning, Weekend Plug-in readers!

Among the religion news happening now, Catholics in Los Angeles are remembering slain Auxiliary Bishop David G. O’Connell. See photos by Los Angeles Times staff photographer Francine Orr from Thursday’s vigil Mass. A funeral Mass is scheduled for today.

As always, we have a bunch of best reads and top headlines in the world of faith to highlight.

Let’s jump right in!

What to know: The big story

Big Apple, big controversy: “Don’t tell me about no separation of church and state. State is the body. Church is the heart. You take the heart out of the body, the body dies.”

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said that at an interfaith breakfast this week — remarks called “unhinged and dangerous” by a rabbi quoted by the New York Times’ Dana Rubinstein.

Ruth Graham @publicroad

"Mr. Adams, who grew up attending a storefront church in Queens, identifies as Christian, but of no particular denomination. ... He has at least one Buddha statue. He has spoken in earnest about the energy emitted from stones."

nytimes.comAdams, Discussing Faith, Dismisses Idea of Separating Church and StateMayor Eric Adams also suggested that banning organized public school prayer was a mistake, saying, “When we took prayers out of schools, guns came into schools.”

More from the New York Times:

He went on to suggest that his path to the mayoralty was divinely ordained, saying that when he implements policies, he does so in a “godlike approach.”

At another point, Mr. Adams seemed to suggest that it was a mistake for the Supreme Court to ban mandated prayer in public schools, as it did in 1962. “When we took prayers out of schools, guns came into schools,” he said.

The phrase “separation of church and state” is not in the Constitution, but the First Amendment’s statement that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” has been widely interpreted to dictate such a separation.

‘God bless Mayor Adams’: But not everyone criticized the comments.

In fact, Adams won “a new group of fans: Orthodox Jews and evangelical Christians, whose leaders lauded the liberal Democrat,” according to the Washington Times’ Mark A. Kellner.

“I believe much of the chaos we’re seeing in our country today results from trying to be good without God, and such a thing is totally impossible,” Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, told Kellner.

Dr. Robert Jeffress @robertjeffress

God bless @NYCMayor Eric Adams! Read my comments in the @WashTimes.

washingtontimes.comNYC Mayor Eric Adams has new fans among religious leaders after he rips removal of school prayerNew York City Mayor Eric Adams’ declaration that he’s not a believer in the “separation of church and state” has won him a new group of fans: Orthodox Jews and evangelical Christians, whose leaders lauded the liberal Democrat.

The setting: The mayor delivered the remarks in front of “hundreds of representatives from a multitude of religions,” Adams spokesman Fabien Levy emphasized in a story by the New York Daily News’ Chris Sommerfeldt.

“While everyone in the room immediately understood what the mayor meant, it’s unfortunate that some have immediately attempted to hijack the narrative in an effort to misrepresent the mayor’s comments,” Levy said.

Power up: The week’s best reads

1. Hate or mistake?: The Washington Post’s Laura Meckler explores what happened when a public school teacher pushed back a Muslim student’s hijab.

“Evidence of antisemitism competed against allegations of Islamophobia as an online debate divided this suburban community along racial and religious lines,” Meckler reports from Maplewood, New Jersey.

Michelle Boorstein @mboorstein

Truly a story for our era, by @laurameckler: A teacher pushed back her student’s hijab. Was it a mistake or an act of hate?

washingtonpost.comShe pushed back her student’s hijab. Was it a mistake or an act of hate?Evidence of antisemitism competed against allegations of Islamophobia as an online debate divided this suburban community along racial and religious lines.

2. ‘I have to do this’: A Sikh motorcycle club made a weeklong ride across the country to raise awareness about their culture and faith — and pay tribute to seven Sikhs killed in a mass shooting in Wisconsin in 2012.

Reporter Ruben Vines and photographer Irfan Khan detail the emotional journey in a Los Angeles Times Column One feature.

Steve Padilla @StevePadilla2

Today's Column One will take you on a journey, one about faith, memory and tolerance. @LATvives captures the passions and fears that prompted these Sikh bikers to make this journey and @latfoto provides the stunning images.

latimes.comSikh motorcyclist joins a cross-country ride against hate: ‘I have to do this’Here’s what happened when a Sikh motorcycle club planned a ‘ride against hate’ across the country, hoping to educate the public about their culture

3. The King’s College’s in peril: “One of the few evangelical colleges in New York City is in sudden financial crisis, and students are planning for a possible shutdown,” Christianity Today’s Emily Belz explains.

Here at ReligionUnplugged.com, executive editor Paul Glader — who teaches at King’s — advises that journalists should “dig more into Canadian businessman Peter Chung and his involvement with King’s in the past two years as well as his other business ventures through Primacorp Ventures Inc. and the Emanata Group.”

Christianity Today @CTmagazine

The NYC school says it needs $2.6 million to finish this semester—and to avoid the real possibility that it will have to close entirely after this school year. @emlybelz reports:

christianitytoday.comThe King’s College Faces Threat of ClosureOne of the few evangelical colleges in New York City is in sudden financial crisis, and students are planning for a possible shutdown.

More top reads

After its ouster by the Southern Baptist Convention, Saddleback Church is doubling down on its support for female pastors, The Associated Press’ Deepa Bharath and Peter Smith write. … Who will pay for the SBC’s abuse reforms over the long term? No one knows, according to Religion News Service’s Bob Smietana. … A Christian health nonprofit saddled thousands with debt as it built a family empire, ProPublica’s Ryan Gabrielson and J. David McSwane reveal. … A sinking holy town in India faces a grim future, as detailed by AP’s Krutika Pathi and Shonal Ganguly. … Multiple federal lawsuits allege the International Churches of Christ concealed sexual abuse of young children, Ngai Yeung and Sam Moskow report for the Los Angeles Times. … For many congregations, wiping out medical debt has become a popular calling, according to Yonat Shimron of RNS. … In East Africa, a Christian ministry serves the most vulnerable of the vulnerable — babies and the mothers who lose them, The Christian Chronicle’s Erik Tryggestad writes. … The Jewish world has largely forgiven Meyers Leonard. Why can’t everyone else? That’s Louis Keene’s question at The Forward. … And finally, here’s something to think about: Places with high religious participation have fewer deaths of despair, The Economist suggests.

The Economist @TheEconomist

Researchers in America have found that the faster religious attendance falls in a state, the more “deaths of despair” rise. These include drug overdoses, alcohol-related illness and suicides. Read why: econ.st/3Zx95CN

Inside the Godbeat

In a touching piece, Mindy Belz, former senior editor at World magazine, reflects on her family and her husband’s cancer fight.

Mindy Belz @MindyBelz

Our hearts and work lives have been tuned to a wider world, but with my husband's cancer our attention turns inward, toward home.

mindybelz.substack.comNumbered daysA battle report from the home front

Meanwhile, Ed Briggs, a former Religion News Association president, wrote his own obituary. Give it a read.

Charging station: ICYMI

Here is where you can catch up on top ReligionUnplugged.com content.

“From Catholicism to ‘Jew-ish’: How George Santos pulled off his religiously intersectional fraud” — that’s the peg for a think piece by Paul Glader.

Check it out.

The final plug

Here in my home state of Oklahoma, people of faith are divided on a proposal to legalize recreational marijuana.

A shameless plug: I wrote about the debate for ReligionUnplugged.com.

Church Curmudgeon @ChrchCurmudgeon

We’re committing to 100 new church plants in 2023! Or do you think that’s high? religionunplugged.com/news/2023/3/2/…

Happy Friday, everyone! Enjoy the weekend.

Bobby Ross Jr. is a columnist for ReligionUnplugged.com and editor-in-chief of The Christian Chronicle. A former religion writer for The Associated Press and The Oklahoman, Ross has reported from all 50 states and 15 nations. He has covered religion since 1999.