Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called Muslims “infiltrators” who would take India’s wealth if his opponents gained power — unusually direct and divisive language from a leader who normally lets others do the dirtiest work of polarizing Hindus against Muslims. Mr. Modi, addressing voters in the state of Rajasthan, referred to a remark once […]
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Many Israelis were in a somber mood on Monday as they prepared to usher in Passover, the Jewish festival of freedom, saying they would mark the holiday rather than celebrate it, with more than 130 hostages remaining in Gaza. The number of hostages believed to be alive is unclear, and with negotiations with Hamas captors […]
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What do we do with our pain? What, if anything, can we learn from it? The Bible offers a startling and potentially transformative response: Let your memory teach you empathy and your suffering teach you love. This week, Jews around the world will mark the beginning of Passover. We’ll gather for Seders, in which we’ll […]
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Daniel C. Dennett, one of the most widely read and debated American philosophers, whose prolific works explored consciousness, free will, religion and evolutionary biology, died on Friday in Portland, Maine. He was 82. His death, at Maine Medical Center, was caused by complications of interstitial lung disease, his wife, Susan Bell Dennett, said. He lived […]
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Religious texts state that when Moses climbed to the top of Mount Sinai, he was spoken to by God and inscribed that message onto stone tablets that became known as the Ten Commandments. Thunder rumbled, trumpets blared and lightning shot across the sky. It was, by biblical and other standards, an extraordinary moment. Moses had […]
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The sleepy pilgrimage city of Ayodhya in northern India was once home to a grand 16th-century mosque, until it was illegally demolished by a howling mob of Hindu militants in 1992. The site has since been reinvented as the centerpiece of the Hindu-chauvinist “new India” promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In 2020, as Covid-19 […]
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The Rev. Cecil Murray, a minister who turned a struggling church in Los Angeles into one of the country’s largest congregations, then made it a base to combat the many ills facing the city’s Black population — most notably during and after the 1992 riots — died on Friday at his home in the View […]
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The moment she saw the sun, something inside Julie McKelvey changed. She was hanging from a rope on the side of Mt. Everest, four hours from the summit. The night was frozen, the slope some 60 degrees steep, the oxygen thin as she ascended to the highest point on earth. In the dark, she felt […]
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When the moon crosses in front of the sun on Monday afternoon and, for a few minutes, casts a shadow over much of New York State, millions of people will be able to witness the rare celestial event just by looking up. Inmates in the state’s prisons will not. Last month, the state’s Department of […]
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March 29, 2024, 4:00 p.m. ET March 29, 2024, 4:00 p.m. ET So, who do you think is going to come out on top in the Final Four? I’m not asking about the N.C.A.A. March Madness basketball tournament. I’m asking about the federal government’s antitrust lawsuits against Amazon, Apple, Facebook’s parent Meta, and Google. The […]
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Long known for his improvised and volatile stage performances, former President Donald J. Trump now tends to finish his rallies on a solemn note. Soft, reflective music fills the venue as a hush falls over the crowd. Mr. Trump’s tone turns reverent and somber, prompting some supporters to bow their heads or close their eyes. […]
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