Vice-president says on evangelical podcast he would feel ‘not shocked if the antichrist was walking among us’
JD Vance has said he is “doing as much of God’s work as possible” and that he is OK “if that leads to the end times”, which he says “are coming”.
The US vice-president made the comments during a Monday podcast interview with Bryce Crawford, a 22-year-old evangelical host with over a million YouTube followers and videos featuring sensationalist headlines including “Preaching the gospel in Chicago’s deadliest neighborhood” and “Debating a ‘gay’ pastor”.
Since Donald Trump’s first presidential campaign a decade ago, “Make America Great Again” (Maga) has evolved from a slogan into an identity, one that claims to center conservative, “America first” values and relies on lies and conspiracy theories to stay afloat. And while Maga has survived impeachments, indictments and a lost election, some devotees are walking away – and doing so loudly.
Rich Logis, a former Trump campaign volunteer, left Maga in 2022, publishing a public apology to help others see that it was OK to challenge the movement. The overwhelming response led him to found the non-profit Leaving Maga, a network of support groups and meetups for people to unpack their role in bolstering Trump’s platform. Logis said he doesn’t persuade people to leave; he just gives them a place to land when they do. The group’s billboard campaign, now running in 27 states, is built around a simple message: “Having doubts? You are not alone.”
Girls Gone Bible is on tour in the US, touting a regressive ideal of femininity through discussions of abstinence and mental health struggles
At first glance, the crowd gathering outside a music venue in Red Bank, New Jersey, could have passed for a group of sorority rush hopefuls – or Ella Langley fans on their way to the country star’s show. Most of them were under the age of 30. They wore cowboy boots, maxi sundresses and soft, bouncy blowouts, scrolling on their phones outside the doors as they waited for friends to arrive.
But one accessory gave them away: the Bibles they toted. These women were there to pray.
Mike Rogers isn’t merely campaigning alongside a controversial supporter. His campaign put an extremist on its faith leadership team
Hasan Piker.
Turn on cable news. Pick up a newspaper. Log on to Twitter. It doesn’t seem to matter where you get your political news: for the past month, the leftist Twitch streamer has become one of the dominant subjects of coverage, conversation and controversy surrounding the crucial Michigan Senate race between the Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and the Republican Mike Rogers.
The non-profit Leaving Maga is built on the premise that abandoning the Trump-built movement is like fighting a disease or breaking an addiction
Stephania Messina kept birthing boys. In the Quiverfull conservative Christian church she belonged to outside Detroit, Michigan, that made her a community celebrity. Your quiver, as the church taught it, is your womb, meant to be filled with as many arrows – a metaphor for children – as you can shoot unto the Lord. She shot five. “They treated me like I was Mother Mary, like I was this gift to the church,” she said.
But while she was quickly pushed into leading worship and Bible study groups for women and children, she wasn’t permitted to talk about politics.
Samuel Bateman, 50, is convicted of three state child abuse counts after previous conviction on federal counts
A polygamous sect leader already serving a 50-year federal sentence for orchestrating sex involving children was given another 24 years in prison Tuesday on separate state convictions for child abuse for hauling girls in an unventilated trailer in Arizona.
Samuel Bateman, 50, was convicted of three child abuse counts stemming from an August 2022 traffic stop in Flagstaff that led to the discovery of three girls, aged 11 to 14, in the trailer. It had a makeshift toilet, sofa and camping chairs and lacked air conditioning and seat belts. Someone tipped off authorities about the trailer after seeing small fingers reaching through gaps in the doors.
Latest attack happened amid Islamophobic blowback against Arab and Muslim Americans running for office
Nashid Shakir describes how assailants used wire cutters to break into the Westwood Islamic Community Center in the early hours of 3 August.
“They cut the wire and broke the window to get in. They broke into the office, too. It was total disarray,” says Shakir, a board member, and member, at the community center since the 1960s.
Metropolitan Onufrii of Kyiv, the primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, has had his Ukrainian citizenship suspended by a presidential decree, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced on July 2.
The SBU said it had established that Onufrii, also known by his secular name, Orest Berezovskyi, voluntarily received Russian citizenship in 2002 and failed to inform Ukrainian authorities of the fact. The new Ukrainian law on multiple citizenship lists holding a Russian passport as grounds for the removal of Ukrainian citizenship.
The security agency also said Onufrii has maintained ties with the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) and actively resisted Ukraine's efforts to secure ecclesiastical independence from Moscow and its leader, Patriarch Kirill.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) has faced growing scrutiny and public criticism in Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, with many officials accusing it of maintaining loyalty to Moscow and undermining Ukraine's sovereignty.
The Moscow-linked church is separate from the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was granted autocephaly (autonomy) by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople in 2019.
"Despite the full-scale invasion, Berezovsky (Onufrii) continues to support the policies of the Russian Orthodox Church and its leadership, particularly Patriarch Kirill (Gundyaev)," the SBU said in a statement.
Zelensky signed a law in 2024 banning the activities of religious organizations affiliated with Russia. The law was widely seen as targeting the UOC-MP, which remains legally subordinate to the Moscow-based ROC despite its claim to have severed ties.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, over 100 UOC-MP clergy members have come under criminal investigation for alleged collaboration with Russian forces or spreading pro-Kremlin propaganda, according to the SBU. Nearly 50 have been charged, and courts have issued verdicts in 26 cases.
The UOC-MP continues to insist that it operates within Ukrainian law and that its 2022 declaration of independence from Moscow was genuine, though many in Ukraine view it as purely symbolic and lacking credibility.
Pope Leo XIV welcomed Ukrainian Greek Catholic pilgrims to the Vatican on June 28, saying their country has been "martyred" by Russia's "senseless war."
Greek Catholicism is Ukraine's second-largest Christian denomination, with adherents making up around one-tenth of the country's population. Prevalent mainly in western Ukraine, it has retained many rituals and practices of the Orthodox Church while under the pope's jurisdiction.
"I wish to express my closeness to the martyred Ukraine — to the children, the youth, the elderly, and especially to the families who mourn their loved ones," Pope Leo said in an address to Greek Catholic pilgrims at St. Peter's Basilica.
"I share in your sorrow for the prisoners and for the victims of this senseless war."
Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Head of the Greek Catholic Church in Ukraine, was among the pilgrims greeted at the Vatican, along with other bishops, priests, and lay believers. The pilgrimage was made in honor of the Jubilee, a Catholic holy year last observed in 2015-2016. The theme of the 2025 Jubilee is "Pilgrims of Hope."
In his address, Pope Leo said that the faith of Ukrainians is being "sorely tested" by Russia's full-scale invasion.
"Many of you, since the war began, have surely asked: Lord, why all this? Where are you? What must we do to save our families, our homes and our homeland?"
The pope also offered a special blessing to mothers of soldiers killed on the front lines in Ukraine.
After Pope Leo's remarks at St. Peter's, President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the pontiff for his support.
Thank you, Your Holiness, for your continued prayers and compassion for Ukraine and our people," Zelensky wrote on X.
"Together we must stop this wanton Russian aggression and protect innocent lives. A just peace is needed. And we would also deeply appreciate your kind help in bringing back all our people — adults and children — held in Russian captivity against their will."
Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost, was elected head of the Catholic Church in the conclave on May 8 after the death of his predecessor, Pope Francis. Zelensky met with Pope Leo at his inauguration mass on May 18 and described him as "a symbol of hope for peace." The two discussed the return of children forcibly deported by Russiaand other humanitarian issues.
Pope Leo has called for "a just and lasting peace" in Ukraine and has offered to host peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow at the Vatican — an offer Zelensky has welcomed and Kremlin officials have dismissed.
Early in June, Pope Leo spoke on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin, urging Russia to make "a gesture that would favor peace."
The pope's support for Ukraine has been viewed as a departure from his predecessor Pope Francis, whose legacy among Ukrainians was marred by his at times controversial comments about Russia. In 2024, Pope Francis called on Ukraine to have the "courage" to "raise the white flag" and negotiate with Moscow.
Violent clashes broke out on June 17 outside the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Chernivtsi, a city in southwestern Ukraine, as hundreds of people attempted to force their way into the church following a long-running dispute over its religious affiliation, Suspilne reported.
The unrest reflects Ukraine's broader struggle to sever ties with the Russian-affiliated Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) amid the ongoing war, which was extensively used by Moscow as a propaganda tool.
According to public broadcaster Suspilne, the crowd gathered to assert control over the church, which had recently voted to switch allegiance from the UOC-MP to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) — an autocephalous (autonomous) Ukrainian church not affiliated with Moscow.
The police were reportedly deployed to prevent escalation but were eventually overwhelmed as protesters breached the church fence and entered the grounds. Officers deployed tear gas, and medics reported treating around 30 people for injuries.
The confrontation came after local authorities re-registered the Holy Spirit Cathedral and two other major parishes in Chernivtsi under the jurisdiction of the OCU earlier this year. Bishop Feognost of the OCU confirmed to Suspilne that the day marked the first Ukrainian-language prayer service in the cathedral, a significant symbol of the national church’s growing influence.
The dispute stems from decades of tension between Orthodox churches in Ukraine and has intensified since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. The UOC-MP, while claiming to have severed ties with Moscow, remains legally subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church, which is seen as a close ally of the Kremlin.
Ukrainian lawmakers passed legislation in August 2024 banning religious organizations with ties to Russia. The law, signed by President Volodymyr Zelensky, gave such organizations nine months to cut all legal and institutional connections with Moscow. Over 100 UOC-MP clergymen have been investigated for suspected collaboration with Russian forces, with dozens facing criminal charges.
Local media say the scene outside the cathedral grew tense as both UOC-MP and OCU supporters gathered. Some attempted to tear down gates while chanting "shame!" and others blocked roads, disrupting traffic. The police temporarily restricted access to the site and launched an investigation.
Suspilne reported that Metropolitan Meletii of the UOC-MP later entered the cathedral after the gates were forced open. Worshippers not aligned with the OCU began a service inside, prompting further clashes. Fire extinguishers were reportedly used inside the building to push back demonstrators.
Chernivtsi Mayor Roman Klichuk initially welcomed the transition of the church to the OCU as a "historic day" for Ukraine's national church, but later deleted the post from his social media page, Suspilne said.
The Moscow-linked church claims it is the victim of religious persecution and insists that it operates lawfully. Critics argue its claims of independence are symbolic and that it remains deeply tied to Russia's religious and political structures.
While Orthodox Christianity remains freely practiced and the most widespread religion in Ukraine, the government and a growing number of citizens view the UOC-MP as a potential security threat.
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