Novelist Anne Rice's surprise post last week on Facebook — she announced she had quit Christianity "in the name of Christ" because she'd seen too much hypocrisy — brought cheers and smug smiles from critics of institutional faith, and criticism and soul-searching among believers.

Muslims trying to build houses of worship in the nation's heartland, far from the heated fight in New York over plans for a mosque near ground zero, are running into opponents even more hostile and aggressive.

The American clergy is suffering from burnout, several new studies show.

Like many teenagers, Saira Ahmad questioned her religious faith -- once she found out what it was.

The Archdiocese of Boston, in an effort to bring lapsed Catholics back to church, is planning a major public relations campaign in the coming year that will use television ads, parish events, and personal invitations to urge inactive Catholics to “come home’’ to their faith.

To get to church on a recent Sunday morning, the Yeldell family walked no farther than their own living room to greet fellow worshippers.

Megachurch, meet microchurch.

The French parliament begins debate Tuesday on a bill that would ban women from wearing Islamic veils, such as the burqa, that fully cover the face and body.

The trouble with most major holidays in the United States, if you're an atheist, is that it's difficult to ignore the "holy day" etymology, what with Christmas (obvious), Easter (obvious) and Thanksgiving (whom do you think most people are giving thanks to?).

The 1910 World Missionary Conference was a watershed moment for Protestantism.

Nearly 70 percent of the world's population lives in countries where religious practices are restricted and minority groups are unable to fully live out their faith, according to the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

A recent survey by the US-based Pew Research Centre puts Uganda among the most religious countries on earth.

Last week President Obama nominated an ambassador at large for international religious freedom, a position created by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.

The East African country of Tanzania is known for its natural beauty and relative stability.

When Joseph Reyes and Rebecca Shapiro got married in 2004, they had a Jewish wedding ceremony. He was Catholic but converted to Judaism after they married, and they agreed to raise any children in the Jewish faith. However, after their daughter Ela was born, Reyes began to worry about the fact that she had not been baptized. "If, God forbid, something happened to her, she wouldn't be in heaven," he told me.

Laura Rios grew up Catholic, dancing in honor of the Virgin of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas and a symbol of Mexican identity.

A report this month on who gets abortions showed some surprising results: Catholic women are about as likely as any other woman to terminate a pregnancy.

Standing before a room full of fellow African-Americans, Jamila Bey took a deep breath and announced she's come out of the closet.

Today is supposed to be a time when Americans come together to pray in one voice.

The latest round in the battle of the burqa kicks off Thursday in Belgium, which could become the first country in Europe to ban face coverings worn by observant Muslim women.