On October 4th, Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti, killing hundreds and leaving widespread destruction across the southern part of the country. It was the strongest storm to hit the region in more than 50 years. Six weeks later, correspondent Kim Lawton traveled to Haiti to report on the progress of relief efforts.

Throughout history, many people of faith have found spiritual energy in certain remote places around the world. One such place in the U.S. is at the convergence of three rivers in Michigan, where correspondent Judy Valente spoke with retreatants about the spiritual healing they have experienced, and where they told her they are able to practice “the presence of God.”

Host Bob Abernethy, managing editor Kim Lawton, and Jerome Socolovsky, editor-in-chief of Religion News Service, discuss how religious groups voted in Tuesday’s dramatic presidential election and what role people of faith might now play in finding ways to bring the country together. 

As voters head to the polls, many have strong negative feelings about the campaign. Some are frustrated with the tenor of the rhetoric. Others say they feel forced to vote for the “lesser of two evils” or question whether they can in good conscience vote for either candidate. Correspondent Kim Lawton examines the moral dimensions underlying some of the negativity and talks to religious leaders.

Washington National Cathedral, Howard University, and Wesley Theological Seminary recently hosted a concert that featured spirituals, the great Christian music of African slaves in the US. We talked with Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas, the cathedral’s canon theologian, about the history of spirituals and their ever-relevant message of faith and freedom.

Correspondent Dan Lothian reports from Florida on the voting challenges and the feelings of vulnerability and isolation facing Muslim Americans this year. According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, 85 percent of American Muslims who responded to its recent poll believe Islamophobia and anti-Muslim sentiment have increased in the past year.

Juan Cole is the Richard P. Mitchell Collegiate Professor of History at the University of Michigan and a prominent scholar and author on the Muslim world’s relationship with the West. Cole was in Washington recently doing research on the Quran, particularly on the meaning of peace in its verses and in the late antique world in which Muslims believe it was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad.

United Methodism, Roman Catholicism, evangelical Christianity, and “the power of positive thinking” have all shaped the politics and personal stories of this year’s candidates for national office.

As part of the program’s ongoing election coverage, correspondent Kim Lawton looks at Catholic voters. In 2012, Catholics were almost evenly divided between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, and sharp divisions remain this cycle as well. Lawton reports on the variety of issues Catholic voters are stressing, and the efforts of both campaigns to reach out to them.

In Liberia, a country still recovering from civil war and the Ebola crisis, most people remain in poverty, partly because the economy has been largely dependent on exporting raw materials, not finished products. But a creative American is changing that. His name is Chid Liberty, born in Liberia and raised in Wisconsin. He says he was happy in the US until he felt a call to go back.

Correspondent Dan Lothian reports that it’s estimated that the child trafficking business generates profits of more than 150 billion dollars a year. Tim Ballard, a former government agent, founded Operation Underground Railroad to rescue young children from criminal traffickers, counting on a “higher power” to keep him and his team safe.

With less than four weeks until the election, faith groups continue to respond to the turmoil of the presidential campaigns. The release of a tape with sexually offensive comments from Donald Trump has provoked vigorous debate among many evangelicals, conservative Catholics and Mormons. Host Bob Abernethy and Religion News Service reporter David Gibson discuss some of the religious reactions.

There is a restaurant in San Francisco that not only serves good food but also trains former prison inmates to run it. More than three out of four of the staff have been in prison. Correspondent Lucky Severson reports on a former corrections officer, Teresa Goines, who felt called to help former prisoners, especially the young ones, stay off the streets. 

According to Holocaust studies scholar and modern Jewish history professor Deborah Lipstadt, “Holocaust denial is at its heart anti-Semitism.” Lipstadt is the subject of “Denial,” a new feature film that tells the story of how she was sued for libel by UK Holocaust denier David Irving.  She speaks with R&E about her experience during the trial and the impact of Holocaust denial today.

West Africa’s Liberia was founded by freed American slaves. In recent years, two long wars and an ebola epidemic all but destroyed the country, not least its school system. Now, as correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro reports, Liberian educators are trying to re-build their schools by experimenting with a new system -- part private, run by an American company, and part public, as before.

This week many Christians observed the Feast of St. Francis, a day that recalls the life of the 13th century saint revered for his devotion to prayer, suffering and love for every part of creation.  In his honor many churches observe the day with a blessing of the animals..  At the Franciscan monastery in Washington, we spoke with Father Jim Gardiner and Catholic historian Father Michael Cusato.

“There’s something about the shofar that is like the chatter of children. It’s the crying of babies. It’s the mother giving birth. It’s the grief wailing. It is a human, primitive voice.”

While many cities in the U.S. have moved to criminalize homelessness, imposing fees for lying down, camping and begging, Albuquerque, New Mexico has taken a different approach. It has initiated a program it calls “There’s a Better Way,” picking up homeless individuals and transporting them to jobs that pay them in cash at the end of the work period. Correspondent Lucky Severson reports.

Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie, founder and leader of the Lab/Shul community in New York City, talks about the necessary spiritual and mental preparations to undertake in advance of the Jewish High Holy Days (October 2-12), from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur. The rabbi holds a boot camp filled with workshops, food, and music to encourage introspection, repentance, and honesty.

This week, the US State Department sponsored a conference in Washington on the intersection of religion and diplomacy. Clergy, faith-based activists, academics, and diplomats attended. Critics have long charged that the US government has not done a good job in acknowledging the role of religion in foreign policy. Correspondent Kim Lawton talks with, US Special Representative Shaun Casey.