Imagine the sadness of dying alone. To that dismal prospect, add the thought of dying alone in prison. Not long ago, one of the toughest prisons in the country created a hospice program to ensure that that doesn't happen to its inmates.

Hundreds of thousands of people in Washington and more than 60 other cities prepared for Sunday’s Million Mom March, a Mother’s Day attempt to convince Congress to pass tougher gun control laws. Every major faith group — Christian, Jewish, Muslim — has endorsed the march, but the gun issue still divides many believers.

The Reverend Barbara Brown Taylor has been honored as one of the greatest preachers in the world; she is now primarily a writer and teacher. One reason for the change in her occupations is the evolution under way in her ideas about God, the universe, faith, doctrine, and the kind of church she still wants to serve.

With the enduring interest in the Passion story, Jesus' death and resurrection is being retold not only in churches but also in pop culture. At Easter, perhaps more than at any other time of the year, Christians love to retell the story of Jesus, and especially of his last days on Earth.

All over this country, wherever church and synagogue attendance is falling off, places of worship are redesigning their observances to try to make them more meaningful, especially for the young. In reform and conservative Judaism, a renewal movement has begun called Synagogue 2000. Its leaders want to revitalize Jewish prayer and community.

A century and a half ago, Brigham Young led 600 Mormon settlers to the Salt Lake Valley and predicted it would blossom as a rose. Today, the valley is headquarters to what may be the fastest-growing church in the U.S., blossoming so fast it is continuously redefining itself.

As a writer and editor, Phyllis Tickle’s life on the road can be crowded and public. At home, in the midst of her writing and in the midst of whatever else is happening, every three hours every day Phyllis’ watch beeps. She stops what she’s doing, picks up her Breviary, her book of daily readings, goes to a quiet place and prays.

Homosexuality is one of the most contentious issues facing Christian denominations, A year ago, Methodist ministers blessed a holy union ceremony in which two women exchanged marriage vows. Yet the controversy isn't going away, and conservatives are urging an end to what they call blatant disobedience among clergy.

The KANSAS CITY STAR published a series of stories on AIDS and the Roman Catholic priesthood. On the basis of a survey it conducted, the paper said the death rate from AIDS among priests is four times that of the general population. But the newspaper’s conclusions and survey methodology have drawn sharp criticism.

According to the Census Bureau, 44 million Americans do not have health insurance. Everyone agrees solving that problem will take more than church volunteers, but take a look at what a devout doctor and Memphis’s Church Health Center are doing. Memphis is one of the poorest big cities in the country, and that’s why Dr. Scott Morris moved there.

It’s a ritual that has been practiced in the nation’s capital for nearly half a century. For a couple hours a year, government and religious leaders from around the world put politics aside and gather for a morning of prayer.

The Right Reverend John Shelby Spong, arguably America’s most controversial church leader, has retired as the Episcopal bishop of Newark, New Jersey. For decades, Spong has been a combative advocate of liberal causes such as civil rights, women’s ordination, and gay rights. His retirement coincides with the publication of his autobiography, HERE I STAND.

Every December 12, U.S. cities with large Mexican or Central American populations are the sites of colorful celebrations honoring the Virgin of Guadalupe. With the numbers of Latino Catholics steadily increasing in the U.S., the virgin's feast and other Old World traditions will likely be more and more visible in the American religious landscape in years to come.

During the Christmas season, it's traditional in the U.S. to hear Handel's "Messiah." It tells the story of Jesus' life and resurrection, and in the English tradition, uses a boys' choir. The Washington National Cathedral Boy Choristers have been singing religious music since 1909.

There is a growing conflict at the U.S.-Mexico border between enforcing the law and helping illegal immigrants in need. Despite walls and patrols, undocumented immigrants continue to pour into the U.S., sometimes under life-threatening conditions. Should churches help the needy, even if they're here illegally?

The word "spirituality" has come to mean all kinds of private experience of the sacred. The Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, located in Bethesda, Maryland, is a center for the practice and teaching of the Christian contemplative tradition. Here, mainline Protestants mostly seek experience of God through the practices of, among others, Tibetan Buddhists and Catholic saints.

Dorchester Temple Baptist Church is home to what is perhaps best known and most successful church-based program in the country fighting violence among inner-city youths. Through Boston's Ten-Point Coalition, religious leaders and police are working together to make the area safer for all.