Lead story

Atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki left survivors wrestling with spiritual questions – here’s how Buddhists and Catholics responded

Editor's note:

What happens when the world as you know it ends – but somehow you have to keep going?

In some ways, that struggle may sound familiar to all of us. But no one in history has experienced it to the same degree as the survivors of the atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 77 years ago this month. The U.S. attack left more than human deaths and physical destruction. It left survivors wrestling with the spiritual question of why: why their loved ones were gone, and why they were still here.

Many hibakusha, as bomb-affected people are called in Japanese, have shared their testimonies over the years. But in English-language materials, at least, their religious and philosophical reflections have not received much attention, writes ethics scholar Yuki Miyamoto. Her book, “Beyond the Mushroom Cloud,” studies how Buddhists and Catholics came to terms with the bombing – and what we can learn from it today, in a still-nuclear age.

Religion News

Nicaragua's government shutters 6 church radio stations 

Nicaraguan authorities have ordered the closures of six radio stations belonging to the Roman Catholic Church and surrounded one with riot police. By Gabriela Selser/The Associated Press 

Religious groups mustn’t stall on accessibility, disability activists say

‘It’s not just a legal duty, or human rights duty. It’s a spiritual duty.’ By Kathryn Post/Religion News Service

Pope to Kazakhstan Sept. 13-15, may meet Russia patriarch 

The Vatican says Pope Francis will travel next month to Kazakhstan. It's possible that he could meet there with Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church who has justified Moscow’s war in Ukraine. By Nicole Winfield/The Associated Press 

Priesthood, politics and propaganda: One clergyman’s life in war-torn Ukraine

For many Ukrainian Orthodox Christians, and clergy in particular, the question of religious identity in relationship to the Russian Orthodox Church is both personal and political. By Marika Proctor/Religion News Service

Jewish volunteers bond with Ukrainian kids at summer camp 

A summer camp in Poland's capital has brought Jewish volunteers originally from Russia or other parts of the former Soviet Union to mentor Ukrainian refugee children. By Vanessa Gera/The Associated Press 

Commentary and Analysis

Russia's invasion of Ukraine threatens a cultural heritage the two countries share, including Saint Sophia Cathedral

Saint Sophia Cathedral was built under the reign of Grand Prince Yaroslav, whose father, Volodymyr, converted the region to Christianity. By J. Eugene Clay for The Conversation

Christianity was a major part of Indigenous boarding schools – a historian whose family survived them explains

A historian of the residential schools explains how religion played a key role in assimilationist systems for Indigenous children in Canada and the United States.  By Brenda J. Child for The Conversation

Utah's Pioneer Day celebrates Mormons' trek west – but there's a lot more to the history of Latter-day Saints and migration

The Utah holiday is a reflection of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' slowly changing identity, a historian of Mormonism and migration writes. By Jeffrey Turner for The Conversation

Beyoncé invites church girls to celebrate their freedom

In her new song 'Church Girl,' Beyoncé doesn’t just give church girls permission to dance, she also defends us. By Candice Marie Benbow/Religion News Service

Photos of the Week: Pope visits Canada; Hindu Festival and more

A Kyrgyz woman wearing an elecheck, the traditional Kyrgyz headdress for married women prays inside a yurt, a traditional Kyrgyz house during the Ak-Moor Fest Ethno-festival in Ornok, a resort village on the northern shore of Lake Issyk-Kul, 207 kilometers (129 miles) east of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Saturday, July 23, 2022. On the shore of one of the world's largest lakes, high up in Kyrgyzstan's Tian Shan mountains, models strutted and sashayed in outfits mixing the ancient and modern at the World Nomads Fashion festival. (AP Photo/Vladimir Voronin)

Did a friend or colleague forward this to you? Click the button below to subscribe.

• This Week in Religion is a publication of the Global Religion Journalism Initiative, a collaboration among the Religion News Service, The Associated Press and The Conversation U.S.
• The three news organizations work to improve general understanding and analyze the significance of developments in the world of faith.