Ohio church offers drive-thru for Ash Wednesday

Cincinnati — An Ohio church is offering a drive-thru Ash Wednesday blessing for parishioners pressed for time or reluctant to come inside the church for the Lenten observance. More

Southern Baptist leaders OK adding 'Great Commission' to name

Nashville, Tenn.— Some Southern Baptists worry that their denomination's name still carries the stigma of a 19th century split with northern Baptists over slavery. Others who fought hard to build the brand and its conservative theology and politics don't want to see it go. More

Catholic churches learn their fate

Detroit— Just days before the beginning of holy season of Lent, local Catholics learned the fate of their parishes from their priests during Sunday Masses that were tinged with curiosity and sadness. More

Southern Baptists to hear proposed name change

Nashville, Tenn.— A panel for the Southern Baptist Convention recommended Monday that its leadership endorse a new, add-on description for the denomination — "Great Commission Baptists" — but stopped short of a complete, legal name change. More

Saudi female athletes challenge Muslim norms

Behind concrete walls and out of sight of men, Saudi women wearing shorts and short-sleeve shirts meet three times a week to play soccer in an all-female club in Saudi Arabia’s port city of Jeddah. More

22 cardinals join club to elect pope's successor

Vatican City— Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday brought 22 Catholic churchmen into the elite club of cardinals who will elect his successor, cementing the Italian majority in a future conclave but also giving New York's garrulous archbishop a position of prominence. More

Archdiocese of Detroit finalizes list of area churches to close

Detroit— Priests throughout Metro Detroit have been informed about which parishes will close as a result of a massive reorganization plan for local Catholic churches. More

• Metro Detroit churches face closures