Leslie G. Desmangles is an emeritus professor at Trinity College in Connecticut. He has published widely, most notably an awarded book titled The Faces of the Gods: Vodou and Roman Catholicism in Haiti. He can speak to Roman Catholic practice in Haiti, the Caribbean and West Africa.

Anna Peterson is a professor in the department of religion at the University of Florida. Her research focuses on religion and social change, especially Catholicism in Latin America; environmental and social ethics; and animal studies. She has published a number of articles, chapters and book in these areas. Her current research analyzes the role of […]

Ariel Salzmann is a history professor at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada. Her research includes histories of Mediterranean communities and Muslim societies, the transformation of market systems and the making of global capitalism, as well as Islamophobia and Catholic-Muslim relations.

This edition of ReligionLink is dedicated to stories that could possibly top the lists in 2025, providing background, resources and expert sources for you to turn to in the year ahead.

In this edition of ReligionLink, we explore what religion looks like at home, offering perspectives, storylines, background, sources and more to help you cover how Americans are finding a place to practice their religion and spirituality in bedrooms and kitchens, closets and “she-sheds” across the country.

Cindy S. Lee is a Taiwanese-American spiritual director and aspiring mystic. She leads retreats in the areas of Christian mysticism and BIPOC centered spirituality. She also mentors and trains spiritual directors, and is particularly interested in supporting BIPOC spiritual directors.

Alina Kokoschka is a researcher in Islamic studies, specializing in the aesthetics of Islamization, with a focus on the material worlds of Islam and Arabic script in the digital space. She also has interest in the relationship between people and things as well as criticism of representations of Islam and “Islamic art.”

Paul Christopher Johnson is professor of history at the University of Michigan. He has written extensively on religious practices, diaspora religions and the practice of secrecy in the Americas, especially in Brazil and the Caribbean.

UnidosUS, founded in 1968, is a national nonpartisan organization that serves as the nation’s largest Latino civil rights advocacy organization. Press contact is Ana Gabriela Fernández.