religion

New York will allow small religious gatherings starting Thursday as the state gradually loosens restrictions, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at his Wednesday briefing.

In the days leading up to Easter, thousands of Western New Yorkers will travel to the Broadway Market to pick up supplies for their celebrations. There, shoppers can buy everything from pierogies and polish sausage, to unique items such as butter lambs.

The religious community is coming together in response to the "Black Lives Matter" sign at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Amherst being vandalized last year.

Americans who have no religious affiliation now make up the second-largest group in the nation, only behind Evangelical Protestants. A new survey by the Pew Forum on Religion in Public Life found that people who do not identify with any religion make up 22.8% of the population, up from 16.1% in 2007.

A suburban school district is caught between two national groups on opposite sides of the centuries-long fight over the separation of church and state.

Tony Campolo is a Baptist clergyman and university sociologist, has written a series of books and was a counselor to President Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

All during his career, he's been involved in skirmishes with other clergy, including an informal heresy hearing.

While strongly in favor of clergy being involved in issues, he says backing candidates crosses the line.

"There's a big difference between dealing with issues and endorsing candidates," Campolo said.