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This Sunday, churches in parts of Virginia will be permitted to open their doors for services as part of phase one of Gov. Ralph Northam’s reopening plan.

It’s a moment many pastors in the state have been eagerly anticipating.

When campus life shuttered in March to slow the spread of the coronavirus, more than 14 million students across the nation were forced to adapt to new routines. Campus lawns speckled with students gave way to uniform rows of faces on video calls. The now coined “Zoom fatigue” replaced “pulling an all-nighter” at the library.

While the pandemic has strained students from all academic disciplines, seminary and divinity students have felt unique pressure as they discern calls to enter positions and spaces of worship that may not resemble what they did before the virus took hold.

Four students shared with Sojourners what their studies look like amid the pandemic and how this moment is shaping their call.

Mother’s Day grief, spiritual care on the front lines, essential workers, and more.

Why Zoom leaves us unfulfilled, churches addressing financial distress, food hospitality, and more.

10 ways to do online church, flattening the curve of xenophobia, these ‘Malthusian’ times, and more.

Antoniette Holt, director of the Office of Minority Health for the Indiana Department of Health, pointed to lack of reliable transportation as a challenge faced by some in African-American communities across the country, making it difficult for people to be on time for doctor’s appointments, often unforgiving when it comes to tardiness. This point is especially important during the pandemic, as social distancing practices are nearly impossible to maintain on public transit.

The One Trillion Trees Initiative, launched by the World Economic Forum and led by led by the U.N. Environment Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organization, is, as its name implies, an afforestation/reforestation effort. It was designed to support the U.N. Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030 announced in March 2019, offered as a “proven measure to fight the climate crisis and enhance food security, water supply and biodiversity.”

As of April 15, more than 101,000 people worldwide have died of the novel coronavirus. In the U.S., 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have issued orders for people to stay in their homes to slow the spread. But with at least 1.6 million infected globally, the mortality rate has forced an increasing number of people to confront a topic they tend to otherwise avoid: death.