---
title: "Religion weekly update, Oct. 7, 2026"
description: "Religion & Public Life A weekly digest of the Center’s latest research on religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world · Subscribe ↗ Media mentions Mail order abortion pill at stake as red states go to High Court Oct. 6 – Bloomberg Law * I went to America’s largest gathering of astrologers. It […]"
date: "2026-10-07"
authors:
  - name: "Jeffrey Diamant"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/newsletter/religion-weekly/religion-weekly-update-oct-7-2026/"
---

# Religion weekly update, Oct. 7, 2026

---

October 7, 2026

## Religion & Public Life

*A weekly digest of the Center's latest research on religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world · [**Subscribe ↗**](https://pewresearch.us1.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=434f5d1199912232d416897e4&id=3e953b9b70)*

---

## [Views on posting Ten Commandments in public schools](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/06/22/many-americans-favor-prayer-in-public-schools-but-few-think-it-should-be-mandatory/)

In Texas last week, a judge ordered a school district to [post the Ten Commandments](https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/religion/article/ten-commandments-galveston-isd-paxton-22454461.php?utm_source=chatgpt.com), and the district said it would do so, after months of legal battles over a 2025 state law requiring public school classrooms to display the commandments. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide later this month whether to review the state law.

Americans are roughly divided over whether public schools should display the Ten Commandments in classrooms. In a [Pew Research Center survey from April](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/06/22/many-americans-favor-prayer-in-public-schools-but-few-think-it-should-be-mandatory/?utm_source=Pew+Research+Center&utm_campaign=4092d61228-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2026_08_19_07_41&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3e953b9b70-4092d61228-401424400), 50% said they favored this and 48% opposed it. People in the South (57%) and Midwest (51%) were more likely than people in the Northeast (45%) and West (43%) to say they favored it.

#### Media mentions

[Mail order abortion pill at stake as red states go to High Court](https://news.bloomberglaw.com/health-law-and-business/mail-order-abortion-pill-at-stake-as-red-states-go-to-high-court)
Oct. 6 - Bloomberg Law *

[I went to America’s largest gathering of astrologers. It was a battle over how to read the stars](https://www.theguardian.com/science/ng-interactive/2026/oct/01/united-astrology-conference)
Oct. 1 - The Guardian

#### In the news

[Jim Bakker, whose globe-spanning PTL ministry fell to scandal and fraud, dies at 86](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/jim-bakker-tv-pastor-served-time-defrauding-followers-dies-86-rcna601803)
Oct. 6 - NBC News

[Trump orders execution of gunman in 2009 attack at Fort Hood](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/05/us/politics/trump-execution-fort-hood-gunman.html)
Oct. 5 - The New York Times *

[The fall of Roe changed doctors. Now they’re changing politics](https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2026/10/03/abortion-doctors-politics-roe-dobbs-01105039)
Oct. 3 - Politico

[Mormon leader decries explosion in sports betting, prediction markets](https://apnews.com/article/mormon-leaders-online-prediction-markets-gambling-2e1b3e9c8f8e2cb3d529a2e270c93085)
Oct. 3 - The Associated Press

[U.K. police accuse 2 Iranian men of planning terror attack on Manchester’s Jewish community](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/2-iranians-charged-planning-terror-attack-manchester-jewish-community-uk/)
Oct. 3 - CBS News

[OpenAI’s Altman: Ascribing religion to models a ‘safety issue’](https://www.axios.com/2026/10/03/openai-anthropic-altman-amodei-religious-force-models)
Oct. 3 - Axios

[As anti-Hindu rhetoric grows, Texas Hindus rethink public celebrations](https://religionnews.com/2026/10/02/as-anti-hindu-rhetoric-grows-texas-hindus-rethink-public-celebrations/)
Oct. 2 - Religion News Service

[Pete Hegseth creates a Pentagon Office of Religious Affairs reporting directly to him](https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-defense-department-pentagon-religion-41405eb6dd60ca5a3f45fe3387f82952)
Oct. 2 - The Associated Press

[AIPAC is spending millions to elect friends. It’s also making enemies](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/02/us/politics/aipac-midterm-elections-spending-israel.html)
Oct. 2 - The New York Times *

[Polish activists open first abortion pill locker in Warsaw](https://www.afp.com/de/node/3844590)
Sept. 30 - Agence France-Presse