Emily Belz

Emily is a senior reporter for WORLD Magazine based in New York City. Follow Emily on Twitter @emlybelz.

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A back-row seat

Q&A | An atheist says class divisions have contributed to despair—and he sees secular solutions have not worked
by Emily Belz
Posted 10/10/19, 12:01 pm

Back in the 1990s, photographer Chris Arnade worked as an analyst on Wall Street, and he would go on long walks to relieve his stress. The walks got longer and longer, to the point that he quit work and began documenting the stories of the people he met on his walks in New York’s downtrodden neighborhoods.

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Krieg Barrie

Silence of the sheep

Law | Christian nonprofits and churches have adopted practices from the for-profit world of avoiding liability, sometimes leading to devastating outcomes
by Emily Belz
Posted 10/10/19, 10:19 am

When staff members join Christ the King Community Church in Burlington, Wash., one of the largest churches in the United States, they sign onto the employee handbook, which has a tightly defined confidentiality clause. By signing, staffers agree never to discuss information “designated as confidential” such as “sensitive information regarding members” or donation records or discipline issues. The handbook is publicly available.

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Jeenah Moon/AP Photo

Dangerous streets

Crime | Four brutal murders of homeless men show the importance of Christian ministry to the homeless and drug addicted 
by Emily Belz
Posted 10/09/19, 05:38 pm

A New York moment: 

We’re all reeling from the brutal murders of four homeless men, including 83-year-old Cheun Kok, over the weekend. The suspect is 24-year-old homeless man with a history of violence. The murders highlight not only the vulnerability of people living on the street, but also the record levels of homelessness in the city even as Mayor Bill de Blasio has almost tripled spending on the problem. 

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Sound of solidarity

Democracy | New Yorkers sing and chant in support of Hong Kong protesters

Emily Belz | 10/02/19, 03:27 pm

A New York moment: 

While WORLD’s June Cheng faced tear gas and violence as she covered protests in Hong Kong, I was lucky to go to a peaceful, sunny gathering in New York’s Washington Square Park, where activists assembled in a show of support for the Hong Kong protests. 

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Family attraction

Cities | New Yorkers ask: How can cities become more appealing to families with children?

Emily Belz | 9/25/19, 05:58 pm

A New York moment: 

For the last century New York City, particularly Manhattan, has been a place that families leave once they have school-age children, a migration mostly due to high rents and a spotty education system. Last week smart New Yorkers—The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson, the Manhattan Institute’s Kay Hymowitz, and property developer Brad Hargreaves—gathered at a Manhattan Institute event to discuss this issue over the clatter of tiny plates of cured meats and marinated olives.

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Boy without a father

Movie | Sitting among the New York critics at a screening of Young Ahmed, a film about Islam

Emily Belz | 9/17/19, 02:36 pm

A New York moment: 

The press screenings for the New York Film Festival have begun, and on Monday I screened a new film by the Dardenne brothers. The film, called Young Ahmed, is about a teenage boy trying to embrace radical Islam. Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne are considered the “Coen brothers of Europe,” and we published a feature last year on their spiritually infused films. 

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Scars to heal

Disease | In a country ravaged by war and epidemic, an American Ebola survivor and a Liberian pastor help residents recover from trauma

Emily Belz | 9/12/19, 03:05 pm

In August, Nancy Writebol, a missionary with SIM International, celebrated exactly five years of being healed of Ebola. She had contracted the virus during the 2014 outbreak while helping spray health workers with decontaminating bleach at Eternal Love Winning Africa (ELWA) Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia.

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Five years after Ebola

Disease | One small mission hospital in Liberia saved lives and paved the way for better healthcare in Africa

Emily Belz | 9/12/19, 12:32 am

As clouds dumped late summer rain in Liberia, William E. Pewee was on his way to work as registrar at the Eternal Love Winning Africa (ELWA) Hospital, a 54-year-old mission hospital in the capital city of Monrovia. Although he claims not to be a good singer, before his day started Pewee sang a song of worship to God.

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Anti-vax exodus

Vaccinations | As New York ends its religious exemption for vaccines, some parents turn to homeschooling

Emily Belz | 9/11/19, 03:06 pm

A New York moment: 

I wrote back in April about the measles outbreak in New York, and I’m still getting long emails from readers about that piece. People feel more passionately about vaccines than about most other issues I’ve written about! The drama here in New York continues to unfold. 

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A trip to Grand Bassa County

Liberia | Since Ebola hit Liberia, a team of doctors and nurses has traveled to hard-to-reach areas to provide basic healthcare

Emily Belz | 9/05/19, 03:57 pm

A Liberia moment: 

Metro Minute has been on hiatus because I’ve been in Liberia for a reporting project on mission hospitals. More on that will come soon in the magazine. 

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