Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
February 24, 2017
All 240 Family Christian Stores are Closing (Christianity Today) Pennsylvania School District to Remove Ten Commandments Monument (Port St. Joe Star) Falwell: It Was Steve Bannon's Idea that I Lead Education Task Force...
What Will You Do With Your ‘One Wild and Precious Life’?
I spent the better part of last week on the campus of Missouri Baptist University in St. Louis for their Spring Speaker Series. This meant that I spoke in chapel three times, taught two classes and met with faculty and...
Spreading Faith: How Migration Changes Religion
Whatever might drive them to move, migrants carry their religions with them. Yet the religions they bring to their new lands do not remain unchanged. The fact of movement itself is a powerful dynamic force in religious...
February 23, 2017
Trump Administration Withdraws Federal Protections on Transgender Bathrooms in Schools (CNN) Lake Shore Among 3 Churches Removed by Baptist General Convention of Texas Board (Waco Tribune) Politics, Homosexuality, Roil...
Why I Signed the World Relief Open Letter on Refugees
I signed in early February the World Relief open letter asking President Trump to reconsider his recent executive order impacting refugees. A reporter called asking me to share why I did so. She also asked my opinion...
Pope: Welcome, Protect, Promote and Integrate Refugees
Pope Francis stressed that addressing the global refugee crisis requires an urgent, coordinated response based on four verbs: welcome, protect, promote and integrate. Fear, indifference and rejection of refugees is...
When Communities Form by Demonizing Outsiders
The challenge of Jesus' resurrection was the focus on a recent article in America magazine. "Unlike previous communities in which the bond among members forges itself through those it excludes and scapegoats, the...
February 22, 2017
What is it Like to be a Muslim at a Baptist University? (PBS) Poll Says 3 in 4 White Evangelicals Support Trump Travel Ban (Baptist News Global) Will Russell Moore be Defunded? Southern Baptists Decide (Christian Post)...
Profiles in Goodwill: David George
David George is president of the WMU Foundation. 1. Where did you grow up? Birmingham, Alabama. 2. What is your favorite verse, book or story in the Bible? Why? John 16:33. Knowing that God has overcome, keeps me from...
Effective Christian Activists Must Learn Contemplation
Action and contemplation must be intertwined for Christians to effectively address issues facing our world. I was reminded of this when I had the opportunity to participate in the A Rocha Canada national staff retreat...
The Cure for Internet Venom: Let’s Listen to Each Other
I was captivated by the sounds around me on a recent early morning walk in the woods. The frost-covered rye grass crunched beneath my feet. The wind swished through the loblolly pines. The crows cawed to each other in...
February 21, 2017
How Pastors Perceive Domestic Violence Differently (Christianity Today) House Overturns Rule Protecting Planned Parenthood (NBC New York) Mormon Church Joins Brief Opposing Trans Rights With Supreme Court (NewNowNext)...
In Our Tumultuous Society, Hear Wisdom’s Quiet Voice
Those of us who tend to see parallels between features of the biblical testimony and contemporary life are having a heyday as we sit in the front row with the national drama of the U.S. on center stage. Those who offer...
Why Christians Should Show Hospitality to Strangers
Even a cursory examination of the Bible will fill the mind of an enquirer with a panorama of virtues that can transform the landscape of human experience if they are practiced. One of these virtues is hospitality to...
Seeking Better Discourse Above Social Media’s Din
Losing the art of listening has corrupted public discourse. "God's voice is of the heart. / I do not therefore say / all voices of the heart are God's, / and to discern his voice amidst the voices, / is that hard task...
Remember What EthicsDaily.com’s Mission Is, How We Pursue It
What is the mission of the Baptist Center for Ethics, better known as EthicsDaily.com, and how do we pursue that mission? Perhaps answering these two core questions ought to be an annual exercise. Reminding our...
February 20, 2017
Tennessee Church Continues 180-Year Old Open-Door Tradition (Tennessean) Pennsylvania Church Hosts 'Tent City' Encampment (ABC27) Indiana Church to be Made into Apartments (Star Press) Alabama Church Asks for Its Own...
Engage in International Ministry Without Leaving Home
The world's population continues to expand exponentially with China and India leading the way. For instance, there are four Chinese for every one person in the U.S. China has more honor students in public schools than...
Black History Helps Us Appreciate Our Full History
My wife and I recently started dating again. Amid a busy time of job transitions and moving to a new state, we've rediscovered the importance of paying special time with, and attention to, the one you love. We saw the...
February 17, 2017
Trump and the Republicans are Redefining 'Religious Freedom' to Favor Christians (New Republic Constitutionality of Leaked Executive Order on Religious Freedom Called into Question (RNS) Protecting Religious Liberty...
Texas Church’s Ministry Extends Beyond Relief Efforts
What do clothes washers, clean beds and coffee have to do with each other? How do these three things relate to relief, development and sustainment? For one, they are most likely a part of our daily lives that we take...