Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Just Imagine: No Longer Reducing Others to Labels
An ethical response to the Earth requires the use of imagination for proper "knowing," says Norman Wirzba in his book, "From Nature to Creation: A Christian Vision for Understanding and Loving Our World." In advancing...
December 4, 2015
Influence of Churches, Once Dominant, Now Waning in South (Charlotte Observer) N.C. Church Flies Christian Flag Above American Flag (WLOS) Second Baptist. Transgender Activists. Rock 'n' Roll. (Houston Chronicle)...
Human Trafficking: Global Scourge with Significant U.S. Presence
Human trafficking is a global scourge, often referred to as modern-day slavery, and it has a significant presence in the U.S. While I was aware of the significant global presence of trafficking, the information shared...
Will the Church Roll Back Fear’s Thunderclouds?
The recent horrific acts of murder and terror in Paris, Beirut, Nigeria and Mali have reminded us that we still live in a world inhabited by violence, hate and evil. These recent and almost simultaneous upheavals of...
The State of Clergy: Learned Helplessness
A sense of helplessness, arising from the belief that the potential for change or progress is minimal, heightens the anxiety fueling clergy fear. Psychologist Martin Seligman and several colleagues were the first to...
December 3, 2015
New Jersey Muslims Slam Trump: 'We Were Just as Much Hurt' by 9/11 (CNN) Did 'Hateful Rhetoric' Cause Shooting? Hear Planned Parenthood's Careful Response (NPR) SBC Adviser Urges Temperate Talk in Abortion Debate...
Recognizing Refugees as the Shape of God’s Heart
Gregory Boyle is a Jesuit priest and the founder of Homeboy Industries in East Los Angeles, California. He lives and works in his economically poor and gang-riddled community, building kinship and making close...
Ebola Crisis in Liberia is Not Yet History
The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed three new cases of Ebola on Nov. 20 in Paynesville City, a suburb of Monrovia, Liberia, where the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary (LBTS) has been a presence for nearly...
Grace Ji-Sun Kim on COP21 in Paris
Grace Ji-Sun Kim discusses COP21, the annual United Nations climate conference, taking place this year in Paris, in a new online video interview with EthicsDaily.com. Kim, associate professor of theology at the Earlham...
December 2, 2015
For Robert Dear, Religion and Rage Before Planned Parenthood Attack (New York Times) Southern Baptist Pastor Says Planned Parenthood Leader Hates God, Loves Death (Baptist News Global) Judge: Forty-Foot Cross is Not a...
Federal Sentence Lengths Double, Costing Billions with No Measurable Results
The length of federal prison sentences have more than doubled since 1988, which has resulted in billions of additional costs, according to an issues brief from the Pew Charitable Trusts. "Across all six major...
What Kind of Love Can Redeem Hatred?
I've preached a lot of sermons on or around the theme of love - love of God and love of neighbor. But I've never preached on hate. My friend, Stuart Blythe, rector of International Baptist Theological Study Centre in...
The Tale of Two Baptist Responses on Syrian Refugees
Lebanon has an estimated 1.2 million Syrian refugees. The United States might permit 12,000 by the end of 2016. Big difference: 1.2 million vs. 12,000. Big difference in actions and attitudes expressed by two Baptists...
December 1, 2015
Ohio Baptists Erecting Monument in Cheshire, Massachusetts to John Leland (iBerkshire.com) Black Religious Leaders: No Trump Endorsement (CNN) Republicans See Little Downside to Railing Against Muslims (New York Post)...
Why Christian Kids Are Less Generous Than Nonreligious
Kids raised in religious homes are less generous and kind than those raised in nonreligious homes, according to a recent study. By religious, the report means that the parents identified with a religion (mainly...
When the Bible ‘Clearly’ Says Something
Interpreting Scripture is a wonderfully complicated endeavor because the Bible is a complex compilation of literature. Interpretation is art and science. It's a craft that takes many years to learn and is never...
Why Many Christians Prefer to ‘Get By’ as Disciples
The young adults I worked with during my time as a youth minister all had the same question on their minds. As part of the program that we ran, we would talk with young people about relationships and sex. Every youth...
November 30, 2015
Abortion Rights Groups: Political Rhetoric Contributed to Shooting (Washington Post) Slain Officer Swasey was Church Elder, Father of Two (Denver Post) Colorado Springs: A Playground for Pro-Life, Pro-Gun Evangelical...
Report: U.S. Homelessness Declines, But Numbers Still High
A continued decline in U.S. homelessness was highlighted in the U.S. Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) annual report. The nationwide decline from 2014 to 2015 was 2 percent, with the number of homeless children...
Fear: The Fuel on Which Evil Thrives
Be afraid, be very afraid. This is the motto of our age. Fear is in the air. We breathe it in, and it travels up and down our bloodstream, from our heart to our head and back again. Fear becomes part and parcel to our...
The ‘Evangelical Right’s’ Problem – and Its Opportunity
The marriage of the evangelical right and the political right was celebrated 35 years ago this month with the election of Ronald Reagan to the White House, and it has enjoyed a long honeymoon. Its dream was the...