Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
How Utah’s Pando Forest is Like the Church
I spent some time photographing at Great Basin National Park in Nevada with a friend last year. As we got to the end of our time there, my friend asked if I would mind if we stopped at the Pando forest in Utah on the...
July 27, 2015
The Boy Scouts are Slated to Life Ban on Openly Gay Adult Leaders (Washington Post) Shooting at Arkansas Black Baptist Church Funeral Leaves One Injured (International Business Times) Ringgold First Baptist Church...
BWA Congress exits to new doors
The 2015 Baptist World Congress came to a rollicking conclusion in Durban Sunday morning as participants gathered for prayer, praise, a call to unity from General Secretary Neville Callam, and a rousing sermon from...
BWA celebrates new president
South African pastor Ngwedla Paul Msiza was officially installed as president of the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) in ceremonies at the Durban International Convention Center Saturday morning. Msiza is the second person...
Rwandan Baptist Honored with Human Rights Award
Corneille Gato Munyamasoko, general secretary of the Association of Baptist Churches in Rwanda (AEBR), received the 2015 Baptist World Alliance Congress Quinquennial Human Rights Award. The presentation came on...
Gospel Compels You to Tear Down Walls
One of the greatest events in modern history was the tearing down of the Berlin Wall in 1989. For almost three decades, this wall stood as a visual reminder of the hostilities that existed between the parties on either...
Legal Work: The Future of Mission? – Part 2
Injustice often goes unchallenged where access to legal advice is limited. Knowledge really is power in countries such as Mozambique and Uganda, but telling people they have rights is only half the battle. Making...
The door to liberty
Jesus Christ is the door to liberty, said Dimitrina Oprenova, who preached the Thursday evening sermon for the BWA Congress in Durban, South Africa. The theme for the Congress is “Jesus Christ: the Door.” Wednesday...
July 24, 2015
Bullet Holes Found in Second Black Church on James Island (Charleston Post Courier) Pharmacy Owners Cannot Cite Religion to Deny Medicine: U.S. Appeals Court (Yahoo News) Denver's Little Sisters of the Poor Appeal...
Reaching the “nones” – can it be done?
The challenge of evangelizing the rapidly growing segment of the population who choose “none” as a religious preference was one choice among many focus groups featured July 23 during the 2015 Baptist World Congress in...
Africans Welcome Global Baptists to BWA Congress
Baptists from across Africa offered an enthusiastic greeting to attendees of the opening session of the 21st Baptist World Congress. The Congress, an event held every five years by the Baptist World Alliance (BWA),...
Legal Work: The Future of Mission? – Part 1
Angella nearly lost 18,000 Mozambican meticals (approximately $553), money that it took her years to save, when she tried to buy a piece of land. The original owner refused to give her the legal documents despite...
Why Can’t Our Churches Be More Like Legos?
There is a Lego store directly across the street from my office. However, despite my desire to go and explore, I have yet to find the time to make my way there. Legos have a universal appeal. Why is that? I think part...
Rousing celebration opens BWA Congress 2015
The 21st Baptist World Congress took flight Wednesday night with a colorful troupe of singers from Africa, happy hymn singing, scripture readings, lots of music, and a message from Peter Chin, pastor of the Global...
July 23, 2015
Charleston Shooting Suspect Charged with Federal Hate Crimes (Reuters) Donald Trump Tells Christians 'I'm Presbyterian' and 'Proud of It' (Christian Post) How the 'Nones' Can Find a Sense of Community Outside of...
Global Baptists Gather in South Africa
Baptists from more than 80 countries are meeting this week in Durban, South Africa, for the 21st Baptist World Congress. Held every five years by the Baptist World Alliance (BWA), the Congress brings Baptists together...
4 Ways Your Church Can Enlarge Its ‘Bandwidth’
It was a simple question from a colleague. "Larry, do you have enough bandwidth to help me with a church staff analysis?" Initially, I had no idea what he was asking. "Bandwidth?" I replied, as I attempted to catch up...
Why We No Longer Recognize Ritual’s Value, Power
Today we no longer understand the value and power of ritual. This is more than an individual failing. It's the cultural air we breathe. In the words of Robert L. Moore, we've gone "ritually tone-deaf." The effects of...
BWA getting underway
The warm up to the 2015 Baptist World Congress is underway at the International Convention Center in Durban, South Africa, with meetings Tuesday and Wednesday of the BWA Executive Committee, outgoing General Council...
July 22, 2015
After Losing on Same-Sex Marriage, Conservative Christians Find a New Enemy: Progressive Christians (ThinkProgress) Entrance of Pro-LGBT Metropolitan Community Church of Our Redeemer Defaced with Graffiti (Augusta...
Wholesomeness for some is not liberty for all
By John Pierce Writing in the July 9 edition of The Christian Index, J. Robert White lamented the “violation of states’ rights” and God’s law by the U.S. Supreme Court in its Obergefell v. Hodges decision. The...