Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Forgiveness: Shrink the Objects in Your Rearview Mirror
These were hard conversations. This minister had been dismissed from his church many months ago, but the wounds had refused to heal. Hurtful things were said, friendships were broken, trust was betrayed. He walked away...
Just good stuff
I love this time of year: it's hot, but that's when the fresh vegetables and my favorite fruits start coming in. Our garden has had mixed results: the beefsteak tomatoes are huge, but the Celebrity variety never took...
July 5, 2014
Supreme Court Ruling Legalizes Religious Discrimination (Associated Baptist Press) Hobby Lobby Angers Some Christians With 'Hypocrisy' (Guardian Liberty Voice) Critics of Hobby Lobby Ruling Call for RFRA Appeal...
Bible Odyssey: digital adventure awaits
Bible literacy may be at an all time low: surveys consistently show that many people can't identify important Bible characters or themes, or think that people like Joan of Arc or sayings like "Early to bed and early to...
Report Critiques Theology of Corporate Money in Politics
A Presbyterian seminary released a report challenging the influx of corporate money in U.S. political campaigns as harmful to democracy and the needs of the poor. Auburn Theological Seminary brought together...
Skype Interview: Elijah Brown on Ethiopia’s Religious History
King Solomon. The Queen of Sheba. The Ark of the Covenant. And Italian food. All that and more comes up in EthicsDaily.com's latest Skype interview with Elijah Brown, assistant professor of missions at East Texas...
Monastic Living, Even Briefly, Can Be Truly Enriching
Between 1993 and 2006, I participated in many conferences in Europe. The location of these meetings offered me the opportunity to experience something of the life of diverse monastic communities on the continent, which...
July 3, 2014
Cultural Shifts and Brain Scans: Is Searching for Spirituality the New American Dream? (CNN) 50 Years After the Civil Rights Act, Archiving the Story of the Courageous Four (Washington Post) Hobby Lobby Does Invest in...
World Vision, recovering from gay policy shift, tries to shore up its evangelical base
By SARAH PULLIAM BAILEY © 2014 Religion News Service World Vision tested evangelical boundaries three months ago when it announced it would allow its employees to be in same-sex marriages. The policy was short-lived;...
How to Ensure Your Church Staff is the Right Size
Most American congregations face a painful reality. David T. Olson has established clearly that no more than 17 percent of the population attends any church. The only congregations growing are those smaller than 49 or...
Following God’s Dream Often Leads to Persecution
Righteousness is a word often used but rarely defined. It can refer to proper conduct—acting appropriately in a given situation—and it can denote good character—being the kind of person one ought to be. I would define...
The Most Critical Time in the Life of Small Churches
The most critical time in the life of a small church is the time they spend between pastors. This is a time that should be spent in reflection as they review their history and look toward the future. It is a time to...
July 2, 2014
BJC's Brent Walker, Others React to Hobby Lobby Decision (Baptist Joint Committee) In Hobby Lobby Case, Supreme Court Chooses Religion Over Science (Mother Jones) Some Christians Against Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby...
No dirt
Campbell University, where I'm fortunate enough to teach in the Divinity School, has been undergoing waves of construction for several years: a new pharmacy school, a nice arena for basketball and other sports, new...
Hugh Stowell Brown: Gospel Preacher, Friend of the Poor
At the same time that John Wilson was preaching the gospel and caring for the poor in Woolwich, United Kingdom, another Baptist minister named Hugh Stowell Brown was doing the same in Liverpool. From the time Brown...
People Rarely Radically Change; They Need Nudges
An almost 40-year-old church newsletter provided the tipping point in a long, agonizing, decision-making process. Soon after I arrived at a former pastorate, I became engaged in an ongoing discussion about the need for...
Thinking about a Just War on the Fourth of July
The White House's lack of credibility on war in Iraq is both inherited and created anew. "The first mistake was going into Iraq, the second was getting out," observed Catholic writer Russell Shaw. "The first of these...
July 1, 2014
Hobby Lobby Wins Contraceptive Case (Associated Baptist Press) Supreme Court Rules Against Obama in Contraception Case (CNN) The Hobby Lobby Decision Isn't Narrow (MSNBC) Ginsburg: 'Radical' Hobby Lobby Ruling May...
Who’s at risk?
By John Pierce Picking up my daughter from a week of volunteerism at a camp for at-risk children meant that the leisurely Saturday drive home would be filled with enthusiastic reports of newfound friends and continuous...
Tolbert Elected President of National Baptist Convention of America
Delegates to the annual gathering of the National Baptist Convention of America, Inc., International (NBCA) on Wednesday, June 25, elected the group's first new president in 11 years. Samuel Tolbert, who had been the...
Hard Times for Middle East Churches Only Half the Story
You may think that the church is having a hard time in the Middle East and North Africa, as it struggles with the rise of armed fundamentalist militias, government crackdowns and civil war. You would be right, but that...