Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Despite Naysayers, Women Served in Ministry for Centuries
Churches across the world recently celebrated Pentecost, affirming God's salvation and call "upon all flesh," a calling whereby "your sons and your daughters shall prophesy … even upon my slaves, both men and women"...
Patterson Apologizes, Defends Admitting Muslim Student
Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) messengers pressed Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President Paige Patterson to explain his decision to admit a Muslim doctoral student in violation of the seminary's...
Majority Still Favor Path to Citizenship for Undocumented
Despite Washington's delays, a strong majority of Americans still favor immigration reform that includes a path to citizenship. A new report from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found that 62 percent of...
June 12, 2014
Louie Gohmert Tells Congress the 'Good News' that non-Christians are Going to Hell (Raw Story) Seminary President Apologizes for Admitting Muslim Student (10TV) The Bible Society to Launch Huge Outreach Campaign During...
Why Church Youth Need to Learn Opposing Views
There are people who have devoted serious careers to the study of humor, and many, if not most, are not very funny. They are like me--they are not the life of the party, but they love to laugh. They are also interested...
6 Commitments if You’re a Patriotic Christian
My grandson, Noah, and I visited Washington, D.C., recently, and one of the highlights was a tour of the U.S. Capitol. We had done this before, but each time is a learning experience. As our guide pointed out the...
Will Increasing Decibel Level about Global Christian Persecution Result in Action?
A Sudanese court sentenced a pregnant, Christian physician to 100 lashes and death for being married to a Christian man. Her only reprieve is to renounce her Christianity and return to Islam. Born to a father who was...
June 11, 2014
Colleges and Evangelicals Collide on Bias Policy (New York Times) Immigrant Who Sought Sanctuary in Arizona Church Can Stay in U.S. (NPR) Southern Baptists Approve Resolutions on Transgender Identity, the Afterlife and...
Complicated simplicity …
My son Samuel graduated from high school this week, and one of his final projects for Drafting 3/Engineering was the construction of a Rube Goldberg machine. For folks who aren't old enough to remember, Rube Goldberg...
First and foremost
By John Pierce While driving to Macon’s Vineville Baptist Church — which, by the way, has an excellent choir — on Sunday morning, I was listening to gospel bluegrass on satellite radio. Larry Sparks was singing “I Want...
U.K. Proposes Tougher Penalties for Human Trafficking
Tougher penalties for human trafficking announced in the Queen of England's speech have been welcomed across the United Kingdom. The annual speech commences the Parliamentary session and sets forth the agenda for the...
Why You Should View Church Conflicts as Blessings
Ask any minister, "What is the worst part of your job?" and nearly all will tell you, "Conflict." Ask any congregation member what they like least about their church experience, and most will answer the same. Conflict...
Choosing What’s Right Rather Than What’s Expedient
When did decisions stop being based on the right thing to do? Not a new question, but one that needs constant examination when one considers political expedience. That is, the use of words and actions calculated to...
June 10, 2014
Korean-American Vies to Lead Southern Baptists (ABC News) Bible Marathon Organizers Undeterred by Low Turnout (Tennessean) Recent Gallup Poll on American's View of Bible Reveals Chaos (Christian Post) Catholic Church...
Roma
"Sightings" usually sights religious news and trends with a metaphorical "naked eye." No one needs a telescope or a microscope to spot most of our topics. Snappy headlines, prime-time signals and messages gone viral...
When Leaders Depart, Disciples Apply Lessons Learned
One of the refrains we have heard over and over again regarding the loss of Maya Angelou is this: "There was just so much more she had to teach us." Certainly that is true; she was constantly writing and composing...
Muslim Student at Baptist Seminary Likely to Spark SBC Drama
The admission of a Muslim student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary will likely impact the agenda of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) meeting this week in Baltimore, Maryland. The admissions decision by...
June 9, 2014
After Period of Turmoil, Riverside Church Elects New Leader (New York Times) Southern Baptists Face Another Glum Report (Kansas City Star) New England Baptists to Drop 'Southern,' Keep the Faith (Boston Globe) Ted Cruz...
What a relief …
I'm old-fashioned about a lot of things, like eating regular meals, wearing clothes that match, and holding a newspaper in my hand. I subscribe to Raleigh's News & Observer, despite the cost, because I like reading...
Many Churches Have Abandoned Their Pacifist Roots
Jay Beaman, a sociologist at Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon, likes to do historical experiments. After extensive research, he sends emails to members of Ancestry.com, telling them that he has found a...
Mixed Results 20 Years after Evangelical-Catholic Unity Effort
A group of prominent evangelical and Catholic theologians and activists released a document 20 years ago articulating common ground between the two groups. Yet the groundwork laid by the controversial document may have...