Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Singing on caskets
By John Pierce Veteran entertainers Harry Belafonte and Tony Bennett, in an interview with CNN’s Chris Cuomo yesterday, recalled their involvement in the civil rights struggle — in particular, the...
Finding God in Nature Inspires Conservation Work
For me, nature is where I find God most personally. I have known and recognized this since I was a boy. My grandpa's farm near Bristol, Tenn., was a place my family visited frequently. My grandfather was one of those...
Humility: A Prerequisite for Interfaith Dialogue
Humility is a key ingredient for interfaith dialogue to be successful. It helps us recognize that our brothers and sisters from other faiths have something to teach us; and vice versa.
Cyrus Cylinder Pointing Toward Human Rights
The Cyrus Cylinder, one of the ancient world's most iconic objects, went on display March 9 at the Smithsonian Institution's Sackler Gallery in Washington, D.C., where it sits at the heart of a small but priceless...
The Sweet Scent of Gratitude and Encouragement
A sermon by Robert Browning, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Frankfort, Ky. John 12:1-8 I wonder what Mary had in mind for this expensive perfume. Was she keeping it for an emergency or to take care of her in her old...
Rubbish!
A sermon by Randy Hyde, Pastor, Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, Little Rock, Ar. Fifth Sunday in Lent Psalm 126:1-6; Philippians 3:4b-14 I’m not sure why this conversation has stuck...
Teach Us to Number Our Days: Six Days Before
A sermon by Jim Somerville, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Richmond, Va. The Fifth Sunday in Lent John 12:1-8 Today we conclude a Lenten sermon series called “Teach us to number our days,” based on a line from Psalm 90...
Selma: Sustaining the Civil Rights Momentum
"Selma: Sustaining the Momentum" was the title of a Dean Peerman and Martin E. Marty article in "The Christian Century" 48 years to the month after colleague Peerman and I joined several thousand protesters and prayers...
Counselors Help You Navigate Rough Waters
Brad Yoman has been navigating the swamps around Georgia's Altamaha River for more than 30 years. He captains a small boat with a small motor, but small is what you need when you are moving through the swamp. Many...
How Do We Address Issues of Systemic Injustice?
A popular aphorism suggests that our checkbook reveals what we value most. As a tool for social analysis, this discloses much about what our society values. Recently, Major League Baseball's Anaheim Angels renewed the...
Fable fashioner found
Writing the Nurturing Faith Bible study curriculum is one of my most challenging opportunities, and I'm always looking for ways to help teachers make their lessons engaging as well as informative. In the online...
Do Some Christians Secretly Prefer SNL’s Violent Jesus?
For more than 37 years, "Saturday Night Live" has presented comedy sketches that offer up parodies of our culture and our politics. The targets of these sketches have not exempted any significant cultural or political...
How Friendship Dinners Aid Interfaith Engagement
Recently, I went to something called an Interfaith Friendship Dinner in the Adams Room at Richmond's First Baptist Church. There were about 30 people there, mostly Episcopalians, with a generous number of Muslims,...
Where Do You Look To Find Enemies of the Cross?
In his letter to the church at Philippi, it is fairly obvious that Paul is concerned about some influences that were steering the church away from the teaching he had imparted and the example he had modeled. It seems...
Hope and a glove
By John Pierce There is a proverb that says, “Raise up a child to appreciate baseball and when she is on her college break she’ll go to spring training games with you.” I might have paraphrased that...
U.S. Hubris Fueled Iraq War, Drone Strikes
"Hubris" is defined as "excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance." It is a word descriptive of the attitude of many individuals as well as many groups, such as corporations or nations. Last month, I happened to...
SBC’s Evangelistic Claims for Iraq War Fell Apart
Some Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) leaders a decade ago thought war would open heavenly doors. As the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq started, SBC leaders quickly mobilized to turn the war-torn nation into an...
Goodwill Baptists Applaud Election of Pope Francis
The election of Pope Francis was surely God-inspired. He is the right man in the fullness of time – a doctrinal conservative and a social progressive. Early news reports disclose a man of humor and humility. Upon his...
Can Jews, Christians and Muslims Coexist?
Can Jews, Christians and Muslims coexist? Yes. Imagine a man who, as a child, lived next to a synagogue in the West Indies and attended a Dutch Reformed church. Imagine, further, the same man as a young adult who...
Raising Your Voice to Help Those in Need
What does God expect of me? How does he want me to live? All of us struggle at times as we seek to live our faith, and the prophet Ezekiel offers a challenging answer to these questions. Her prophets whitewash these...
British Churches Support Anti-Poverty Amendments
Baptists in the United Kingdom have joined several denominations in backing a call endorsed by the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, for urgent steps to prevent hundreds of thousands of children from plunging...