Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Rescuing the Temple of Democracy from Corruption
When reading the Lenten lesson from John's Gospel about Jesus disrupting business-as-usual in the Jerusalem temple – overturning the tables of the money changers, pouring their coins on the floor, shooing away their...
When Faith, Government Intersect for Common Good
It was my privilege to attend a briefing at the White House on Wednesday along with 60 other Baptist leaders. Our stated purpose was to hear how the administration was willing to work with faith communities on...
The Lord’s Prayer: Between Heaven and Earth
A sermon delivered by Joel Snider, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Rome, Ga., on March 4, 2012. Daniel 7:13-18 Morning Prayer: O God, we openly acknowledge as we pray this morning that we believe in your Son’s...
The Way of Discipleship
A sermon delivered by Michael Cheuk, Pastor, Farmville Baptist Church, Farmville, Va., on March 4, 2012. Second Sunday in Lent Mark 8:31-38 “Open mouth, insert foot.” So many times in my life, I have blurted out...
Name Changes
A sermon delivered by Randy Hyde, Pastor, Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, Little Rock, Ark., on March 4, 2012. Second Sunday in Lent Marathon Sunday Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Imagine how things might have been had God done...
Living Into Our Legacy
A sermon delivered by Keith Herron, Pastor, Holmeswood Baptist Church, Kansas City Mo., on March 4, 2012. The Second Sunday of Lent Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Slip off your shoes and socks and roll your pants legs up and...
Why Rush Limbaugh’s Apology Fails
Rush Limbaugh continues to hemorrhagesponsors and at least two radio stations as the controversy over his personal attack on Sandra Fluke continues. Whether you like Limbaugh or not — and frankly I don't – this is an...
The First Step to End Bullying at Schools
"Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me." I was sitting outside on the playground bench wiping the tears of a child when this proverb came to mind. It isn't true, of course. Nancy was a...
Baptists, White House Officials Discuss Policy Issues
Baptists entered the White House on Wednesday to join administration officials for dialogue over critical policy topics. A delegation of 60 goodwill Baptist pastors from almost 20 states participated in the four-hour...
“Jefferson’s Bible” — and yours
The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History is currently featuring a display of a project Thomas Jefferson undertook during the latter years of his life: it's called "Jefferson's Bible." Being in Falls...
Author Shows Why Revelation Deserves Fresh Look
The weekend just past found some of the oldest things in Western religion to be the subject of newest concern and debate. One instance: a book of the Christian Bible, the Apocalypse or Revelation of St. John, which is...
Why Your Church Is More Than an Organization
In a post on EthicsDaily.com, pastor Guy Sayles wrote, "For many years now, I've had a growing conviction that the great Catholic theologian Karl Rahner was right to have claimed: 'The Christian of the future will be a...
3 Forces Threaten to Change Higher Education
Higher education in the United States is radically being changed to the detriment of humanity. As we teeter toward the abyss of a new dark age, politicians like former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum take great pride in...
6 Dramatic Trends Your Church May Be Ignoring
Despite the adoption of coffee bars, PowerPoint presentations and full-stage lighting, churches are seldom on the cutting edge when it comes to addressing demographic trends. Here are six dramatic trends that are not...
What is Jesus’ View on Women in Ministry?
In 1978, Frank and Evelyn Stagg's groundbreaking book, "Woman in the World of Jesus," gave impetus to the modern women in ministry movement. The Staggs' meticulous research effectively poked large holes in prevailing...
How Theology Grads Can Beat the Tough Economy
It's hard to be a bright-eyed, ambitious college student when everywhere you look, people are shouting that the sky is falling. With constant concern over the unemployment rate and the economy, it seems degrees don't...
Advertisers, away!
ProFlowers has withdrawn its ads from Rush Limbaugh's political radio show, according to news reports, making it the seventh company to abandon the ultra-conservative talk show host. Limbaugh's intemperate screeds and...
Alabama Faith Leaders Urge Anti-Immigration Law’s Repeal
This past Tuesday, a group of Alabama religious leaders gathered in the Archives building in Montgomery and called for the repeal of Alabama's infamous immigration law. Passed as HB 56, the law has been variously...
Mississippi Pushes Anti-Immigration Bill Similar to Alabama’s 2011 Law
Lutheran and Catholic bishops voiced opposition last week to an Alabama-styled immigration bill in the Mississippi state legislature that the Mississippi governor has endorsed. "I am writing to you out of deep concern...
What Will Election of the SBC’s First African-American President Mean?
Almost a quarter century after a Southern Baptist Convention agency board member called Martin Luther King Jr. a fraud and said apartheid was "beneficial," the SBC may well elect its first African-American president:...
Pushing through
The warmer than usual winter in the Southeast has many people thinking of spring. Many of the trees are budding and blooming a bit earlier than usual, marking the roadsides with bursts of pink and white. Jonquils and...