Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Lying doesn’t help
Let it be said from the start that I have considerable sympathies for the Palestinians who seek a safe and rightful homeland in the West Bank and Gaza. They have been lied to and mistreated in many ways and at many...
Vatican Issues New Bishops’ Policy
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Catholics forced to participate in ordinations of bishops without the pope’s approval may be exempt from the usual penalty of automatic excommunication, the Vatican said on Friday (June 10). Bishops...
Anglican Leader Slams British Austerity Budget
LONDON (RNS) Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has touched off a fury by accusing the British government of causing widespread “anxiety and anger” with its new austerity budget. The leader of the world’s 77...
Evangelicals Wade into Circumcision Debate
(RNS) The National Association of Evangelicals is siding with Jews and Muslims in opposition of a proposed ban on infant male circumcision in San Francisco. “Jews, Muslims, and Christians all trace our spiritual...
Two Kinds of Faith “ Disembodied and Embodied
Faith is important to me. My column is called Faith Matters for two reasons. One, I attempt to write about matters of faith. But the other reason is that I believe faith matters, it makes a difference what we believe...
Revising Pledge of Allegiance for U.S. Politicians
Watching Democrats and Republicans wildly cheering Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he addressed a joint session of Congress and, thereby, dissing their own president (along with the president's...
Alabama’s Anti-Immigration Law Concerns Faith Leaders
Faith leaders around the country are speaking up about Alabama's crackdown on undocumented immigrants. Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley signed into law last week the nation's toughest anti-immigration law, surpassing...
Proverbs
Toward the end of the Book of Proverbs, there is a small collection of sayings attributed to one "Agur, son of Jakeh." Agur was a fan of numerical sayings as a way of making general observations on life. My favorite is...
First Amendment’s Free Exercise at Heart of Abuse Cases
(RNS) Jeremiah Scott was 11 when the abuse and molestation began in 1990 at the hands of an elder in his Mormon church in Portland, Ore. After the man died in 1995, Scott’s mother sued the church in 1998 for putting...
Principal at Paddling School Vows to Remain in Job
NEW ORLEANS (RNS) The embattled president of the nation’s last Catholic school to employ corporal punishment said he plans to remain on the job in spite of a weekend order that abruptly recalled him to Baltimore. The...
Americans See Room to Disagree but Remain Faithful to Religion
WASHINGTON (RNS) Significant majorities of Americans say it is possible to disagree with their religion’s teachings on abortion and homosexuality and still remain in good standing with their faith. The findings,...
Wrestling with U.S. Military Engagement in Afghanistan
Genesis 32 tells the story of Jacob, who wrestled all night with an angel and then received the new name of Israel. The word "Israel" literally means the man who "wrestles with an angel." One of the most unique things...
“X-Men: First Class”
We enter this reboot of the X-Men franchise with a group of people being herded into a concentration camp. As they enter the gate, a mother and father are separated from their teenage son. The parents turn around and...
Alabama Governor Signs Nation’s Harshest Anti-Immigration Law
Alabama Republican Gov. Robert Bentley signed on June 9 the nation's harshest anti-immigration law, surpassing Arizona, while the state's Christian denominations sat on the sidelines. "We have a real problem with...
It Takes A Church to Raise A Christian
A sermon delivered by Joel Snider, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Rome, Ga., on June 5 2011. Deuteronomy 6:1-9 Meditation Text: The question for a child is not “Do I want to be good?” but “Who do I want to be like?”...
Never Satisfied
A sermon delivered by Randy Hyde, Pastor, Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, Little Rock, Ark., on June 5, 2011. Psalm 93:1-5; Ephesians 1:15-23 Have you ever had someone give you a backhanded compliment? You...
A Journey From Fear to Faith to Joy
A sermon delivered by Robert Browning, Pastor, Smoke Rise Baptist Church, Stone Mountain, Ga., on June 5, 2011. Luke 24:36-53 Today, we are going to examine the last resurrection appearance recorded in the gospel of...
Watching and Waiting
A sermon delivered by Keith Herron, Pastor, Holmeswood Baptist Church, Kansas City, Mo., on June 5, 2011. Acts 1:6-14 Psalms 68:1-10, 32-35; John 17:1-11; I Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11 Ascension Sunday Depending on what kind...
Unfinished
A sermon delivered by Joel Snider, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Rome, Ga., on May 29, 2011. Deuteronomy 34 Morning Prayer: Eternal God and Everlasting Father, we thank you today for those who die after a good life,...
Above All Powers
A sermon delivered by Michael Cheuk, Pastor, Farmville Baptist Church, Farmville, Va., on May 6, 2011. Ephesians 1:15-23 This Sunday is Ascension Sunday on our church calendar, and it commemorates Christ ascending...
‘Well, what is it?’
By John Pierce Our younger daughter has a new inflatable pool float. At least that’s what we think it is. After pumping air into the new ‘whatever,’ she exclaimed: “Well, what is...