Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Responsibility Accompanies Free Speech
The First Amendment asserts our right to free speech. Both private citizens and public officials have the right to speak freely and voice their opinions. However, freedom comes with responsibility. Free speech that...
Infant Religion: Threat to Common Good
The Talmud tells of a rabbi who hosted a great celebration in his home, inviting all of his friends, family and followers. A friend inquired about all the singing and dancing when there had been no new birth or...
An old kind of criticism
Brian McLaren, among the brightest and most significant Christian thinkers of our age, is on a mission to save Christianity from itself. With impressive erudition, genuine humility, and a deep love for Christ and the...
Revisionism 101: What the Civil War Was About
Just in time for next year's sesquicentennial observance of the start of the Civil War, the Texas Board of Education wants new Lone Star State history textbooks that are more conservative. For example, the board has...
Think Churches Can Feed America’s Poor?
Churches are an important resource in caring for America's poor, but the job is too big for churches alone. With all the talk about healthcare and the nation's deficit, I've seen more than one blog suggest that...
Extreme Rhetoric May Set Stage for Violence
Two days prior to the presidential visit, handbills were circulated throughout the city. It pictured two photos of the president – one facing the camera, the other depicting his left profile, resembling a police mug...
Rest and restoration
Our girls are out of school for spring break. And a glance at my April calendar suggests there are more than 30 days worth of commitments on it already. So I am planning a few days off next week.Relaxation doesn’t come...
Childish tantrums could backfire
It's hard not to be distressed by the adolescent level to which political debate has degenerated in our country. Whether one likes everything or anything about the new health care bill or not, its clear purpose is to...
Is “Washington Is Not Listening” Charge a Precursor to Political Violence?
Fearful politicians, fundamentalists and Fox News have a steady drumbeat of anti-government rhetoric that repeats the same charge – Washington is not listening. When politicians, preachers and pundits use the same...
“Amish Grace”
On Palm Sunday, March 28, the Lifetime Movie Network will premiere a made-for-television film, "Amish Grace," about the Oct. 2, 2006, shootings of 10 Amish schoolgirls in Nickel Mines, Pa. Five of the girls, ranging...
When Potluck Goes to Pot
A sermon delivered by Howard Batson, Pastor of First Baptist Church, Amarillo, Tx., on March 14, 2010. 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 We’ve become accustomed to a world of haves and have-nots. For example, anyone of us who...
Why We Still Choose Barabbas Today
On Palm Sunday, churches around the world will celebrate that fateful moment when Jesus rode a borrowed donkey into Jerusalem. This event is ironically dubbed the "triumphant entry." An enthusiastic crowd certainly...
But would we behave any better?
As one who spends a lot of time in his car, I've had this recurring dream of getting on the Interstate highway, punching in the desired exit number and sitting back for awhile. An article in the Wall Street Journal...
The Sweet Scent of Friendship
A sermon delivered by Robert Browning, Pastor Smoke Rise Baptist Church, Stone Mountain, Ga. on March 21, 2010. John 12:1-8 Evidently there was no ban on perfume in Bethany the day that Mary anointed Jesus while he was...
The Lord’s Prayer
A sermon delivered by Joel Snider, Pastor of First Baptist Church, Rome, Ga. on March 21, 2010. Matthew 6:5-15 When Christ is giving the Sermon on the Mount, he is teaching about piety, and he just says, “When you...
After Quake, Long Rebuilding Awaits Haiti
(BWA) – The day after Haiti was rocked by a devastating earthquake in January, Edrice Romelus, superintendant for evangelism and former general secretary for Baptist Haiti Mission, tried to travel to downtown...
Prayer: How to Make Your Enemies Go Away
We have all been wounded at some time by one who should have only loved us. Every life has a Judas. His name is synonymous with betrayal. We like to vilify Judas, to make him the enemy of Christ and the Gospel. The...
Women Pastors: Baptists’ Loss Is Others’ Gain
While March 21 may be remembered in U.S. history for the passage of health care reform, the day will always mean something different for me. It was the day that I witnessed a miracle. In a medium-sized church in Enid,...
Women, Preachers, and Women Preachers
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina's annual general assembly March 19-20 provided the occasion for several auxiliary meetings, including the North Carolina Chapter of Baptist Women in Ministry...
What People Don’t Know About Easter
I've known for some time that America is far from being a religiously devoted nation, but I didn't realize the population had become so religiously ignorant until I scanned a recent study made public by the Barna...
Beck and O’Reilly: Blind Guides on Social Justice
Two personalities are dominating the cable "news" media among American conservatives these days: Glenn Beck and Bill O'Reilly. O'Reilly has a reputation as a loud, "bloviating" (one of his favorite terms),...