Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Religious Liberty Contradictions in Supreme Court Case
Sekulow's arguments on behalf of Pleasant Grove City suggest that his legal focus is not really in protecting religious liberty but in promoting Christianity. Arguing before the Supreme Court was Jay Sekulow, chief...
Giving Thanks Is a Way of Life
Thanksgiving is more than a day. Thanksgiving is more than an attitude. Thanksgiving is a way of living. Perhaps, like many families, you and your loved ones take a few moments at the table, before you partake of the...
Baptists in Vietnam Gain Government Recognition
Washington, D.C. (BWA) -- Baptist Churches in Vietnam (BCV), one of several Baptist conventions and unions in the Southeast Asian country, gained official recognition from the Vietnamese government in early October....
Put Matthew 25 on Your ‘To-Do’ List
What about putting at least a minimum number of acts of charity on one's daily "to-do" list and committing oneself to checking them off when they are completed? Not me. First thing in the morning, I've got to write...
Seasonal Mood Swings
Why only at the apex of our material pursuits do we suddenly notice our struggling neighbors? Could it be that our temporary bouts of charity are really efforts to atone for a life of meaningless consumption? How is it...
Bob Jones University Apologizes for Racial Policies
The university's new interpretation of the Bible marked an about-face from a 1986 pamphlet, "Race Relations," written by a Bible department faculty member, Marshall Neal, who argued that racial segregation was based on...
An ocean of learning
Sunday at the Society of Biblical Literature offered an embarrassment of riches when it came to informative and pertinent lectures. My biggest problem was deciding between equally appealing papers being presented....
Esoterica unleashed
After spending Saturday listening to lectures at this weekend’s Society of Biblical Literature meeting in Boston, my ears are tired. And, I have a renewed appreciation for how my students must feel when I’m trying to...
People are people
Some days are like Christmas, except with new experiences rather than gifts. Friday was like that for me, as I spent most of it wandering the halls of Boston's Museum of Fine Art (MFA). The museum is currently hosting...
Humor helps
An Atlanta-to-Houston flight earlier this week was enhanced by the wit of a Delta flight attendant. As I boarded, she was handing a coat hanger to one of the pilots. "He needs to make a couple of repairs before we...
‘Shared Glory’
Our text this morning comes from the time in Jewish history known as "the days of the Judges." It's that part of Jewish history told in a "minor key" because it was a time of shame and apostasy by the people of Israel....
“Give World a Fairer Deal”
World leaders have been urged to use the current financial crisis to push for a fundamental reform of the global economic system. The call came from campaigners representing nine million people across a range of...
“Young at Heart”
Running 1 hour 48 minutes, "Young at Heart" relies on observational footage, interviews with participants, some narration by Walker, and the inclusion of several stylized "music videos" that Walker shot of the chorus...
Dear President-Elect: Prioritize Immigration Reform
How do you say "thank you" in Spanish? Appointing a few brown faces to your cabinet or to the Supreme Court is not the answer. We should not feel gratitude for something that should be the norm. You say thank you by...
Proper perspective
My colleague Keithen Tucker attended the Macon Touchdown Club on Monday night to hear Mark Richt, head football coach at the University of Georgia (the alma mater of another colleague, Tony Cartledge).Keithen shared...
‘Save the Day’
Even when style is the only factor considered, genres cannot function as discrete categories. They necessarily overlap. In the end, categories of either type turn out to be a matter of convenience, primarily for the...
The South Must Awaken
Forty years after King's death, it is noteworthy that except for North Carolina and Virginia, voters in Southern states were not part of the dramatic voting that resulted in the election of Barack Obama as the next...
The Lord’s Prayer Calls Us to Pray for God’s Protection during Times of Testing
We recant our faith in practice when we fail to love our neighbors and our enemies, when we neglect the poor and oppressed, and when we use abusive power against others. But what does it mean to pray, "Lead us not into...
China and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
China has a long way to go ”economically, politically and morally ”before it is able to celebrate the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But the matter once again brings attention to China as a...
Ready for a challenge?
Public television's Nova series debuted a two-hour special called "The Bible's Buried Secrets" Nov. 18. It's scheduled to be repeated several times, including next Monday night (Nov. 25) at 9:00 p.m., at least in our...
Baptist Pastors Gauge Year-End Giving in Deepening Financial Crisis
Among several belt-tightening measures, First Baptist Church of Dalton instituted a spending freeze, assuming that year-end stock gifts and other profit-sharing donations will come in below last year's metrics. The...