Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Missions Imperative Shapes Convention’s Identity
"Will the BGCT become a denomination?" That question, or something like it, echoed down the hallway of Baylor University's Ferrell Center, site of the Baptist General Convention of Texas annual session last week. Its...
Humbly Giving Thanks
At Thanksgiving, we usually give thanks for material things. We may even be tempted to express gratitude with a self-righteous attitude. Instead, we need a mindset of humility and an emphasis on the spiritual blessings...
Moving Through an Identity Crisis
Only when we take up our cross and follow Jesus can we move through our identity crises and have any hope of helping others overcome theirs. Personal interests, talents, looks, intelligence, race and economic levels...
Dealing With Conflict in Congregations
Conflict is a natural part of the changing identity and ministries of a congregation, and in many instances it can be managed appropriately. When the conflict becomes unnatural, however, additional interventions become...
“The Emperor’s Club”
Based on a short story called "The Palace Thief" by Ethan Canin, "Club" follows the fortunes of classics teacher Mr. Hundert (Kline) and his young charges at the St. Benedicts School for Boys, where one of the...
“Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”
Is this film worth all the praise and attention? Most definitely. For those die-hard fans who love the books and liked the first film, "Chamber of Secrets" will leave them breathless. So a strange thing began to happen...
“Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”
For older children still moved by metaphor and its magic, this is a wonderful movie. It shines in its story and its portrayal. It can help parents talk to their children about the nature of fame (which has become a...
Number of Married Teens Grows
The number of married teens grew nearly 50 percent in the past decade, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau figures. Although marriages among 15- to 19-year-olds is still fairly uncommon—only about 4.5 percent of...
New Study Examines Challenges Facing Parents
Some say parenting is the hardest job one will ever do, and a new study by Public Agenda took a closer look at the reasons why. The study, "A Lot Easier Said Than Done: Parents Talk About Raising Children in Today's...
Mother’s Work and the Holidays
In more ways than one, my work this season is causing me to take a fresh look at my time and priorities, at the meaning of the holidays, at what I want my children to experience this season. These changes are not easy,...
Religious Right Criticizes Bush for Distancing Himself From Anti-Islamic Comments
In a memo to members of the Campaign for Working Families, Gary Bauer, the organization's chairman, characterized Bush's comments as "mystifying and disappointing." In a meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan,...
Evangelicals Criticize Chevrolet-sponsored Tour
"Undiscerning believers think it a profound ministry strategy to join forces with unregenerate people in forwarding the gospel," wrote Christian singer Steve Camp in a six-page open letter criticizing the Christian...
Interpreting the 2002 Elections, Seeing Beyond the False Choices
Whenever the moral mantle is assigned to a political party, morality loses and false expectations arise. And equally troubling, authentically religious organizations escape their real duty. "The pro-life stand was a...
Columnist Tours Farming and Logging Operations
The most helpful "continuing education" experience for me these past five years as a rural minister has been the annual Country and City Tour Day. Something like it is provided by the Cooperative Extension in many...
Where Have All the Followers Gone?
Instead of ignoring these dissenters, or isolating them as irrelevant complainers, church leaders might do well to listen to them. It would not be the first time in the history of the church that a disgruntled minority...
Way To Live: Christian Practices for Teens
Nowhere are small groups used more than in youth ministry, where postmodern students bring the assumption that everyone experiences everything differently. That is why we should be glad that Way To Live has turned the...
WWJD Post-9/11?
Contemplating presidential and congressional actions post-9/11 and especially in regard to Iraq, I myself am inclined to start wearing my WWJD bracelet again, maybe even purchasing a T-shirt and WWJD coffee mug—if I...
Engaging in Self-criticism: An Interview With James Carroll
In his book, Carroll takes a critical look at the way Christians, and in particular the Roman Catholic Church, have treated the Jews throughout history. The potential for religions to engage in evil acts, and the...
‘Christian Living’ Ends After 49 Years
SCOTTDALE, Pa. - After a 49-year run, Christian Living magazine will cease publication with its December issue - another casualty of the financial crisis at Mennonite Publishing House. Christian Living has brought...
Constantine’s Sword: The Church and the Jews
Constantine's Sword is a must-read. I first read it in the context of a small group composed of Christian ministers and a Jewish rabbi. The resulting conversations were among the most intense in my experience. Carroll...
Bush Steps Away From Christian Fundamentalists’ Comments on Islam
Bush's comments came yesterday afternoon, on the same day that EthicsDaily.com carried an editorial praising the president for observing Ramadan with a White House dinner last week and urging the president to distance...