Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Wealthiest 1% Took Home 82% of Global Wealth in 2017
The wealthiest 1 percent of the global population secured 82 percent of the global wealth created in 2017, according to an Oxfam International report published on Jan. 21, while 3.7 billion adults saw no wealth...
February 29, 2018
The Spiritual Message Hidden in 'Star Wars' (CNN) Most Churches Offer Free Wi-Fi, But Skip Twitter (Oklahoman) Fredericksburg Church Ordains Women as Deacons for the First Time in 164 Years (Fredericksburg.com) Indiana...
Lessons from being out of place
By John D. Pierce “Have you ever felt like the whole world is a tuxedo and you’re a pair of brown shoes?” That deadpan line comedian George Gobel once delivered on The Tonight Show to crack up host Johnny Carson came...
‘The Shape of Water’
It is hard to describe "The Shape of Water." On one level, it is a horror movie, with a character that looks like the Gill Man from those "Creature from the Black Lagoon" movies. Then it looks like a fable about a...
A Nuanced Response to Loving Your Neighbor
How Christians have responded to the issue of immigration is often shared in articles and videos. However, the prior question of why they should is not necessarily as easy as we might think. And while there are people...
January 26, 2018
How Conservative Christians Co-opted the Rhetoric of Religious Liberty (City Watch LA) Satisfaction with the Moral Climate of the U.S. Drops—Except Among Republicans (Washington Post) Robert Jeffress: Pastors Who...
Ringing the bell for freedom
By John D. Pierce The shiny bell in my home study is beautiful in appearance and sound. But is more than that: It is gift that that reminds me to be bold in “ringing the bell for freedom” — as I was charged by the...
Seeking Peace Within Family Divide: Israel and Palestine
When Abraham - the patriarch of Judaism, Christianity and Islam - "breathed his last and died in a good old age" (Genesis 25), he missed something extraordinary. His two estranged sons, Ishmael and Isaac, joined...
Does Truth Set You Free or Make You Less Smart?
Alex Stone startled in a recent New York Times op-ed, "Is Your Child Lying to You? That's Good." Stone, author of "Fooling Houdini," tempts readers to abandon that plodding parental desire to raise honest children with...
January 25, 2018
Southern Baptist Convention Added to Lawsuit Accusing Influential Leader of Sex Abuse (USA Today) Amid #MeToo, Evangelicals Grapple With Misconduct in Their Own Churches (NPR) Are White Evangelicals Sacrificing the...
Pence, Jerusalem, and the Trumpocalypse
Vice-president Mike Pence's recent visit to Jerusalem marked a towering victory for right wing fundamentalism, both Christian and Jewish. Pence's fervent speech to the Israeli Knesset, rife with biblical references and...
Profiles in Goodwill: Stephen Reeves
Stephen K. Reeves is associate coordinator of partnerships and advocacy at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. 1. Where did you grow up? Austin, Texas. 2. What is your favorite verse, book or story in the Bible? Why?...
Prison Population Declines in 2016, Reaches 1997 Levels
U.S. prisons saw an overall population decline in 2016, continuing a three-year trend in both federal and state facilities, according to a Bureau of Justice Statistics report released on Jan. 9. Overall, there were...
January 24, 2018
Jewish Expert Slams Pence for Treating His City Like an 'End-of-Days Biblical Theme Park' (Raw Story) Michael Gerson: Evangelicals Trip Over Trump (Fayeteville Observer) 'Don't Ever Preach to Me Again!': Ex-GOP Chair...
Think You’ve Seen Nothing Like This? Talk to Jeremiah
It had been a while since I stopped by Jeremiah's place to get his take on our current situation. In our last conversation, a year and a half ago, he identified some features of pre-exilic Judah that had an eerie...
Most Protestants, Catholics Favor Dreamers’ Legal Status
A majority (74 percent) of U.S. Protestants and Catholics support "Dreamers" receiving permanent legal status, according to a Pew Research Center report released on Jan. 19. "Dreamers" are persons brought to the U.S....
January 23, 2018
'World's Richest 1% Get 82% of the Wealth,' Says Oxfam (BBC) Judge Says Employment Interference Lawsuit Against NAMB Can Proceed (BNG) Four Faiths, Four Perspectives: A Year In, How Trump's Presidency Galvanized People...
Author/pastor Jim Dant offers brief, biblical defense of LGBTQ Christians
By John D. Pierce, Executive Editor of Nurturing Faith Journal & Bible Studies and Publisher of Nurturing Faith Books No issue impacts congregational and denominational life today more than how to include or...
Why Your Church is Worth the Effort
There are some moments and memories that we never forget. One such memory is when I first met Bill Self in 1981 at a banquet on the campus of Samford University. I was energized by Bill's after-dinner speech. He...
Preaching Fear May Be Effective But It’s Also Wrong
Why don't we preach hellfire anymore? That's a question asked frequently today by a lot of sincere religious people who worry that too many churches and too many priests and ministers have gone soft on sin and are far...
January 22, 2018
Jesse Jackson Sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church Addresses Government Shutdown, Border Wall, Health Care (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) African-American Pastors Condemn Trump's Vulgar Remarks, Call for Social Justice...