People of faith must stand up against the proliferation of book-banning campaigns or face the inevitable erosion of religious liberties, according to library and reading advocate Tracie Hall. “This is a moment we cannot take lying down. We cannot have…
Louisville church reflects on turning white Jesus into brown Jesus
Highland Baptist Church in Louisville transformed its stained-glass Jesus from white to brown to accurately reflect his ethnicity, to continue the congregation’s ongoing reparations work and to push back against Christian nationalism. “We wanted to correct the misrepresentation of Christ…
Guidestone shares FBI warning of new financial scams targeting seniors
An FBI warning about new financial scams prompted Guidestone Financial Resources to alert its clients about scammers infiltrating personal financial accounts by impersonating representatives from technology firms, banks or government agencies. “This Phantom Hacker scam is an evolution of more…
Missouri church confesses and laments its past ties to slavery
The congregation at First Baptist Church in Columbia, Mo., recently held a worship service devoted to confessing and lamenting the church’s historical connection to slavery. The October service was part a year-long observance of the church’s bicentennial, which will be…
Fighting racism requires Christians and non-Christians to work together, panelists say
Black Christians and Black unbelievers must overcome their mutual distrust and hostility in order to collaborate in addressing racism and other challenges facing African communities, scholars and religious leaders said during a two-day webinar, “(Dis)Belief: Reimagining the Religious Landscape of…
BJC leader warns — again — of Christian nationalism in Congressional testimony
Amanda Tyler, executive director of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, warned members of Congress that attacks against faith freedom at home and abroad present a threat to national security and to American democracy. “Religious freedom is at a crossroads…
‘Being Baptist’ webinar celebrates ‘four fragile freedoms’
The four fragile freedoms of Baptist life can help congregations remain in unity through disagreement and difficult relationships, but it’s rarely an easy process, said Pam Durso, president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary. “This is messy and it always has…
Immigrant rights advocates cry foul over U.S. flights deporting Venezuelans
Immigration and human rights advocates aren’t mincing words about the Biden administration’s decision to deport Venezuelan migrants by air to their economically troubled homeland, calling the practice cruel, inhumane and a violation of U.S. and international asylum law. The deportation…
Global survey finds surprisingly high levels of well-being
A significant majority of the world’s population regularly experiences feelings of contentment, community and other component parts of well-being, according to a new study. The 2022 global survey of 142 countries by Gallup and the Wellbeing for Planet Earth Foundation…