We’ve had a failure to adapt. That’s the view of America’s military leadership from World War II to the present, in Tom Ricks’ detailed study, The Generals. The nature and tactics of war changed after World War II and Korea,…
VITAL SIGNS: The conversation we do not want to have
Our current economy, coupled with the ongoing transitions in congregational life and ministry focus, have combined to create intense pressure on church staffing models. With finances tight, congregations are being forced to take stock of the number of professional staff…
WINN RECOMMENDS: Books that matter
Pastrix, by Nadia Bolz-Weber (Jericho Books) I once heard Nadia Bolz-Weber on a radio interview, walking the show’s host through a tour of her (very) many tattoos, the ones covering her from her shoulders to her wrists. “Even the ill-advised…
LETTER: An important omission
I was disappointed to note that your article on Poplar Springs Baptist Church in the Sept. 23 issue made no mention of the Shereda family who have been such an important part of that church’s history as well as of…
TRENDING: Fetishizing failure?
Twenty-five years ago, Lyle Schaller told a group of ministers in North Carolina that if we wanted to stay conversant with what was happening in the country and also peek around the corner at what might be trending next, simply…
REVIEW: ‘Gravity’ opens doors to discuss the spiritual nature of grief
The story in Gravity appears to be about a space flight gone wrong. But there is much more going on here than just a movie with some exquisite special effects. The space flight becomes the stage for a much more…
OPINION: The glorious weight of gravity
Gravity is being hailed as a must-see movie. The IMAX experience is one of incredible beauty and thrilling danger. Most of us who see this movie will go for all of the tail-end-of-summer action adventure that it promises, but I…
EDITORIAL: As moves go, this is a good one
As they have done for nearly two centuries, messengers to the Baptist General Association of Virginia will gather in annual session in Fredericksburg to celebrate successes, identify challenges, engage in worship and conduct business. This year they will consider a…
Jerry Holcomb, longtime Virginia Baptist pastor and former BGAV president, dies at 73
VIRGINIA BEACH — W. Jerry Holcomb, a Virginia Baptist pastor for nearly 40 years and former president of the Baptist General Association of Virginia, died Oct. 28 in a Virginia Beach hospital. He was 73. Holcomb was pastor of King’s…
Baptist minister Dana Trent details marriage to Hindu monk in just-released ‘Saffron Cross’
North Carolina Baptist minister J. Dana Trent got more than she bargained for when she tried to broaden the field on a dating website application by checking boxes for other religions along with Christian and “spiritual but not religious” —…
Richmond association seeks to clarify values, member criteria to bridge divide over homosexuality
RICHMOND — The Richmond Baptist Association has authorized a study committee to clarify the association’s values and restructure its membership model in an attempt to resolve deep division among its churches over a decision last spring not to dismiss an…
Some delight, other worry about effort to canonize British writer G.K. Chesterton
CANTERBURY, England (RNS) — Christians and Jews are mounting campaigns for and against a path to sainthood for British writer G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936), one of the world’s best-known Catholic converts. Roman Catholic Bishop Peter Doyle of Northampton, where Chesterton lived…