“Although a government may not promote or favor religion or coerce the consciences of students, schools also may not discriminate against private religious expression by students, teachers or other employees,” according to new guidance issued by the U.S. Department of…
Ten Commandments bill dies in Texas Legislature
A controversial effort to require posting the Ten Commandments in all Texas public school classrooms has died for this session. Senate Bill 1515 passed through the Texas Senate on party-line votes but was among dozens of bills that didn’t get a…
Leader of Assemblies of God student group at Baylor arrested on child sexual abuse charges
A former campus minister serving an Assemblies of God organization on the campus of Baylor University was arrested May 23 on charges of continuous sexual abuse of two children in his charge. Waco, Texas, TV station KWTX reported Christopher Hundl,…
BJC and Interfaith Alliance applaud first-ever national strategy to counter antisemitism
Antisemitism “threatens all of us,” the White House said in announcing a first-ever national strategy to counter antisemitism May 25. “While antisemitic incidents most directly and intensely affect the Jewish community, antisemitism threatens all of us. Antisemitic conspiracy theories fuel…
Southwestern Seminary trustees called to special meeting next Tuesday
Trustees of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary have been summoned to a special meeting next Tuesday triggered by a bylaw provision that allows a simple majority of trustees to demand such a meeting. The online meeting will occur just six weeks…
Why we must be cautious about understanding what’s going on at Southwestern Seminary
Other news outlets are likely to publish accounts today about dissension among trustees at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and allegations of impropriety related to real estate deals. We’re not publishing such a story today for two simple reasons: We don’t…
Here’s how to force SBC entities to be accountable to people in the pew about their finances
Within the past week, Baptist News Global has run two news analysis pieces about Southern Baptist Convention agencies and leaders who are not telling people in the pew the full story of their financial situations. There are policies in place…
Seven graphs that show the state of American religious attendance today
Sometimes a graph is worth a thousand words. Public Religion Research last week released a massive trove of data gleaned from its latest national survey that examined the religious behaviors of Americans today. The graphs from these data tell most…
Tim Keller was a really nice guy, but that wasn’t enough for everyone
The one thing everyone who interacted with him seems to agree on is this: Tim Keller was a heckuva nice guy. So nice, some say, it’s hard to believe he was a conservative evangelical. So nice, others say, he caved…