For more than a decade, I taught a seminary course in religion and film. Occasionally, students would elect to take the course, assuming we would be viewing and discussing faith-based, Christian-message movies. Looking at the syllabus on the first class…
Is beach revival a public health threat or a Jesus movement?
While most American churches are debating whether and how they can safely resume in-person worship anytime this year, a Southern California parachurch ministry has come under intense scrutiny for holding massive revival services at Huntington Beach. Organizers and supporters of…
How John MacArthur loves the Bible but not his neighbor
As he walked across the stage July 26 to the large, wooden pulpit, the auditorium that seats 3,500 people was filled with non-masked, non-socially distanced conservative evangelicals with another 1,000 people gathered outside who all jumped to their feet for…
Jesus and John Wayne exposes militant masculinity in the age of Trump
Why Donald Trump? Why are American evangelicals so enamored of a president who could serve as a poster boy for the seven deadly sins?
Remembering John Lewis: An invitation to make ‘good trouble’
Rep. John Lewis has bequeathed to the church a call to make “good trouble” and to stir up the gift that resides in us: faith in God and faith in each other. I pray the followers of Jesus are finally…
Racism and the evolution of Protestant support for private education
Earlier this summer, the United States Supreme Court ruled in a 5-to-4 decision that private religious schools should have the same access to public funds as private “nonsectarian” schools. Chief Justice Roberts’ majority opinion cited the Constitution’s protection of the…
This is a step toward stopping Muslim travel bans
For more than three years, Americans have watched the “travel ban” saga play out at the White House, in the courts, and even in the streets, with disastrous effects for American Muslims and global communities. Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the NO BAN Act,…
When we forget our history, institutions do the sinning for us
Eighth grade social studies class in North Carolina, in my school years, covered the history, geography and economy of our fair state. Mrs. Spivey was my very fine instructor, and I am confident she would confirm that I was an…
30 years ago today, Baptist news changed with two firings
The birth of Baptist News Global — formerly Associated Baptist Press — 30 years ago today was the offshoot of a decade or more of theological rift between two factions in Southern Baptist life. But theological posturing aside, the July…
How the nuns won at the Supreme Court and why it matters
Most people probably had not heard of The Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home before it joined the fight with the federal government over required coverage of contraception in employer-provided medical insurance plans. That was the…
The Supreme Court term: Something for everyone to love and hate
The Supreme Court’s major rulings this June and early July may collectively be remembered as one of the most constructive political developments of this momentous and terrible year. The court’s decisions this term gave important wins and losses to both…
Another United Methodist plan demands patience more than specifics
Here’s the thing about getting guidance from God: It takes the kind of spiritual labor that we humans, with our penchant for control, mostly abhor — patient waiting marked by willing surrender, emptying oneself of ego and expectations. With an…