When conservatives gained control of the Southern Baptist Convention and its agencies and seminaries in the late 20th century, a top priority was to convert the Christian Life Commission into an anti-abortion advocacy group. That came true with the first…
Here’s what I’m learning about the ‘nones’
I interact with the “nones” nearly every week, and I’m constantly surprised at how religious they are. In recent years, American religious leaders have been obsessed with classifying, describing, understanding, discussing and evangelizing the “nones,” those people who when asked…
From Scrooge McDuck to Zacchaeus to 21st century wealth inequality
It’s hard to believe a full month has passed since Christmas. Technically, there is more daylight in January than in December. The sun is slowly but surely rising sooner and setting later. Yet, the world feels darker now that Christmas…
What grief, denial and fear have to do with the evangelical fascination with Trump
“Whether Trump means it or not is kind of irrelevant because he’s saying the things to people who are hurting,” filmmaker Michael Moore told a gathering of voters in his 2016 documentary TrumpLand. “It’s why every beaten down, nameless, forgotten working stiff who…
SBC’s ‘conservative resurgence’ has brought two decades of baptism declines
The year conservatives consolidated control of the Southern Baptist Convention is the last year a key marker of denominational growth showed an overall upward trend, according to new annual data released by Lifeway Christian Resources. Even a slight rebound in…
Historian shows how America became Israel’s best friend and biggest defender
Ever since Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 Israelis more than 100 days ago, Israel has relied on America, its best friend and biggest defender. If you want to understand how that came to be the case, check out On the Road…
More thoughts on Mary breastfeeding, hierarchy and ‘kin-dom’ versus ‘kingdom’
Peel back the layers of our modern-day debate over the role of women in the church and you’ll find the underlying stumbling block has to do with hierarchy and bodies. BNG ran an Advent series written by Julia Goldie Day…
Who are the Houthi?
In the last couple of weeks, one word or phrase that has been serially mentioned in the media is the Houthi, a Yemeni militant group. Most Americans — distracted by the war in Gaza — know little about this other…
As MAGA pastors gain influence, let’s talk about peace instead of power
“Kind of disturbing” is how journalist Katie Couric described an Axios piece about how Donald Trump built an insurmountable lead in Monday’s Iowa caucus by catering to evangelical MAGA pastors. “They say obviously they embrace Trump because of the Supreme Court justices who helped…