Americans never have been directly asked about religion in the decennial census in part because Jewish and other faith groups fear being tracked and discriminated against by the government, according to a report by Pew Research Center. Pew published “Why…
From isolation to ministerial pasta: How summer camp has changed since COVID showed up
Is the end of COVID as an official public health emergency good news for summer youth camps? Or are dangers still lurking behind every tree and campsite? After the May 11 declaration that COVID-19 is no longer a public health…
CBF will hire two full-time staff in advocacy
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship intends to double its efforts on advocacy. For the first time, CBF plans to hire two full-time staff members working in this area, one as director of advocacy and one as congregational advocacy manager. Advocacy work…
Supreme Court sides with White House and against Greg Abbott on immigration
A June 23 Supreme Court ruling affirmed the Biden administration’s prerogative to implement immigration rules limiting deportation actions to immigrants deemed national security or significant criminal threats. The court’s 8-1 ruling in United States v. Texas found states do not…
Conservative Presbyterians reject four proposals to curb sexual abuse
Southern Baptists aren’t the only U.S. denomination struggling with how to prevent and respond to clergy sexual abuse. The Presbyterian Church in America — the more conservative wing of U.S. Presbyterianism — finds itself in a knot as well. An…
Amid an already difficult immigration system, LGBTQ asylum seekers are in ‘grave danger’
The Biden administration’s asylum restrictions place LGBTQ migrants in grave danger by exposing them to longer waits in nations hostile to those with alternative sexual orientations and gender identities, immigration rights advocates said during a June 22 webinar. “It will…
Fear drives Christian nationalists, William Barber says
Christian nationalists oppose the teaching of Black history and Critical Race Theory out of fear the subjects could spark compassion for marginalized people, civil rights leader William Barber II said during a radio show hosted by Interfaith Alliance. “The forces…
Judge blocks anti-trans law in Arkansas, saying the law is based on faulty ideas
An Arkansas law banning transgender care has been struck down because it discriminates against transgender people, violates the free speech rights of doctors and would harm the very young people it seeks to protect. As BNG reported last month, Arkansas…
In other news, the SBC is not threatened by AI but is threatened by transgender people
Amid all the headlines about the Southern Baptist Convention’s stance against women in ministry last week, other actions that would have made headlines in a normal year fell from view. Two such actions came in the form of resolutions among…
Transitions for the week of 6-23-23
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Nick Boden, to First Baptist Church, Carrollton, Ga., as organist. Most recently he was organist for Peachtree Presbyterian…
Belmont says no to Promise Keepers after warning of ‘mutilated bodies’ in anti-trans post
Spreading “biblical” hate speech about transgender people apparently got Promise Keepers booted from using a venue at Belmont University for a fall event. Although details are sketchy and contested, the bottom line appears to be that the evangelical men’s organization…
Russell Dilday, Baptist statesman
Russell H. Dilday, whose tenure as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, saw the school’s endowment more than double while leading the seminary to it its greatest period of growth but who was fired in 1994…