Prior to the 2022 Pennsylvania Senate debate between John Fetterman and Mehmet Oz, many Americans never had heard of auditory processing disorder, known as APD for short. Now the disability is front and center in a race that may determine…
United Methodists elect married gay clergyman among 13 new bishops who represent many other firsts
A married gay clergyman from California was among 13 new bishops elected by United Methodist delegates to five regional U.S. conferences Nov. 2-5. And that was only one of several first-ever results of this year’s elections. The election of Cedrick…
Southern Baptist support for Israel has traveled a winding road, scholar explains
The staunch theological and political support for the state of Israel that the Southern Baptist Convention is known for today was preceded by decades of diverse opinions among Baptists about the Zionist movement that eventually birthed the Jewish nation in…
Former RNC head calls new DeSantis ad ‘ass-backwards blasphemy’
A new video ad released by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is “some of the most ass-backwards blasphemy I’ve ever heard in my life, and one of the dumbest political ads you could ever make,” a seminary educated former head of…
Despite faculty vote of ‘no confidence’ in president, Hardin-Simmons trustees express ‘great confidence’
In response to a 76% faculty vote of no confidence — the second of its kind — in President Eric Bruntmyer, the trustee chairman of Hardin-Simmons University has assured students all is well. In an email addressed to “dear students”…
Next up: Abortion rights cases based on religious liberty claims
Expect a proliferation of religious liberty cases for abortion access as the issue of reproductive rights moves to the states, predicts Holly Hollman, general counsel and associate executive director of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. While legal claims that…
‘Let the messengers decide,’ two SBC leaders say of debate about expelling churches with female pastors
Determining whether to exclude churches with women serving in any way as pastors should be determined by messengers to next summer’s Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting, according to the two men with the most influence over that process. SBC President…
Faith Commons becomes first organization and first interfaith work to receive T.B. Maston Ethics Award
Successful interfaith work is not seeking the lowest common denominator and watering down differences in beliefs, George Mason told supporters of the T.B. Maston Foundation Oct. 27 as he and colleague Nancy Kasten received the Maston Christian Ethics Award. The…
Baylor researchers get $2.5 million grant to help theologians and psychologists work together on human flourishing
A team of Baylor University researchers has landed a $2.5 million grant to train theologians how to use insights gleaned from the psychological sciences to study how human beings can live their most fulfilling lives. But the scholars involved also…
Transitions for the week of 11-4-22
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Jose Aguilera, to Grace Baptist Church, Woodbridge, Va., as Hispanic pastor. Brian Ball, to First Baptist Church, Summitville,…
Measure your political ideology against the life and witness of Jesus, Bishop Curry advises
Don’t be fooled by the “Christian” in Christian nationalism, warns Michael Curry, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church. “What we’re actually describing is an ideology that’s not really a religion, but it looks like a religion and uses and invokes…
Recent SBC leader mocks Pelosi attack via Twitter, while celebrating Elon Musk’s lack of content moderation
A former officer of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee who was among the most outspoken critics of the investigation into sexual abuse in SBC churches has used Twitter to mock the hammer attack on Paul Pelosi. Pelosi, husband of…