Child liberation theologian and abuse survivor advocate Ryan L. Stollar died June 28 at age 42. The author, speaker and counselor left a detailed note titled “The End” on his website. According to that note, his death was not an…
Charlotte church adopts new name
Myers Park Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C., has renamed itself Myers Park Covenant Church. A news release from the congregation said the name change is the result of years of discernment regarding the word “Baptist.” “While historically meaningful, the name…
Judge bars Tennessee from revealing immigration status of sick children
A Nashville judge issued a restraining order temporarily barring the Tennessee Department of Health from reporting the identities of hundreds of extremely ill and disabled immigrant children to a state immigration office. The June 24 order was issued in response…
High court allows Trump to deport Haitians and Syrians
The Trump administration can now end Temporary Protected Status for Haitians and Syrians who fled to the United States to escape natural disaster and persecution in their home countries, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 25. The 6-3 decision along…
Conservatives press FCC to crack down on kids’ LGBTQ content
A handful of evangelical and conservative groups is pressing the Federal Communications Commission to change the way programs are rated so parents can protect their children from LGBTQ content. “For years, Hollywood producers have used kids’ content to push a…
Mohler again claims same-sex marriage harms children
A leading Southern Baptist Convention spokesman has taken aim again at the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., and author of the SBC’s constitutional amendment…
Dan Patrick reiterates: ‘No separation of church and state’
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick stood in the Oval Office last Friday afternoon and told the American people once again there should be no such thing as separation of church and state in America. Patrick, a Southern Baptist from Houston,…
SBC says it’s not possible to be gay or transgender and Christian
It is not possible to be a “gay Christian” or a “transgender Christian,” the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission says. In a new social media reel posted by the ERLC, that question is answered by RaShan Frost,…
The Intercept challenges Trump’s retaliation against protesters
An online news organization sued the Trump administration June 24 to win the release of documents related to a federal database established to retaliate against protesters and others exercising constitutional rights. The Intercept is asking the U.S. District Court for…
UN says Israel has committed war crimes and genocide in Gaza
Israel committed war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide by intentionally injuring and killing children in military operations in Gaza and surrounding areas, a United Nations task force charges. More than 20,100 Palestinian children have been killed and 44,000 wounded…
UMC removes Asbury and 3 others as approved seminaries
Four theological schools, including the flagship school of conservative Methodists, have been removed by the University Senate from the list of theological schools approved for United Methodist candidates for ministry. Following usual quadrennial reviews by the senate’s Committee on Theological…
Like SBC, Episcopal Church hopes to sell its headquarters building
The Southern Baptist Convention isn’t the only national denomination attempting to sell its headquarters building amid changing dynamics. The Episcopal Church announced June 17 that its 12-story Church Center building in New York City is on the market. Two years…