Refugees are usually depicted as people in great need. And that’s understandable since most have escaped war and famine with little more than the shirts on their backs. But the devastation brought by Hurricane Harvey has enabled a church in…
Faith leaders to Trump: Don’t make TPS the next DACA
Corina Lopez came to the U.S. in 2001 after an earthquake devastated her home country, El Salvador. She thought she would return in three years. “That was my plan, but not God’s will,” Lopez said at a rally to support a program to give legal status to people hindered from returning home because of natural disaster or armed conflict.
Transitions for the week of 10.20.17
Staff changes, congregational news and more from across the nation.
Ken Ham puts the fear into Halloween — and into the gospel
Used to be, it was the occasional apple or other healthy snack that ruined an otherwise perfect candy collection on Halloween night. But creationist Ken Ham has taken spoiling the holiday to a new level with “Halloween Learn & Share Kits” designed to scare children straight into the judging arms of Jesus.
Lawsuit accuses prominent church of not reporting abuse
A new lawsuit alleges that one of South Carolina’s largest and most respected Southern Baptist churches failed to report to police evidence of child sex abuse by a volunteer youth worker as required by law.
Baptist leader says America under Trump in ‘dangerously deep moral territory’
An American Baptist leader says the United States is following President Donald Trump into moral bankruptcy by allowing his administration to pile up policies that punish the poor.
EPA chief seeks to roll back Obama-era environmental protections
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt signed papers Oct. 10 to begin a process to repeal the Clean Power Plan, the centerpiece of the previous administration’s initiative to reduce carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants connected to climate change.
Marginalized are harder to see ― and help ― in tourist towns, ministers say
As just about anyone who works regularly among at-risk populations knows, the disenfranchised are swept under the social rug regardless of what city they are in. But poverty, hunger and other ills can be harder to spot in recreational get-aways.
Missouri Baptist Convention wins lawsuit against two breakaway entities
After 15 years of litigation, a state judge ruled Sept. 27 that trustees of two Missouri Baptist Convention entities violated their own articles of agreement when they acted unilaterally to choose their own successors instead of those nominated by the MBC.
Church-state experts voice concern about new religious-liberty guidelines
A church-state specialist says Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ 25-page memorandum outlining the scope of religious liberty protections reflects “a decided tilt” toward concerns about the free exercise of religion while giving short shrift to the First Amendment’s establishment clause.
Transitions for the week of 10.13.17
Staff changes, congregational news and more from across the nation.
A year after assuming leadership, Amanda Tyler reflects on religious liberty group that ‘punches above its weight’
When it comes to advocating for the religious liberty of everyone, silence is not an option, says Amanda Tyler, elected a year ago as executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. “A full throated defense of religious freedom is required here,” she maintains.