NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS)—The name Jesus Christ doesn’t appear in The Voice, a new translation of the Bible. Nor do words such as angel or apostle. Instead, angel is rendered as “messenger” and apostle as “emissary.” Jesus Christ is “Jesus the…
Millennials losing faith in record numbers, says report
WASHINGTON (RNS)—A growing tide of young Americans is drifting away from the religions of their childhood—and most of them are ending up in no religion at all. One in four young adults choose “unaffiliated” when asked about their religion, according…
Focus on Jesus, interpret the Bible with humility, N.C. pastor tells sexuality conference
ATLANTA—Christians who want to hear God’s voice—particularly when it comes to difficult issues regarding sexuality—need to approach the Scriptures with humility and a desire to know the heart and mind of Christ, speakers told participants at a [Baptist] Conference on…
Youth ministry more than fun and games
Dale Tadlock, associate pastor-minister to young adults and students at First Baptist Church in Waynesboro, Va., serves communion to a student during a recent 24 Hour Justice Experiment session. By Jeff Brumley Dale Tadlock is a 45-year-old youth minister, a…
CBF council reviewing revised 2012 Task Force report
By Bob Allen A two-year study charting the future for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is now in the hands of the group’s Coordinating Council, which votes May 1 on the final report in time for it to be published and…
Youth ministry more than games, new network says
WAYNESBORO, Va. (ABP)—Dale Tadlock is a 45-year-old youth minister, a fact that he says baffles some folks. He's often been asked when he plans "to grow up" and "get a real ministry job?" But leaving youth ministry isn't even on…
Groups urge end to religious profiling
By Bob Allen Organizations including the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty urged a Senate panel probing racial profiling in America to include profiling of religious minorities in their study. Thirty-five groups wrote leaders of a Senate Committee on the…
Alliance takes aim at gun deaths
By Bob Allen The Alliance of Baptists adopted a statement of support April 14 for the family of Trayvon Martin and others who have experienced similar losses. Citing an article from the Alliance covenant affirming “the calling of God to…
Richard Land cries media bias
By Bob Allen Southern Baptist leader Richard Land is blaming media bias for controversy over his recent remarks accusing black leaders and President Obama of using Trayvon Martin’s death to stimulate African-American voter turnout in the upcoming presidential election. Richard…
Richard Land apologizes for Trayvon Martin comments
By Bob Allen Three days after defending comments accusing black leaders of politicizing the death of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, the head of Southern Baptists’ Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission apologized April 16 to anyone who was offended by his…
More churches producing roll-your-own study materials
By Jim White Not too long ago, hardly any church would have dared to plan, write and publish its own Bible study materials. Before computers, desktop publishing and easy access to the Internet, the task would have been so daunting,…
When does it make sense for a church to produce its own material?
By Jim White Producing study materials for a church is a huge undertaking that diverts staff time, energy and attention away from other assignments. Making that decision, then, should be done carefully. When does it make sense for a church…