Has the holy word of God been reduced to a prop to win points with a political base? Those who support so-called “Bible bills” claim to love the Scripture, but I believe tossing the Bible into a partisan wrestling match betrays that claim.
An ‘apology’ is not ‘repentance’: responding to clergy sexual abuse and other crises in American Christianity
“Our sins have “found us out.” Wrongs swept under the ecclesiastical carpet or committed inside the church’s dark corners have gone public, requiring us to move beyond casual piety to encounter the pain, depth and gift of repentance.
Turn around and walk against the system of sexism in the Church
We live and worship in religious systems that function like a moving walkway of institutional sexism. Most of us nonsexist people are still benefitting from a sexist culture moving us through sexist systems.
Clergy sex scandal proves Dale Moody was right about ‘once-saved-always-saved’ as a dangerous heresy
In the Southern Baptist Convention no one has the power to tell local Baptist congregations who they can and cannot ordain to ministry. When abuse comes to light, the church sends the offending pastor on his way with a glowing letter of recommendation because congregational morale would suffer if the truth came out.
Ordained. Baptist. Female. And, now, entering retirement
“Out to pasture” is a label that doesn’t fit us well as retired female ministers. So where might we go from here? When the joyous strains of the retirement celebration in fellowship hall fade into a faint echo, what do we do next?
The national conversation about sexual abuse by Baptist clergy is important. But it doesn’t go far enough
Churches must address three foundational issues if they are truly going to become safe spaces for children.
Can Christians come together to reduce the need for abortion?
Christians should put aside ideologies and heated rhetoric to focus on the effective ways we can work across theological differences toward a shared goal of reducing the need for abortion. There is clear, research-based evidence to point the way.
3 faulty assumptions that keep Baptist churches from hiring female pastors
Churches which have opened their pulpits to both genders have made a discovery: Women, just like men, are fully capable of offering strong and visionary church leadership as well as thoughtful, healthy pastoral care. Likewise, females are just as able to provide Christ-honoring preaching and worship leadership.
Paul didn’t pen 1 Corinthians 13 for weddings and Valentine’s Day celebrations
Love gets a lot of hype in February. But what kind of love are we celebrating? Too often we concede the concept of love to a cultural definition that adversely affects our relationships, especially at church.