By David Gushee The July 4th weekend found me immersed in Christian political theology as I prepare to teach a course on this theme in Australia in a few weeks. Independence Day itself found me in one of my favorite…
This July 4th, exercise your freedom to worship
By Barry Howard July 4th falls on Sunday this year. Where will you be this Sunday morning? Independence Day falls on Sunday only every few years. The last time this occurred was 2004. The next time July 4th falls on…
Baptists shouldn’t take religious freedom for granted
By K. Hollyn Hollman When Baptists in America study their history, they typically respond with pride. The denomination’s longstanding witness on behalf of religious liberty can be traced to the first Baptists in England, who boldly proclaimed that God alone…
‘Prophetic leadership’ isn’t an idle phrase
By Amy Butler Seems like everybody likes to use the phrase “prophetic leadership” when it comes to the church. It sounds deeply theological and also a little daring, don’t you think? Pastor search committees have a tendency to use the…
Church, state, and the mouse’s fate
By Brent Beasley This week a good friend of mine from a former church, Carmen Anderson, asked me for a story I once told in a sermon about farm animals that all got killed by the farmer. She thought she…
“Christian nation” e-mails inbound…
With July 4th looming, I expect the usual flurry of e-mails telling me the following: 1. On the aluminum cap atop the Washington Monument are two Latin words, Laus Deo, meaning, “Praise be to God;” 2. the Founding Fathers were…
Gen. McChrystal and the power of words
By Jim Denison President Obama looked “uncomfortable and intimidated” in his first meeting with military leaders after taking office, according to Gen. Stanley McChrystal. The general was even less impressed with Vice President Biden’s opposition to his Afghanistan strategy: “Are…
Stray bullets
By David Wilkinson What goes up must come down. As our family recently discovered, that includes a .40-caliber bullet. Our daughter Meredith, driving a car she had borrowed from a cousin for a month-long summer job, was preparing to return…
Are future ministers up to the challenge?
By Barry Howard This week I’ve had the privilege of sitting around the table with a distinguished group of future ministers and veteran ministers in a retreat setting as we collaborated about our sense of calling, the challenges and opportunities…