Baptist News Global

Christian engagement growing as Cuba-U.S. ties improve

The level and frequency of United States-based Christian activity in Cuba has been rising since the normalization process between the two countries began in late 2014. The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Florida has been building on existing relationships with Baptists and…

Retiring BJC head describes religious liberty as a yes/no proposition

Six months away from retirement, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty head Brent Walker reflected on 27 years of “seeking both/and solutions in the congested intersection of church and state” at an annual lunch gathering for BJC supporters June 24 during…

The theology of Donald Trump

Since Donald Trump assures us that the Bible is his favorite book, it’s worth asking: Just what is his theology?

Forget VBS. These summer camps teach kids to be community activists

Instead of the traditional vacation Bible school, one Durham, N.C., church partnered with seven other congregations — black, white, Baptist, Jewish, Episcopal, Pentecostal and nondenominational — to put on a community-organizing camp for kids aged 4 to 12.

High anxiety in the Church

Anyone feeling anxious? A better question: anyone not feeling anxious? God’s people in the 21st century suffer a serious malady. We mouth the words of faithfulness while we live lives dominated by anxiety and frustration. For every time we parrot “God…

Keep laying shells for the culture to find its way home

I am a father of two. So, this past week, I did my parenting duty: I took my kids to see the movie Finding Dory. As a writer and a preacher, I should probably watch more movies than I do….

Missional DNA enabled churches to heal communities after Pulse and Sandy Hook

Pastor Terri Steed Pierce knew even before arriving at church the morning of June 12 that worship was going to be radically different at Joy Metropolitan Community Church in Orlando. Many in her LGBTQ congregation knew victims killed or wounded…

What does ‘moderate’ mean?

“The first thing I feel disposed to share is what is apparent to us all, namely that if Jesus Christ had been a moderate he would never have been crucified.” These words came famously from the inimitable Will D. Campbell…

Considering the lilies and hard conversations

Their beauty is exquisite — the daylily blooms resulting from last summer’s sabbatical gardening. With coffee in hand, I journey each new day to see what surprise the garden holds. I count the blooms, marveling at their balanced symmetry, stunning…

Judge strikes down Mississippi religious freedom law

A federal judge has struck down a controversial Mississippi bill allowing citizens with “sincerely held religious beliefs” to deny services to gays, lesbian and transgender persons. U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves issued a 60-page opinion June 30 blocking enforcement…

Brexit boosters: Why the Religious Right hates the EU

The European Union has been a powerful advocate for advancing the rights of women and LGBT people. That’s why so many Religious Right activists see the EU as an enemy to “traditional values.”

Ethicist urges caution about changing CBF hiring policy

Robert Parham, executive director of the Baptist Center for Ethics, has cautioned Cooperative Baptist Fellowship leaders about how to respond to growing demands that the organization reverse its 16-year-old ban on hiring non-celibate gays.

Theologizing with Larkin Poe, 10 years after Reskinned

Ministry leader with tall tales wins GOP bid for Colorado governor

What Willy Rice once knew

What I learned July 5 at church