Note: This article discusses suicide, child sexual abuse and domestic violence. It may be distressing for some readers. On June 30, child liberation theologian and abuse survivor advocate Ryan Stollar died by suicide, following a lengthy struggle with his...
On Nov. 17, 1999, I met Muhammad Ali. It was at the Cathedral of the Assumption on 5th Street in Louisville, Ky., in a Cathedral Heritage Series of ecumenical gatherings. I was the preacher for an interfaith Thanksgiving service, and…
Four years into a multi-faceted and sustained response to “the biggest humanitarian emergency of our era,” the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is continuing its efforts to serve Syrian refugees through field personnel and ministry partners in five countries. Belgium-based field personnel…
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated weekly. STAFF CHANGES Robert H. Carpenter, to Courtland (Va.) Baptist Church, as interim pastor. Caleb Foust, to Emerywood Baptist Church, High…
The American Muslim community reacted with an outpouring of love and support. The violence also sparked a debate within the community about whether Muslim leaders need to speak out more forcefully against homophobic ideologies.
Tennessee megachurch pastor Steve Gaines was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention June 15 when another candidate conceded in a runoff election that was too close to call. Gaines, pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova, Tenn., came three…
In a motion at the Southern Baptists Convention June 14, a Baptist state newspaper editor asked trustees of all Southern Baptist Convention entities to open their meetings to the press. Lonnie Wilkey, editor of the Baptist and Reflector newspaper in…
One hundred seventy one years after its founding over a dispute about whether slaveholders could be appointed as missionaries, the Southern Baptist Convention passed a strongly worded resolution June 14 against public display of the Confederate flag. The resolution, as…
I don’t know what disturbs me more: the reality that our nation and world are gripped in a fist of violence, hatred, blame and rage — or the reality that when I heard about yet another massacre on Sunday, this…
A year ago we were shocked and horrified as the news broke about a man named Dylann Roof who walked into a place of fellowship and prayer. Despite the hospitality he received there, he opened fire, taking the lives of…
“Religious liberty” has been in the media a lot lately so this piece is hardly news. But as Mississippi prepares to roll its “Religious Freedom” bill into law on July 1, apparently there’s still room for an opinion. Here’s mine:…
La versión en español está disponible aquí. The last few weeks have been hard. First the news of the Baylor University case and the recognition, once more, of the connections between inappropriate theological/biblical interpretations and a patriarchal culture that objectifies…
An English version is available here. Las últimas semanas han sido difíciles. Primero salieron a la luz las noticias del caso de la Universidad de Baylor y el reconocimiento, una vez más, de las conexiones entre interpretaciones teológicas y bíblicas…
