“They stole $77,000. And that was all of my savings.” Her voice was so soft I (Doug) had to lean in to hear her. “I’ve talked with the local police, the FBI and the Federal Trade Commission. The money is...
When Baptist News Global Executive Director Mark Wingfield asked me five years ago if he could publish my piece comparing King George in Hamilton to Calvinism’s God, I had no idea the opportunities his invitation would bring me. One of my favorite…
“Dissent against any ideology that seeks to replace Christ … with political power, nationalism, lies or fear,” outgoing Moderator Juan García urged the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship during its annual General Assembly in St. Louis June 26. “As true Baptists, we…
In a historic and extraordinary legal maneuver, the Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against all 15 sitting federal judges in the state of Maryland. The lawsuit, initiated by the U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday, directly challenges a standing…
“Now is the time” to proclaim a gospel that sets people free, activist and theologian Traci D. Blackmon told participants at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Dr. Emmanuel McCall Racial Justice Trailblazer luncheon June 25 in St. Louis. The annual event…
A South Carolina woman does not have the right to sue the state over its exclusion of Planned Parenthood as a Medicaid provider, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 26. Writing for the conservative majority in a 6-3 decision, Justice…
One learning lab at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s General Assembly asked attendees to consider what their church would do if abuse happened in their congregation. Jay Kieve, CBF’s abuse prevention and response advocate, joined attorney David Cooke to talk through…
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship adopted a downsized budget and elected new leaders during its General Assembly in St. Louis June 24-26. The 2025-26 budget — which takes effect when CBF’s fiscal year begins Aug. 1 — calls for expenditures of…
“Where are the SBC leaders who will call Allen Jordan to account?” This was the question Mark Wingfield posed in a June 24 column, and I’ve been pondering it ever since. In part, I ponder this because it’s personal —…
The church must demonstrate courage, demand dignity and fight for equality as attacks against religious freedom and LGBTQ people spread throughout the nation, Interfaith Alliance President Paul Raushenbush said. “The root of the word ‘courage’ is ‘cor,’ or heart,” he…
Robert Jeffress not only supports President Donald Trump’s bombing of Iran, but his publicist sent out a news release to make sure everyone understands he does. In last Sunday morning’s sermon — delivered hours after Trump ordered massive bombs dropped…
Sixteen years ago today, on June 25, 2009, the world stood still. Michael Joseph Jackson — The King of Pop — died suddenly at age 50. His voice, vision and unmatched creativity remain unmatched, and although he left the earthly…
“Your church probably is not growing, and that’s OK,” Ryan Burge, a leading analyst of politics and religion, told a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship gathering June 24 in St. Louis. But that doesn’t signal a cause for apathy or despair, he…
