It may now seem surprising to many United Methodists, and even more Baptists, that for most of our histories in the United States, all Methodists and Baptists were regularly designated as evangelical denominations. The most important reason is that both...
Occasionally, there are days-and even moments within days-when heavy clouds pull in front of the sun, blocking its light from view and casting everything in the empty parking lot outside my office window, in shadows. A few years ago, I…
By Bob Allen A white Baptist pastor in St. Louis says he cannot condone rioting in nearby Ferguson, Mo., but he understands the anger about a black teenager killed by police Aug. 9. On Wednesday police used teargas to disperse…
By Bob Allen A month after airing public criticism of each other, representatives of Campbellsville University and the Kentucky Baptist Convention are talking again about continuing to work together following the school’s move to a self-perpetuating board of trustees. Leaders…
By Bob Allen A former youth worker convicted of sexually abusing boys in the 1980s at a Sovereign Grace Ministries church in Maryland was sentenced Aug. 14 to 40 years in prison. Nathaniel Morales, 56, was found guilty in May…
By Bill Leonard When the storm troopers of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) took Mosul, they marked the homes of Christians with a red Arabic “N” for “Nazarene,” targeting those families for “extermination or expropriation.” That’s what…
By Bob Setzer The death of Robin Williams hit me hard. While on sabbatical, Bambi and I have sought to insulate ourselves from the bad news that is a staple of the modern diet. Given spotty Internet connections and unfamiliar…
