Reading Ryan Stollar’s final message through the lens of trauma

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...

Analysis Josh Olds

Featured

At Samford, unexpected snowfall spurs help for stranded students, employees

By Robert Dilday When a winter storm dumped more snow than expected on Birmingham, Ala., Jan. 28-29, students and staff at Samford University stepped in to assist several hundred people stranded on campus by slushy streets and traffic gridlock. Tuesday’s…

Who does God want to win the Super Bowl?

By Alan Rudnick Watching the pregame coverage of Super Bowl XXXII in 1998, I was shocked when a reporter asked Green Bay Packers’ defensive end and ordained minister Reggie White if he thought God wanted him to win the Super…

ERLC supports Hobby Lobby in Supreme Court brief

By Bob Allen The Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission joined other faith groups in a Supreme Court brief filed Jan. 28 arguing that for-profit corporations cannot be forced to pay for employee insurance coverage of contraception if their…

U.S. officials urge release of Christian imprisoned by N. Korea

By Jeff Brumley U.S. political events and officials this week have refocused attention on the plight of Kenneth Bae, the American Christian missionary sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in North Korea. In a Tuesday meeting with Bae’s family,…

Walker Knight: more challenges ahead for Baptist journalism

By Jeff Brumley Legendary Baptist writer and editor Walker Knight has been retired from full-time journalism for years now. But he’s kept a close eye on the industry he left in the 1990s. From his longtime home in Decatur, Ga.,…

U.S. puts ‘moderate’ restrictions on religious freedom

Noah’s Ark discovery raises flood of questions

Pete Seeger’s spirituality in 11 powerful quotes

Pope Francis makes cover of ‘Rolling Stone’

What’s abortifacient? Disputes over birth control fuel Obamacare fight

For Pete’s sake

My last sermon of 2013 was named after a Pete Seeger song – “Turn! Turn! Turn!” Based on a Ecclesiastes 3, it is a text that I’ve mostly used for funerals. I wanted an opportunity to use the song in…

Learning from experience

According to the story, a young person asked an older, wiser person, “How do I avoid mistakes?” The mentor said, “Get experience.” The young person rejoined, “Then how do I get experience?” The reply: “Make mistakes.” Of course, this assumes…