Across America this week, Baptist women are carrying a familiar weight. Some are pastors who have faithfully answered the call of God, only to watch the Southern Baptist Convention debate whether God possibly could have called them. Some are seminary...
If 200,000 Democrats met at the National Mall three weeks before a presidential election, erected an altar and started smashing it while yelling about the GOP candidate getting thrown from a tower, trampled by horses, eaten by dogs and turned…
Four days after their senior pastor pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators, members of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro, N.C., heard a sermon on biblical qualifications for pastors Sunday. Matthew Queen, who has been on administrative leave from…
Oklahoma’s top education official is facing mounting opposition to his directive that every public school classroom have Bibles for teaching Scripture to students. Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters was sued Oct. 17 by more than 30 faith leaders,…
It’s not a political campaign the Republican Party is running; it’s an operation, a plan to put their candidate into office regardless of the vote. At least that’s what it looks like to me. The clues are many. As one…
America’s Constitution requires no qualifications for Supreme Court justices, but a culture-warring Christian organization wants to change that by requiring justices to have “a biblical worldview,” a proposal that may violate the Constitution’s ban on religious tests for office holders….
An Arkansas church rocked by child sexual abuse scandals is preparing to adopt bylaws for the first time in its 132-year history, but the draft proposal would muzzle church members from speaking to reporters and nonmembers about the affairs of…
Not too long ago, while perusing a local bookstore, I noticed a collection of macabre literature brought out just in time for All Hallows Eve. I stumbled upon a book titled Haunted Heartland. Perhaps you can imagine my surprise when…
Several months ago, while perusing the aisles of Home Goods, I noticed a discreet display of party items for El Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, observed annually on Nov. 2. If Michael’s can haul out the…
Our role as leaders of congregations is most visible when we stand up to preach. Whenever we step into the pulpit, we are “out in front” — thus fulfilling the shorthand definition of a leader. On any given Sunday, we…
To say that Flint, Mich., has a complicated relationship with water is perhaps an understatement. That’s why a production there of the classic rock musical Godspell is drawing a different kind of national attention. The entire production takes place in…
Several weeks ago, I had a strange and troubling dream. In my dream, I attended a massive rally. Thousands of people flocked to the stadium to hear their hero speak. As throngs of people entered the stadium, Jesus quietly entered…
Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown is known by some as the godfather of California politics, but he wants to be remembered for helping people. “If you are in the business of politics, you come forward with the foundation that…
