Baptist News Global

How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence

Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse. By gendering character traits, the church has increased the power of men and the marginalization of women. Patriarchal…

By doing everything ‘wrong,’ this California church found the right way

First Baptist Church of Pasadena, Calif., is succeeding by doing everything wrong. Wrong, at least, by conventional standards of what leads to church growth and health today. The church has no social media presence, intentionally. Video of Sunday morning worship…

The inconsistencies of our ethical declarations: Samford’s dilemma

Editor’s note: Bill Leonard served as professor of church history and chair of the Religion Department at Samford University from January 1992 to June 1996. In his 1995 book, The Stem of Jesse: The Costs of Community at a 1960s…

Letter to the Editor: Don’t be so harsh on white males and end-times believers

Letter to the Editor October 11, 2022 Dear Editor: I read with rising anger the recent opinion piece from Rodney Kennedy, “The two apocalyptic movements threatening America.” Bottom line up front: Kennedy is part of the problem, not part of…

As inflation hits, Africa’s largest indigenous church clings to a tea obsession

Global food inflation has not spared South Africa, but amidst the high prices, millions in Africa’s biggest indigenous church cling to a tea ritual obsession despite rising prices of ingredients. “It’s the tea of faith; a sip kicks off bad…

Why you should be wary of preachers who are certain about everything

The minister of my Southern Baptist childhood church was a study in contradictions. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of my alma mater, Wake Forest University, he was an evangelical conservative; however, before my meeting with the ordination council of the…

If your pastor hasn’t had a pay increase in several years, now is the time to make it right

On multiple occasions in the last few weeks, I’ve had conversations with pastor friends who have said in passing, “I’ve not had a salary increase since I got here.” These pastor friends are not bitter, and they weren’t complaining. They…

Meeting White House goal of ending U.S. hunger by 2030 will require engagement by churches, Everett says

Government, industry and nonprofit groups must be dedicated to working together to accomplish President Joe Biden’s vision of eradicating hunger by 2030, said Jeremy Everett, executive director of the Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty. “No one sector can end…

How Michael W. Smith, George W. Bush and one popular worship song expose the problem of Calvinist theology and politics

There is a reason why one of the most influential worship songs of the past quarter century expresses a truth that could turn evangelicalism upside down and yet has been repeatedly rejected and banned by conservative evangelical complementarian Calvinists. Growing…

The unsolvable political problem facing those who lead purple churches

The United States is bitterly divided along what we now call red/blue, conservative/liberal, Republican/Democrat lines. Of course, not everyone fits into those boxes, but enough do for the statement to be accurate. The mutual suspicion and social separation between the…

Letter to the Editor: ‘60 Minutes’ and the questions not asked

Letter to the Editor October 10, 2022 Dear Editor: Anderson Cooper’s “60 Minutes” interview of Bart Barber began on a hopeful note. Asked if he believed the 2020 presidential election was stolen, the Southern Baptist Convention president answered: “No.” Asked…

Four reasons saying grace is important

As we enter October, the holiday season is coming up quickly. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas. Most of these holidays entail some sort of celebration that involves food. Even if you are not celebrating a specific holiday, this is the time of…

An American experiment: 250 years of trying

10 reasons America is not a ‘Christian nation’

American Dominion traces deep roots of Seven Mountain Mandate

Lindsey Graham and the history of ‘widow’s succession’