Baptist News Global

Faith leaders call for urgent opposition to Oklahoma plan to execute an inmate a month for two years

The state of Oklahoma has announced an unprecedented plan to execute 25 inmates over a two-year period beginning this month, about one execution per month. This plan will clear out more than half the current population on Oklahoma’s Death Row,…

This week is the 80th anniversary of the day my great-grandparents died

The reality is that my great-grandparents didn’t just die, they were murdered. They were two of 6 million Jews murdered by the Nazis and their willing accomplices throughout Europe. And it wasn’t just the two of them, but their children…

When my dad asked me to preach a revival in his church, I took a crew of encouragers instead

“Would you be willing to come and preach a revival for us?” my dad asked when I answered the phone that day driving down Main Street (hands-free, of course). I asked him specifically what he was looking for and he…

India at 75: The world’s largest democracy is dying of toxic nationalism

Think white Christian nationalism is the most dangerous form of identity politics in the democratic world? Meet Hindu nationalism, which is systematically destroying secular democracy — and civil society — in India. I sincerely regret raining on the parade of…

The congregational staffing crisis

My news feed has been filled with a variety of stories recently describing the current and coming shortage of public educators. Many school systems are reporting a dearth of teachers as they start the academic year. Citing a variety of…

Progressive National Baptist Convention elects woman to leadership role for first time

One of the country’s leading Black Protestant denominations elected a woman to a key leadership role for the first time. On Aug. 11, during its 61st annual session, the Progressive National Baptist Convention elected Jacqueline A. Thompson as second vice…

50 years later, I’m still embarrassed to admit what a stranger at church taught me about being welcome

I’ve been interested in Mary Magdalene lately for some unknown reason. Hers is a fascinating story, and to be honest, everything we know about her would barely fill a small paragraph. Here it is: Mary Magdalene was a Jewish woman…

Is ‘In God We Trust’ an assertion of Christian nationalism or of American history in public schools?

As schoolchildren head back to class in Texas this week, many of them will be greeted by the sight of the American and Texas flags displayed along with the text of the National Motto: “In God We Trust.” That’s because…

What The Bear should teach us about the church and genuine acceptance

It feels like I just left here. This is the first thought stumbling through my mind as I listen to the deadbolt release, allowing me to enter the dark room I vaguely remember departing just a few hours ago. I…

Despite financial hardships, Americans upped their giving to congregations during pandemic

The financial hardships many Americans faced during the COVID-19 pandemic did not result in the predicted revenue declines for U.S. churches, according to new research into congregational giving trends. In fact, the study conducted by the Lake Institute on Faith…

Carver School of Social Work was a victim of American fundamentalism, authors explain

Diana Garland’s 1995 firing as social work dean at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary had less to do with her public conflicts with the Kentucky seminary’s leadership than with the surge of fundamentalism in the SBC and American evangelicalism, according to…

Rise of American authoritarianism demands a choice, Perryman says

Shaving Dad goodbye

The Enhanced Games were another MAGA grift

It’s bad interpretation, not the Bible, limiting female pastors