RICHMOND (BP) — Message spotted on a church sign: “Christmas: expectant hush, not last-minute rush.” Rush we can do. Hush, not so much. Given a choice between a day of silence and stillness or of noise and distraction, the average…
Happy new year?
When does the New Year begin? For Christians observing the church calendar, the new year began Dec. 2, with the start of the Advent season. The liturgical year is an “or-derly way to look at the full scope of Christian…
FAITH DIGEST
Court rejects faith-based prison program. An Iowa prisoner rehabilitation program run by evangelicals oversteps church-state boundaries and should not receive government funds, a federal appeals court has ruled. InnerChange Freedom Initiative runs a program “dominated by Bible study, Christian classes,…
Fair-trade items offer Christmas gifts with a conscience
NEW YORK (ABP)—What's the perfect revenge for the flannel-lined hot-water bottle Aunt Sharon gave you last year? Or the Michael Bolton CD from your brother-in-law? Maybe a toilet. Or an ox. A bag of seeds would work, for that matter….
Reaching the campus, one student at a time
FARMVILLE—It's no secret that one of the goals of Baptist Collegiate Ministries is outreach. At Longwood University we've integrated a new program into our activities hoping to attract new students with a non-threatening medium: videogames. This year we've started hosting…
Out Loud
“A headline last Sunday about a Muslim man and an Orthodox woman who are partners in two Dunkin' Donuts stores described their religions incorrectly. The two faiths worship the same God — not different ones.” The New York Times The…
New Baptist Covenant preach-in features Forbes, other notables
ATLANTA (ABP) — A miniature preaching festival within next year's Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant will feature one of the nation's most famous preachers among a group that is broadly diverse in terms of ethnic background, gender, denominational affiliation…
Virginia Baptist Mission Board elects officers, allocates funds for ministry
RICHMOND — The Virginia Baptist Mission Board elected new officers and allocated funds to a variety of statewide and international ministries during its organizational meeting Nov. 27-28 at the Virginia Baptist Resource Center. Joe Lewis, pastor of Second Baptist Church…
Conservative Christians show growing acceptance of divorce
WASHINGTON (RNS)—When Pentecostal power couple Randy and Paula White recently announced they were headed to divorce court, the most remarkable part of the reaction was that there wasn't much reaction at all among their supporters. For increasing numbers of clergy,…