MONTREAT, N.C. (RNS) — Evangelist Billy Graham returned to his North Carolina home Dec. 6 after a six-day stay in a nearby hospital where he was treated for pneumonia. Billy Graham continues to write two years after his last official crusade….
Archbishop says Jesus would be siding with Occupy movement
LONDON (RNS) — Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams says Jesus would have joined protesters from the anti-corporate Occupy movement who have been camped outside London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral for more than seven weeks. Protesters have been camped outside St. Paul's…
Passport’s “Following the Star†devotional series returns
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — “Following the Star,” an Advent and Christmas devotional series, will return to Passport Inc.’s devotional website d365.org on Sunday, Nov. 27, through Epiphany on Jan. 6. This series features Scripture, prayer and meditative thoughts, accompanied by gentle…
Religious groups spend nearly $400 million on advocacy in Washington
WASHINGTON (RNS) — The number of religious advocacy groups in the nation’s capital has more than tripled since the 1970s, with conservative groups seeing the biggest growth, according to a new report. Together, faith-based lobbying and advocacy groups spend $390…
Congregations reach out to vets with PTSD, traumatic brain injury
NEWTON, Mass. (RNS) — Some wounds of war are all too visible — a missing leg, a shattered arm. The invisible wounds of mind and soul often are more difficult to spot and equally hard to treat. But those who…
Wounded Warriors: Returning veterans, families struggle to adjust
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Sitting around the kitchen table, the Riverses are a picture of the quintessential American family. Over a freshly prepared meal, they share stories of the day’s events. The room is filled with the warmth of smiles,…
Duke divinity school students aim to heal ‘unseen war wounds’
DURHAM, N.C. — Combat veterans, pacifists, pastors, and military leaders gathered at a Duke Divinity School event Nov. 11-12 to discuss how the church, the military, and academia can understand and begin to heal the unseen wounds of war. Initiated…
Chaplain in Afghanistan sees close calls, reflects Christ’s peace
ANDAHAR, Afghanistan (BP) — Capt. Kevin Humphrey’s last quarterly report to the North American Mission Board’s chaplaincy group reads like the script of a Hollywood blockbuster. But the combat incidents are real — true wartime stories of battlefield death, horrific…
HERITAGE: Big day at two churches
It was a crisp, cool, cloudless day on Oct. 2 for the 125th anniversary celebration at Big Island Baptist Church in Bedford County, Va. The distinctive temple-like church building had been spruced up for the big day. The menfolks had…
And the winner is ….
Anne Cole Aker, the winner in a recent contest sponsored by the Religious Herald, receives her iPad from Brian Clingenpeel of Roanoke, Va., president of the Herald’s board of trustees. RICHMOND, Va. — The Religious Herald has announced the winner…
High school students have chance to explore religion in 2012 campaign
WASHINGTON — Teenagers are being offered an opportunity to engage what has emerged as one of the most vexing questions in the 2012 presidential campaign: Is it fair to evaluate a candidate by his or her religious faith? The Religious…
WINN RECOMMENDS
Between Heaven and Mirth, James Martin (HarperOne) Martin’s subtitle (Why Joy, Humor and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life) tells you where he’s heading. Martin believes that revelry, enjoyment, the “ability to laugh at life’s absurdities” are…