As I started my daily read of newspapers, I was shocked (well, disappointed) to learn that our region was one of the least religious regions in America. A new Gallup poll found that, “Only 26 percent of those surveyed in…
The war on Easter
As billions of Christians worldwide prepare for Easter this Holy Week, it seems that some television personalities think that our culture is waging a war on Easter. Bill O’Reilly declared on his show that the War on Easter is being waged via…
Why is it called Maundy Thursday?
Today is Maundy Thursday — no, not Monday Thursday, which would be an interesting concept: society could work Monday through Thursday, with Fridays off! Some Christians misunderstand that this day is only a “Catholic” celebration. Christians both ancient and modern…
The Bible: Satan, Obama, and social media
Viewers who watched “The Bible” mini series took to social media to quickly point out a disturbing observation. The character, Satan has a striking resemblance to Barack Obama. The actor, Mohamen Mehdi Ouazanni, obviously wore makeup. Twitter was abuzz: People upset Satan in #TheBible looks like…
Poll: Most Americans feel connected to local church
In an age where cries from denominations about declining membership and church participation, a new poll offers some encouraging news on American’s feelings towards their congregation. A Rasmussen poll found that 54% of American adults feel at least “somewhat connected” to their local…
Yo Facebook, are you losing it?
Facebook started as a college student sharing site. It was new. It was edgy. It was young. It was better than MySpace. Now your mom, dad, and grandma are already your ‘friends’. That’s not cool according to some young people. Young…
A Baptist who celebrates Lent
Huh? A Baptist who celebrates Ash Wednesday and Lent? That’s like an American celebrating Boxing Day. The two just don’t go together. Despite the misnomer, Baptists do celebrate Ash Wednesday and Lent, especially this Baptist. Two of the classic Baptist…
Why the Pope’s resignation matters to Protestants
Surprise and shock are an understatement when it comes to Pope Benedict XVI‘s resignation. Only a handful of Popes have called it quits. The Pope’s decision continues to spark speculation about who the next leader of the Roman Catholic Church will…
The perils of being a Christian athlete
In an electrifying game the Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers to become Super Bowl champions of 2013. As Baltimore holds celebrations for their winning sons, reporters will look to uncover any tantalizing details into strategy that won the big game. Case in point, The…
Should a dying church be repurposed?
It seems that I’m stuck on thinking about dying or dead churches. Why so grim, Alan? That is a good question. It seems that folks are interested in talking about this topic. For some odd reason, I’ve been thinking about…
The edgy Christian media startup you need to check out
More and more, Christian media outfits try to create their own social media platforms to get noticed. However, a new edgy social media startup, “Sogo” is taking a different route on social media to get their message out. Sogo describes…
How Evangelicals can lead the way now
After the 2012 elections, Franklin Graham stated on CNN that our nation is on a “path of destruction” due to the 2012 election results. In addition Graham said, “If we are allowed to go down this road in the path…