Recently I began reading a book I was sent to review. It is by two people I know well; one of them more than the other. The one I know better is often given to over-statement and over-generalization. I found…
Religious litmus tests
American Christianity deeply troubles me. It’s not because some sociologists are saying that the influence and prominence of religion in American public life is declining. It’s not because more and more clergy leaders are leaving the ministry for less stressful…
The day I was cursed at in church
In ministry, one day is always different from the next. Sometimes, there are wonderful and rewarding experiences. Other times, there are difficult experiences. I’ll never forget the day I was cursed at in church. Samuel L. Jackson style. I was…
Three responses to 9/11 grief
Eleven years ago on September 11, I was in college. I was getting out of a Tuesday morning class when I heard people talking about an airplane crash. As I walked back to my apartment, I heard more and more…
Think attendance in your church is declining? Think Again
Some eyewitnesses claim the attendance in their congregations is declining. This may be true. In some cases, however, congregations do not know how to count. If you think attendance in your congregation is really declining, I invite you to think…
Are there good reasons to start new congregations?
A quarter of a century ago I moved to South Carolina in response to the call of the largest Baptist body in that state. Baptists of various tribes in South Carolina lacked a commitment to starting new congregations. I was…
Loch Ness Found in Classrooms
Seeing isn’t believing; believing is seeing—at least when it comes to the Loch Ness Monster. As it turns out, students in private Christian schools across Louisiana use textbooks that claim the monster was a dinosaur that existed at the same…
BWA annual gathering is about relationships
On Saturday I left for Santiago, Chile to attend the Annual Gathering of the Baptist World Alliance. I look forward to seeing current friends and making new friends from throughout the world. Periodically I am asked by a Baptist in…
CBF enters year of transition
FORTH WORTH, Texas—The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship looks forward to an “in-between year” characterized by implementation of a new identity statement and a search for a successor to retiring CBF Executive Coordinator Daniel Vestal, the group’s incoming moderator said June. 22….