By Jeff Brumley At Grace and Main in Danville, Va., organizers have ceded much of their power to the people they came to serve. “A lot of our leadership is made up of those who are or were hungry, impoverished…
Church sued for abuse that occurred at VBS
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist church in Tennessee is being sued for $2 million by a mother whose 10-year-old daughter was sexually abused while attending Vacation Bible School in 2009. The girl, now 15, and her mother both use…
Smart churches call 911 sooner rather than later
On a pleasant morning a few years ago at a church preschool, a 3-year-old boy fell backwards off a piece of playground equipment and hit his head. It was no one’s fault. It just happened. His symptoms indicated the need…
Ethnic churches do better with Millennials, but challenges remain
By Jeff Brumley Go to Google and type “Millennials, church,” and the screen will be dominated by links to articles, blogs and studies documenting that generation’s exodus from American congregations. What irks some, however, is that evidence is being overlooked…
Ethnic churches fare better with Millennials, but challenges remain
By Jeff Brumley Go to Google and type “Millennials, church,” and the screen will be dominated by links to articles, blogs and studies documenting that generation’s exodus from American congregations. What irks some, however, is that evidence is being overlooked…
Former SBC megachurch sold to Catholics
By Bob Allen A once-prominent Southern Baptist church in Nashville, Tenn., downsized and rebranded after controversy over finances, lawsuits and excommunications, has voted to sell its 220,000-square-foot building and 37.5-acre grounds to the Catholic Diocese of Nashville for $12.5 million….
Southern Baptist church takes ‘third way’ on homosexuality
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist church in California drew scrutiny from denominational leaders and observers after voting May 18 not to dismiss a pastor who said he had changed his mind about homosexuality being a sin. New Heart Community…
Is your denomination slowly committing suicide?
For decades we have known that persons who smoke multiple packs of cigarettes per day are slowly committing suicide. Many of these people did not want to commit suicide. Some claim they did not know they were committing suicide. At…
Murder, possible kidnapping, rock Georgia congregation
By Bob Allen A Baptist minister who leads a multi-denominational church in central Georgia says the congregation is in shock and uncertain about what to expect next in the wake of a murder and possible kidnapping mystery involving two of…
The glass ceiling for women in ministry only slightly cracked
I recently returned from the Exponential church planting conference in Orlando where I spent time thinking about women in ministry; especially women in church planting. I sat in on all three workshop sessions led or co-led by a woman in…
D.C.’s Amy Butler is candidate for Riverside Church in New York
By Robert Dilday Washington pastor Amy Butler is a search committee’s candidate to be the next senior minister at Riverside Church in New York City, one of the most prominent congregations in mainline Protestantism. The search committee’s selection of Butler,…
Missed church last Sunday? What do you need to do?
An increasing number of people miss church on Sundays, or other times during the week when primary worship services or small groups gather. The average number of weeks active Christians attend church is decreasing. The benchmark of at least 48…