CBF-partner theology schools are making significant shifts as they prepare for a fall semester to commence in the middle of the global pandemic. After finishing the spring semester with online instruction, some are planning to offer a variety of options…
We’re asking the wrong questions about churches ‘reopening’
Every Christian I know longs for a return to pre-COVID congregational life. For four months, our beloved rhythms have been on hold, leaving us frustrated, exhausted and ready for the widespread acceptance of practices to help curb the spread of…
What a bad horror movie taught me about reopening schools
For more than a decade, I taught a seminary course in religion and film. Occasionally, students would elect to take the course, assuming we would be viewing and discussing faith-based, Christian-message movies. Looking at the syllabus on the first class…
As major employers, churches help the economy with PPP loans
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented American congregations with all manner of unprecedented decisions and dilemmas, including whether to accept government money to meet payrolls. But faced with decreased revenues, many churches have done just that — even while acknowledging the…
My Coronavirus Summer: Coping with grief and seeking joy
None of us are exempt from significant loss at some point in our lives — loss of loved ones, property, health, income. Losses often pile up on one another, and the world seems to turn upside down overnight. After my…
Maybe I’m taking ‘crazy pills’ because this doesn’t make sense
In the cult movie classic Zoolander, Will Farrell famously shouts, “I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!” Here lately, I feel like I’m taking crazy pills, too. Things that seem so abundantly self-evident now appear to be missed or, worse,…
Q&A with John Finley on preserving Baptist history amid COVID-19
Probably one of the last things clergy and lay leaders are worried about right now is history, especially with the ever-present coronavirus looking to overstay its welcome for who knows how long. But John Finley, executive director of the Baptist…
Religious coalition opposes more coronavirus relief for private schools
A broad coalition of religious groups, including three Baptist organizations, has asked the U.S. Senate to avoid using public education dollars to help private schools in the next round of coronavirus relief legislation. The Senate GOP’s HEALS Act would provide…
Website to teach kids the Bible finds new life in pandemic
Wrestling uninterested kids in catechism classes gave Mosongo Osong an idea for a better way to teach children the Bible — but he had no idea how a coming global pandemic would accelerate his vision and take it beyond Catholic…