Therefore Pilate said to him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth….
How democracy dies: ‘Give us a king’
The fall of ancient Israel began almost before it rose — when the people demanded of Samuel, “Give us a king to lead us.” You can read the whole, sorry story in 1 Samuel 8. The aging prophet who had…
Millennial, Gen Z Christians support missions — with reservations
Christian missionaries face a world of challenges even in “normal” times — unfriendly governments, hostile social and religious forces, cultural barriers and language struggles, to name a few. Now, a global pandemic has made the basic acts of travel and…
Now is the moment for radical moderation
I’m a “radical moderate.” I thought I was so clever when I came up with that apparent oxymoron while searching for a new political identity a few years ago. Even before the election of 2016, I had abandoned the festering…
SECOND OPINION: A world without newspapers?
“Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” High school kids used to memorize that line from Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” In the poem, sailors go mad with thirst under a scorching sun as their cursed vessel…
Seeking truth in India’s ‘City of Gold’
MUMBAI, India (BP) — Television writer Sankalp Tak steers his late-model compact through the streets of Mumbai, India’s largest city, dodging waves of cars and motorized rickshaws to park behind a nondescript warehouse. Inside — barely controlled chaos, like Mumbai…
OPINION: Knocking at the gate at Christmas
It's human nature to focus inward, especially during lean times. We do it as individuals, as families and as a nation. Let the world take care of itself for a while, we say. Enough already with endless global crises and…
Lottie Moon Offering gifts total $150.4 million
RICHMOND (BP) — Despite difficult economic conditions, Southern Baptists gave $150.4 million to the 2007 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions to support the work of more than 5,300 missionaries worldwide. After financial books closed at the end of…
SECOND OPINION: Silent night: Not easy for most of us
RICHMOND (BP) — Message spotted on a church sign: “Christmas: expectant hush, not last-minute rush.” Rush we can do. Hush, not so much. Given a choice between a day of silence and stillness or of noise and distraction, the average…
OFFERINGS: Taking the gospel to Russia’s struggling Udmurt people
IZHEVSK, Russia (BP) — No father should have to bury a son. But the world can be a sad place — particularly the piece of it called Udmurtia (ood-MER-ti-yah) in the foothills of Russia's Ural Mountains. On a spring day…
SECOND OPINION: Muslim world: Hard ground, harvest field
In an Islamic country known for violent persecution of Christians, a local believer named Samuel (name changed for security reasons) hands out evangelistic tracts and films every day. One day, Samuel spotted a conservative Muslim man on a street corner…
How to ‘flunk’ retirement
RICHMOND, Va. (BP) — “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away,” Gen. Douglas MacArthur observed in the twilight of his long military career. Retired missionaries, on the other hand, just keep returning to the field — or finding new…