The Danville, Va., Police Department’s new community immersion program connects rookie officers with leaders, including pastors, and residents in the city’s most diverse and economically challenged neighborhoods. Baptist pastor Joshua Hearne helped design the course, and the experience was a…
Empty pews just the beginning of coronavirus impact on churches, those they serve | #intimeslikethese
Behind every canceled church gathering in the age of the novel coronavirus is likely to be a faithful-though-frazzled pastor. Their stress emanates from having to decide between the physical and spiritual health of the congregation they serve.
Baptist-Amish singalong takes bite out of toxic charity
If Amish and Baptists singing hymns together in rural Appalachia isn’t an expression of Christian unity, Joshua Hearne says, nothing is.
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CBF church finds ‘unexpected community’ at trailer park
Calling it a ministry might underestimate what’s happening at Chestnut Grounds. By listening and following, Nikki and Chris have become non-resident members of the trailer park. They’ve found community in an unexpected place. Perhaps it is only in unexpected places that community becomes beloved community.
Why gratitude may be the best gift under the tree this year
If you’re reading this story on the new laptop or tablet or phone you just got for Christmas, be thankful. But don’t forget also to be grateful, which, many spiritual leaders say, is not necessarily the same thing.
Ministers offer a spiritual word to the stressed on Election Day
Remember 2012, when Obama versus Romney seemed like a contentious presidential election? It was enough for a group of Mennonite ministers, who responded back then by launching the Election Day Communion movement. The idea was to inspire Christians to use…
How a prayer meeting ‘accidentally’ turned into an intentional Christian community
In some faith circles, the term “living in intentional community” is a buzz phrase akin to “being missional” or “doing life together.” But what does the practice actually entail? And are Christians called to do it? For many in the…
Messy partnerships between churches, ministries can transform lives, say field personnel
Grace and Main Fellowship is an ecumenical, grassroots community development and social justice ministry located in the heart of Danville, Va. Ascension Lutheran Church is a traditional, predominantly white ELCA congregation located nearby. “These are two organizations that would probably…
Growing movement seeks ‘freedom from stuff’
The spiritual connection between a 58-inch flat screen TV and the human soul may seem tenuous to many Americans. It may be even harder to believe how that elegantly simple IKEA coffee table makes life more complicated. But rest assured,…