It isn’t exactly “Green Acres,” but a rooftop farm at a New York City Baptist church is making the improbable a reality. March 31 kicked off the second planting season for a neighborhood garden consisting of 52 soil-filled kiddie pools…
Conservatives go after ‘NASCAR Christian’ vote
RICHMOND, Va. (RNS)—Back in John Kerry’s ill-fated 2004 presidential campaign, Democrats tried to attract so-called “NASCAR Dads”—white, working-class, mainly Southern fellows—to try to blunt George W. Bush’s re-election and show folks that Kerry was not a wealthy patrician who only…
Bible translation focuses on dialogue
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS)—The name Jesus Christ doesn’t appear in The Voice, a new translation of the Bible. Nor do words such as angel or apostle. Instead, angel is rendered as “messenger” and apostle as “emissary.” Jesus Christ is “Jesus the…
Millennials losing faith in record numbers, says report
WASHINGTON (RNS)—A growing tide of young Americans is drifting away from the religions of their childhood—and most of them are ending up in no religion at all. One in four young adults choose “unaffiliated” when asked about their religion, according…
Questions remain after Kinkade dies
NEW YORK (RNS)—The unexpected death of Thomas Kinkade on April 6 prompted an outpouring of grief for the hugely successful painter of pastoral landscapes, but also raised questions about the troubled final years of an artist whose use of Christian…
What did Jesus do on Holy Saturday?
NEW YORK (RNS)—Every Christian knows the story: Jesus was crucified on Good Friday and rose from the dead on Easter Sunday. But what did he do on Saturday? That question has spurred centuries of debate, perplexed theologians as learned as…
Religious freedom ambassador settles into role
WASHINGTON (RNS) — Nearly a year into her stint as the State Department’s point person on religious freedom, former Baptist minister Suzan Johnson Cook has traveled to eight countries and seems to have moved beyond questions about her lack of…
Film traces story of abortion survivor
NEW YORK (RNS)—A new movie confronts a controversial topic by highlighting two words that don’t typically go together: “abortion” and “survivor.” “We didn’t know there was such a thing,” said Jon Erwin, who wrote and co-directed October Baby with his…
A different kind of Christian film?
NEW YORK (RNS)—Do not confuse the upcoming film Blue Like Jazz with Christian market movies like Fireproof or Courageous. “A Christian movie genre has formed. Our first goal with this movie is that we didn’t fit into this genre,” said…