One Nation Under God could change the way we think about civil religion in America. Forget about the 1970s, or even the 1950s, Kevin Kruse says, this story begins in the heart of the Depression. Exiles from the Southern Baptist Convention who…
Texas Baptists take sides in school choice, pastor protection legislation
By Bob Allen A Texas Baptist official bemoaned a school voucher vote in the state Senate and supported a House measure to protect clergy from being forced to officiate over same-sex marriages in recent debate at the Texas State Capitol…
Taxation: Theft or support of the public welfare?
It has been ten days now since Tax Day 2015, but I am still thinking about taxation because of what I saw/heard in the media in the days following April 15. While driving around town on the 17 th, I…
The roots of left/right polarization in the United States
By David Gushee follow David:@dpgushee Early this week at Notre Dame an impressive group of Catholic scholars will gather for a conference called “Polarization in the Catholic Church: Naming the Wounds, Beginning to Heal.” I was invited to participate and…
SBC Pastors Conference criticized for inviting non-Baptist presidential hopeful to speak
By Bob Allen A two-day preaching conference held each year prior to the Southern Baptist Convention once criticized as too narrow is now being scrutinized for inviting speakers who are non-Baptists. Recent Baptist blogs have questioned an invitation to this…
Arkansas Baptist leaders satisfied with RFRA bill
/
RSS Feed
By Bob Allen While religious conservatives didn’t get all they wanted in a religious-freedom bill signed recently by Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchison, a supporter of the original measure says after last summer’s Hobby Lobby decision, the final version of the…
R U 4 15?
If you think the title of this article looks like a text message, U R right. Actually, though, since in some ways I am a Luddite and don’t even have a smartphone, I don’t send text messages-and I tweet very…
Pastor testifies at Senate hearing in IRS tax scam
By Bob Allen A Baptist preacher taken in by the largest tax scam in IRS history shared his story at a U.S. Senate hearing April 15 in Washington. “I am sharing my experience for one reason only,” Al Cadenhead, senior…
How pastors should act during election season
Recently a certain candidate for the office of president announced her campaign and plans to attain our nation’s highest office. Immediately after her announcement via social media there was a flurry of responses and reactions. Naturally, being a minister, I…