“Tell me,” she asked, “what is the essence of your religion?” “Loving God and loving one another, “ I replied. “And we demonstrate our love for God and neighbor by working to assure dignity, equality, freedom and justice for all,”…
Heroes in Farmersville Muslim cemetery fuss: Religious-liberty-lovin’ Baptists
I initially wasn’t exceedingly jazzed about the idea of writing today’s Farmersville editorial, which is pegged to tonight’s forum in the rural Collin County community about plans for a Muslim cemetery just west of town. It’s a juicy story no…
How important is religious faith in our elected leaders?
While I tend to avoid any attention given to Donald Trump, it’s been difficult to maintain that stance in recent days. From his derogatory treatment of John McCain’s war record (“He’s a war hero because he was captured.
Muslims, a cemetery & Baptist principles
A proposed cemetery in Texas may be causing old-time Baptists to roll in their graves. Muslims want to develop a cemetery in Farmersville, a still-rural village in eastern Collin County, about 35 miles northeast of downtown Dallas. Some locals-Baptists among…
Baptist colleges complicit in sin
Last week, two Baptist colleges in Texas jumped into the debate over women’s health. Baptist News Global reported that East Texas Baptist University and Houston Baptist University objected to “providing — directly or indirectly — emergency contraceptive drugs they believe cause…
Preserve religious liberty: Exercise your freedom to worship
In the good ol’ USA, July 4th is a time to give thanks for our unrivaled freedom, and a great time to highlight and celebrate our religious liberty. Religious liberty refers to the right to worship freely without fear of persecution….
Remembering James Dunn
A memorial service for James M. Dunn was held Saturday, July 18, at 11 a.m. at Knollwood Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, N.C. Click here to watch a video of the entire memorial service. For more on his life and legacy,…
Remarks at James Dunn’s Retirement Dinner
Jesus doesn’t celebrate the 4th of July
On this 4th of July weekend, I exhort you, American preachers, do not take Uncle Sam into the pulpit. Carefully consider how you plan worship for this Sunday. A good place to start would be: do not sing “America the…
The plight of the Palestinians
As you know from my recent article , this month I made a week’s visit to the country of Israel. My daughter Karen, who is a professor at the University of Arizona, was going to an academic conference in Tel…
The ISIS crisis
The capacity of ISIS to enthrall and recruit youth and young adults from Western democratic countries has left many baffled. It is such a counterpoint to the spirit of the mass demonstrations that characterized the Arab Spring, which now seems…
Challenges today defy easy answers, demand best efforts of Baptists and others
By General Counsel K. Hollyn Hollman These are trying times to promote “religious liberty for all” as the BJC mission statement demands. Many of the current challenges on the legal and cultural fronts are not conducive to easy answers.