By Executive Director J. Brent Walker Click here to read Walker’s April 1 statement on Indiana and Arkansas RFRAs. Recently, state legislatures across the country have been making headlines for considering variously-named religious freedom bills. The proposed legislation currently attracting…
Southern Baptist florist at center of marriage debate
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist grandmother and small business owner in Washington State is the newest face in America’s culture war over gay marriage. A state judge ruled Feb. 18 that 70-year-old Barronelle Stutzman, owner of Arlene’s Flowers in…
Unsettled by truth: A border awareness experience
The summer before my senior year of college, my parents adopted a cat. When they found him he was covered in dirt and matted fur. He hung his head low and did not purr. When you ran your hand over…
Fired Atlanta fire chief sues city
By Bob Allen Former Atlanta fire chief Kelvin Cochran has filed a federal lawsuit against the city claiming he was fired because of his religious beliefs. Cochran, a member and deacon at Southern Baptist-affiliated Elizabeth Baptist Church, was fired Jan….
What made Jesus angry?
In the healing of the leper in Mark 1:40-45 the text reads in the NRSV, “Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him.” There is a footnote that says, “Other ancient authorities read anger.” There are some…
Pastor/blogger says Southern Baptists should be honest about their racial history
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist pastor and author of a book investigating what went wrong with race and religion in the American South says the Southern Baptist Convention should stop claiming the convention’s founding purpose was missions. Alan Cross,…
Why haven’t I seen ashes smeared on the steeple?
The ashes of Ash Wednesday mark our bodies with a deeply existential crisis: our death is unavoidable, even as we live. The ashes are dead matter smeared on our living bodies. They stir our imaginations of grieving prophets dressed in…
Another shooting? Not again.
Not again. That was my first thought upon seeing countless posts on Twitter about a shooting in Chapel Hill. By now, many of you have heard about the shooting of Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, his wife, Yusor Mohammad, 21, and…
College sexual assault victims healed by religious communities, chaplains and study say
By Jeff Brumley Theological beliefs and belonging to religious organizations can help college women overcome the emotional damage caused by sexual abuse, a recently published Baylor University study has found. The authors of the study say involvement in faith communities…
Ala. Baptist head says churches whose ministers perform gay marriages ‘not in friendly cooperation’
By Bob Allen The churches of Southern Baptist ministers who conduct marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples in Alabama risk losing their standing with the Alabama Baptist Convention, according to a statement added to the convention website Feb. 10. Rick Lance,…
‘Others’ – a hymn to remember Martin Luther King Jr
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., said: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?’” (From: The Words of Martin Luther King, Jr., 2011).
Baptist minister has ‘no problem’ with gay marriage
By Bob Allen A Baptist minister who performed one of the first legal marriages in Alabama between members of the same sex said the ceremony was pretty much like marrying anyone else. “To me doing a same-sex marriage as a…