By Starlette McNeill This week, I presented on the topic “The Double-Minded Church: Spiritual Formation and the Impractical Theology of Race” at ChurchWorks, a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship conference for ministers of education and spiritual formation. I know. The title is…
Baptist theologian says Bible doesn’t condone homosexuality
By Bob Allen Equating gay rights with civil rights is an unfair comparison, theologian and cultural analyst Jim Denison said at a recent conference on the church and homosexuality sponsored by an association of Baptist churches in Texas. Jim Denison,…
Truett prof asks CBF liberals to drop ‘moderate’ label
By Bob Allen A professor at a moderate Baptist seminary says some individuals within the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship are starting to sound more liberal than moderate, prompting others to worry the quasi-denomination is drifting leftward and away from its evangelical…
Seminary president fears liberal drift in churches
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist Convention seminary president says he foresees a day when the six SBC-owned seminaries may for the first time be more conservative than the churches they serve. Jason Allen, president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary,…
Here am I, send me … anywhere but the ministry
By Blake Tommey If you grew up in a Baptist church during the 20th century, you can probably recite these words by heart: “As we sing our final hymn, you are invited to make a public profession of faith, to…
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…
Using gender-neutral language for God
This month I am preaching each Sunday at the Rosedale Congregational United Church of Christ. The title of my sermon yesterday was “Good News of the Kingdom,” from Mark 1:15. Updated terminology. In the first part of the sermon I…