By Cody J. Sanders It matters which questions we choose to ask, and for a long time now, churches have been asking a very limited set of questions about sexuality. Nearly every denomination in the United States — from the…
Learning to lean — on others
By Vicki Brown Many Christians today view the church as being God’s hands and feet to the world in ministry to others, but don’t allow God to minister to them through the hands and feet of others. “Unfortunately, our culture…
Weeping over violence
By Molly T. Marshall The most recent shooting in Washington, D.C., reached in to our seminary community. Early Monday morning I received a phone call from a treasured board member whose son was in the building adjacent to where the…
Syria prompts end-times thinking
By Bob Allen A third of Americans believe recent conflict with Syria fulfills Bible prophecy about the end of the world, according to a telephone survey conducted in early September by LifeWay Research. With the threat of U.S. airstrikes against…
Baptist out to ‘reform’ homophobia
By Jeff Brumley A gay, married man in Springfield, Va., believes his childhood Baptist roots and conservative Christian upbringing will help him convince homosexuals estranged from the church that the Bible isn’t out to get them. Dave Farmer says his…
Thinking outside the seminary
Seminary on $3 per day? I had a great seminary experience in the 1970s. I matriculated for nine years, and earned three degrees. The total cost I paid for my seminary education was under $10,000, which was just less than…
At the Table of Christ
Two rituals, sacraments or ordinances lie near the heart of the faith: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism marks the start of one’s journey with Christ and one’s welcome into the great family of Christ followers. The Lord’s Supper reconnects…
The birds, the bees and the Baptists
By Ken Camp The fear of offending diverse church memberships understandably causes many pastors to shy away from open discussions about sexuality, said Christian ethicist David Gushee. “I would fault churches for their silence on these issues, but having witnessed…
Jesus’ pacifism is not passive
By Joe Phelps I visited recently with a young man who is part of a crew remodeling our house. When I learned that he is an Army reservist who is home for a while from the Middle East and will…