The decline of hymnody is harmful to the theology and music quality in many of today’s churches. I am becoming very burdened about what I am seeing, feeling and experiencing in worship these days in many churches. Things are different,…
Passport offers online Lenten series
By Robert Dilday Passport, a 20-year-old student ministry with ties to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, is again offering its “Journey to the Cross” Lenten series on its devotional website. The series, which will run through the first week of Easter,…
Baptists mark Ash Wednesday
By Jeff Brumley Baptists are increasingly observing Lent this year if Facebook is any indication, with news feeds filled with announcements of morning, afternoon and evening Ash Wednesday services today. Among the first were the folks at Park Avenue Baptist…
Bill and Ted’s excellent Lenten journey
Our church partners with a rehabilitation organization in town with whom I occasionally have the opportunity to worship. At the beginning of all of their worship experiences, they sing a song that repeats this same opening line – “I woke…
Study says faith, science not at odds
By Bob Allen An MIT study published Feb. 12 in honor of naturalist Charles Darwin’s 204th birthday suggests the gap between faith and scientific beliefs is not as large as most people think, and that part of the controversy might…
Perspectives on immigration: safety and security concerns
The issue of immigration is a subject of discussion and debate within the Christian community. Followers of Jesus have diverse perspectives on how to address economic, security, and cultural concerns. Having shared in previous posts the primary points of diversity…
Preparing for Lent
By Molly T. Marshall How quickly the days have passed since the celebration of Christ’s nativity! We have marveled at the visitation of the magi, encountered Simeon and Anna as Jesus was presented in the temple, wondered with the disciples…
Baptist church sign wows NYC, media
By Jeff Brumley “Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.” Thus read the sign recently in front of Madison Avenue Baptist Church, a New York City congregation whose pastor is all about convincing folks…
What does the Bible say about women in ministry?
By Terry Maples God created males and females as equals. Adam and Eve enjoyed a partnership of equals until the fall. Male domination evolved and led to broken relationships between men and women. So, I believe we can surmise that…
Are Baptists still nonconformists?
Not long after our move to work at Gardner-Webb University School of Divinity my wife Kheresa read Monique Truong’s Bitter in the Mouth (Random House, 2010), a novel rooted in Truong’s childhood experiences as an “outsider” Vietnamese-American in Boiling Springs, North Carolina, where…
Christ, Valentine heroes of Baylor prof
By Daniel Wallace Christian ethics is close to Roger Olson’s heart, he says, because it was close to Jesus’ heart. In fact, the Baylor University theologian and ethicist adds, Christ was as much about showing how to live a godly…
Baptist concerns re: common core education
I’m an invested party. I believe in the public education system as a grand experiment in providing the humanizing effects of education to all people. I have a minor in secondary education. I am married to a former educator. I…