Southern Baptists love to eat. I have always argued that cooking extraordinaire Paula Deen has nothing on Southern Baptist ladies. If you know me you know I am a living testimony to that delicious fact. No one can find more tasty fried chicken, more mouth-watering hash brown casserole or more lip-smacking pecan pie than at a Southern Baptist picnic where the ladies of the church have brought their cooking talents to bear on us all. But not everyone is so blessed. I’m reminded of a story my … [Read more...]
Reality of persecution; prayers for Saeed
In Ward 350 of Iran’s infamous Evin Prison, Christian Pastor Saeed Abedini tries to sleep while the arms and legs of about 40 cellmates are draped around him – twice the legal limit for that section of the facility. Abedini went to Iran a year ago – with the permission of the government -- to start an orphanage, but was then arrested by authorities on trumped up charges of endangering national security. They sentenced him to eight years in prison. However, the real reason Abedini was … [Read more...]
Planned Parenthood to receive $655,000 as ObamaCare ‘navigators’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Aug. 15, the Obama Administration announced the award of over $655,000 in taxpayer grants to three Planned Parenthood affiliates to act as “navigators,” helping enroll Americans in federally facilitated insurance exchanges under ObamaCare. Those grants are part of $67 million in federal funds that will go to over 100 organizations to help promote the health care law. The coercive, one-size-fits-all regime of ObamaCare is already set to increase costs and further burden … [Read more...]
New Mexico Supreme Court: Progressives run off the cliff
Southern Baptists and other people of faith in New Mexico have been told by their state Supreme Court that the price of U.S. citizenship is to subordinate their faith to the homosexual agenda. This appears to be the first ruling of its kind by a Supreme Court. So it merits our attention. The case involved Elaine and Jon Huguenin, co-owners of Elane Photography of Albuquerque, who were asked by two lesbians in 2006 to photograph their “commitment ceremony” (homosexual “marriage” is not … [Read more...]
Homosexual movement knows how to skin a cat
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia predicted that when the high court struck down state laws against homosexuality in the Lawrence v. Texas case in 2003 and more recently a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), it would only be a matter of time before the court would force states to recognize homosexual marriages – and ultimately other types as well. Polygamists, for example, already are advancing a case in the federal courts, using the same arguments exploited by … [Read more...]
Don Hinkle: Painful truth about the American Cancer Society
I made a few donations to the American Cancer Society (ACS) after the disease caused my father’s death in 1989 at the age of 60. I will never give the ACS another penny. And I say this as a person who has lost a kidney to cancer and despite some good research to battle the disease by the ACS. Why do I decline to donate to the ACS? Because of its increasingly liberal politics and excursions into causes that violate my conscience by ultimately disobeying God’s Word. Am I calling for a … [Read more...]
DON HINKLE: Reflecting on Houston, homosexuality, RU-486
Some random thoughts on a variety of subjects as we enter the summer of 2013: Three thoughts come to mind as I reflect on this year’s Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) annual meeting in Houston June 11-12. 1. The low attendance. Barely 5,000 messengers showed up and the question everyone wants answered is why? The SBC surveys messengers to gauge their feelings about various aspects of the meeting. It may be awhile before we have that data, but I am sure it will be studied closely. I … [Read more...]
Stand firm, speak boldly, pray for fire from heaven
Since its establishment by the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) Executive Board in June 2002, The Pathway has attempted to shine the truth of Scripture on the issues of the day. We are motivated by our passion for the Truth – and Lordship – of Christ to permeate all of reality. We aggressively do so by taking full advantage of the God-given rights that come with being American. Christians in America have been blessed with the freedom to express our faith in the marketplace of ideas, not … [Read more...]
Learning from Diocletian: Christians in the military
My friend, historian and author Bill Federer, reminded me in his May 1 “American Minute” series that one of the greatest periods of persecution against Christians occurred in the third century AD under the Roman Emperor Diocletian. Following a series of battlefield losses to the Persians, his generals blamed the setbacks on Romans not worshipping their pagan gods. Consequently Diocletian launched a reign of terror on Christianity, starting with the military which he ordered to worship Roman … [Read more...]
Alive, but stopped dead in my tracks
Cancer. Hear a doctor use it to describe your condition and your life is instantly changed. It alters your life physically, emotionally and spiritually. The enormity of the challenge also impacts the lives of those closest to you. I know because my wife, Bernadette, and I had that reality come crashing into our lives three weeks ago when I received an unexpected Friday phone call from my doctor. He said I had cancer. He could not tell me if it had spread beyond my left kidney where an MRI … [Read more...]
Intersection of hot issues: For faith, public policy, media
Missouri’s legal definition of spouse is being challenged in court after the surviving “partner” of a deceased police officer filed a lawsuit seeking death benefits. The benefits are being denied under state law because of Missouri’s definition of “spouse” as being either a man or a woman. The lawsuit involves two homosexual men. Their attorney argues that the two men had a long-term relationship and that the surviving man should receive survivor benefits. The Missouri case is similar to … [Read more...]
DON HINKLE: Ferocious news media smear a fine pastor
I first encountered Robert Jeffress, pastor, First Baptist Church, Dallas, in 1998 while working as a national correspondent for Baptist Press. My assignment was to cover an escalating controversy between First Baptist Church, Wichita Falls, Texas, where Jeffress pastored at the time, the Wichita Falls Public Library and the Wichita Falls City Council. A church member discovered that the library was making available to children two books promoting homosexuality. The member brought the books … [Read more...]