DALLAS (BP) – GuideStone Financial Resources has secured a conclusive victory in its lengthy, legal battle against the Obama-era abortion/contraception mandate. A federal judge in Oklahoma issued a final judgment July 17 in favor of the Southern Baptist Convention's health and financial benefits entity, as well as ministries it serves, GuideStone reported Aug. 8. The ruling brought to an end GuideStone's challenge of a 2011 rule issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) … [Read more...]
Administration gains high marks on religious liberty
WASHINGTON (BP) – The Trump administration is receiving high marks so far for its religious liberty record from many advocates for the First Amendment freedom. The July 30 announcement of a religious liberty task force in the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Aug. 10 release of a Department of Labor policy directive to protect religious free exercise are the latest in a series of administration actions applauded by defenders of freedom of belief and practice. Yet, some advocates also … [Read more...]
Attorney under fire while defending religious liberty
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (BP) – An Alaska law firm representing a Christian women’s shelter is defending itself from a complaint brought by the same municipal agency suing the shelter. The case raises a question: Will lawyers come under fire for defending religious clients accused of discrimination? The Anchorage Equal Rights Commission (AERC) previously sued the Downtown Hope Center, a women’s only homeless shelter, for not admitting a man who identified as transgender. Kevin G. Clarkson, an … [Read more...]
What is ‘chunk learning’?
“And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” Ephesians 6:4 “Chunk learning” is a term that simply means to learn a chunk at a time. In our eagerness to make sure that children learn what they need, it is often an impulse to expect too much of children. An education professor once remarked to a graduating class of future teachers, “Don’t try to teach them all you know the first day of school”! What happens when … [Read more...]
Sharing grace in Uganda: Student’s journey of obedience leads her to love, care for children with disabilities
JINJA, Uganda – Lauren Ziehmer distinctly remembers being in church around the age of twelve and listening to Ms. Ruth. Ruth founded an orphanage in Africa and was sharing about the physical and gospel needs of the children there. As Ziehmer listened, she also heard God’s calling on her heart, setting her apart for a specific purpose. As she got older, doubts crept in and she not only questioned it, she almost felt ashamed she dared think she could ever serve in that way. Over the next … [Read more...]
The gospel and discipleship
Hull, Bill and Ben Sobels. The Discipleship Gospel. Brentwood, TN: HIM Publications. 174 pp. $15.95. Christians are supposed to be “unashamed of the gospel” (Rom 1:16). The gospel is of “first importance” for Christians (1 Cor 15:3). Yet if you were to ask a group of Christians what the gospel is, you would almost certainly get a number of different answers, maybe even some arguments. Confusion reigns in our churches about the most basic truths of the Christian faith. Most pastors … [Read more...]
A world without Roe
As I picked up the July 10 issue of USA TODAY, I couldn’t help but notice the headline of a front-page “story” titled, “A world without Roe v. Wade.” Later in the evening, POTUS was to name his nominee to replace retiring SCOTUS Justice Anthony Kennedy. We now know that person to be 5th Circuit U.S. Appeals Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. So, the day before the nomination, the not-so-mainstream media is hosting an opinion piece on the front page promoting a sky-is-falling mentality about … [Read more...]
SBC resolutions affirm women, denounce abuse
DALLAS (BP) – Messengers to the 2018 Southern Baptist Convention affirmed the dignity and worth of women, denounced all forms of abuse and called for sexual purity among Christian leaders in adopting 16 resolutions June 12. Passage of the resolutions on women, abuse and pastoral purity by nearly unanimous votes late in the afternoon session came after months of disclosures of sexual abuse and misconduct by male leaders had rocked Southern Baptist and other evangelical churches and … [Read more...]
SCOTUS sends florist’s case back to Washington court
WASHINGTON (ADF) – The U.S. Supreme Court sent the case of floral artist Barronelle Stutzman back to the Washington Supreme Court June 25 after vacating that court’s decision and instructing it to reconsider her lawsuit in light of the recent decision in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. In that similar case, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed Colorado’s decision to punish cake artist Jack Phillips for living and working consistently with his religious beliefs about … [Read more...]
A tale of two documentaries: Pope Francis, Mr. Rogers movies offer differing pictures of ‘good’ men
I always arrive on time to the movies so I can watch the previews. But after seeing 324 of them (seriously, I’ve kept track of the movies/trailers I’ve watched in 2018), it takes a lot to pique my interest. But trailers for two documentaries – “Pope Francis – A Man of His Word,” and the behind-the-scenes look at Mr. Rogers, “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” – both did just that. Both films are still in theaters. Both are about men devoted to “doing good.” The difference is that one explicitly … [Read more...]
Victory: Cake baker’s 7-2 SCOTUS win affirms religious liberty
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court delivered an important, if not wide-ranging, victory for religious liberty June 4 in its continuing faceoff with sexual liberty. In a 7-2 opinion, a high court majority that included conservatives and liberals ruled the Colorado Civil Rights Commission violated the religious free exercise clause of the First Amendment by penalizing Jack Phillips for declining to design and decorate a cake for the wedding of two men. The commission demonstrated “religious … [Read more...]
SBC resolutions affirm women, denounce abuse
DALLAS (BP) -- Messengers to the 2018 Southern Baptist Convention affirmed the dignity and worth of women, denounced all forms of abuse and called for sexual purity among Christian leaders in adopting 16 resolutions Tuesday (June 12). Passage of the resolutions on women, abuse and pastoral purity by nearly unanimous votes late in the afternoon session came after months of disclosures of sexual abuse and misconduct by male leaders had rocked Southern Baptist and other evangelical … [Read more...]
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