BOSTON – In a meeting room at Boston’s Fenway Park, Southern Baptist church planter and Boston Red Sox chaplain Bland Mason explains how much members of his plant, City On A Hill church, long for community. “This is their family. This is who they pray with, worship with, grow with and do life with,” said Mason, whose church launched almost seven years ago in Brookline, Mass. “When it comes to church people, in this city you are either all in or not in at all.” There are no cultural … [Read more...]
Is divorce equivalent to homosexuality?
This week my denomination, through its executive committee, voted to “disfellowship” a congregation in California that has acted to affirm same-sex sexual relationships. This sad but necessary move is hardly surprising, since this network of churches shares a Christian sexual ethic with all orthodox Christians of every denomination for 2,000 years. One of the arguments made by some, though, is that this is hypocritical since so many ministers in our tradition marry people who have been … [Read more...]
‘The Song’ updates King Solomon
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (BP) – Faith-based films are becoming more and more like real movies, not just cinematic sermonettes. Better still, many Hollywood actors looking for roles of substance are embracing film characters that depict the spiritual nature of mankind. Greg Kinnear brought a gravitas to the film “Heaven Is for Real.” Reese Witherspoon took basically a supporting role in “The Good Lie” (opening on Oct. 3). Nicolas Cage is soon to be seen in the reboot of the “Left Behind” end-times … [Read more...]
Halloween Hoopla
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear,…” I John 4: 18 Halloween is a holiday that presents a real challenge to Christians. Many would like to ignore it. Some try to shield children from it by forbidding any participation in various activities at that time. Many Christians do not even know the origin of the holiday and allow their children to participate freely as they desire. What is a sensible way to deal with children at Halloween? Halloween is a holiday that will … [Read more...]
Survey: Prayer ‘red phone for help’
NASHVILLE (BP) – Many Americans pray for divine help, their friends, families, and sometimes their enemies. But few of them offer praises to God or pray for politicians and nonbelievers, according to a new LifeWay Research survey. “Most people pray when they need the red phone for help,” said Ed Stetzer, executive director of LifeWay Research, adding that many of them may not have a prayer life “rooted in a relationship with God.” The online survey, conducted Aug.7, 2014, asked 1,137 … [Read more...]
SBC pastor salaries not keeping up with inflation
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – Compensation for full-time Southern Baptist pastors has not kept pace with inflation over the past two years, while salaries for other full-time ministers and office staff increased at a rate higher than national inflation. These findings are part of the SBC Church Compensation Study, an in-depth survey of 12,907 staff members in Southern Baptist churches. Baptist state conventions along with LifeWay Research and GuideStone Financial Resources conduct this survey … [Read more...]
Court considers pastors’ housing allowance
CHICAGO (BP) – Supporters of the ministerial housing allowance should be hopeful about a federal appeals court’s anticipated ruling on the 60-year-old provision, a religious liberty lawyer said after oral arguments in the case. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago appeared Sept. 9 to lean toward either dismissing the case because the allowance’s challengers lack legal standing or upholding the allowance as constitutional, a lawyer with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty … [Read more...]
Reacting to NFL controversies
By now you’ve undoubtedly heard about the horrific video of Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice knocking his then-fiancée unconscious inside a casino elevator. The Ravens have terminated Rice’s contract, and the NFL has placed him on indefinite suspension. Rice’s actions were reprehensible, and the NFL’s handling of the matter at this point has been questionable at best, and shameful at worst. Now, what should Christians make of all this? The first thing is perhaps the hardest but … [Read more...]
Larry Lewis: leading SBC to support life
Dr. Larry Lewis was shocked when in 1979 he opened a St. Louis newspaper to see the full-page ad listing the religious denominations and groups who favored a “pro-choice” – a pro-abortion – position. He learned that the ad was also in other major newspapers throughout the country. In that listing “… right along with the Unitarians … ” was the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest protestant denomination! This shock set him in motion. He discovered and was further … [Read more...]
ERLC: Town’s sign code violates church freedom
WASHINGTON (BP) -- The Southern Baptist Convention's religious freedom entity has called for the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down a municipal sign ordinance it says violates a church's free speech and assembly rights. The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) joined in a friend-of-the-court brief filed Sept. 22 that contends the sign code of Gilbert, Ariz., discriminates against churches while favoring political and ideological messages. The brief, filed by the Christian … [Read more...]
Ferguson: National Day of Prayer bus sparks prayers for unity
FERGUSON – When the National Day of Prayer (NDP) bus stopped at First Baptist Church Ferguson Sept. 13, the prayer warriors moved beyond their planned emphasis and prayed for unity. According to Dion Elmore, the NDP task force conducted more than 43,000 prayer activities this year through their many volunteers across the country. “We want to pray strategically and intentionally,” Elmore, director of public relations for the NDP task force, said. “We’ve taken our bus into 34 states and … [Read more...]
MBC asks Supreme Court for a sign – of freedom
The Missouri Baptist Convention has filed a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in joining other religious groups asking for a sign – that religious freedom trumps local sign codes which discriminate against churches and church plants. The case, Reed v. Town of Gilbert, originating the Phoenix area, is potentially the most important religious freedom case on the Supreme Court's docket in the new term beginning Oct. 6. Michael and Jonathan Whitehead, a father-son legal team in Kansas City, … [Read more...]
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