(OPINION) The reason we persevere is because we know God has called us to do what is right. And we know that with God, we can overcome whatever difficulties, injustices or troubles we face. So when confronted with the choice of giving up or pushing through, remember to keep going.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The Sparkle Creed was circulated in 2021 by the Rev. Rachel Small Stokes of Immanuel United Church of Christ in Louisville, Kentucky. A Shower of Stoles website biography notes that she was raised United Methodist, served as a missionary in that denomination and trained for the ministry.
Read More(OPINION) On Aug. 16, 1967, in Atlanta during his annual report to the 11th Convention of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Martin Luther King Jr. entitled his speech âWhere Do We Go From Here?â and thus the question I have for ministers, Black and White today.
Read More(OPINION) For the past decade, a handful of megachurches have dominated worship music. They include Elevation Church, Australia-based Hillsong, and Californiaâs Bethel Church â all churches that have had their share of scandal and controversy. Still, most worship leaders have carefully compartmentalized the controversy and have continued to use their songs â and, in effect, financially support these churches.
Read More(OPINION) Why do U.S. power-brokers, and journalists themselves, pay little or no heed to ardent pronouncements by the World Council of Churches and the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA?
Read More(OPINION) Lost amid the news of Southern Baptist Conventionâs disfellowshipping of Saddleback Church was that of a much smaller Kentucky church â Louisvilleâs Fern Creek Baptist, with a Sunday attendance of 150, where the Rev. Linda Barnes Popham has served as lead pastor for 30 years..
Read More(TRAVEL) In the center of this Scandinavian capital city, youâll find a humble museum dedicated to the story of the Bible where a bartender gets to moonlight as a volunteer historian. The Nordic Bible Museum shows up as a blip on some printed tourist maps of the downtown city center but isnât as well known as Osloâs stunning Opera House or its fancy âMunchâ museum dedicated to painter Edvard Munch.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Religious switching is a fascinating topic. Itâs happening every single day, thousands of times. Without any fanfare or big declarations, people leave religion behind or chose a different faith when taking a survey. And yet we only have a very basic understanding of the mechanisms that make all that happen.
Read MoreMookie Wilsonâs ground ball that went through first baseman Bill Bucknerâs legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series has been called lots of things. Just donât call one of the biggest plays in baseball history divine intervention if youâre around Wilson. These days, Wilson, who has been an ordained Baptist minister since 2014, continues to serve as a role model.
Read MoreRecently, the Chronicle of Philanthropy published an article saying that ârage givingâ to abortion advocacy groups after the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022 has dropped off. MinistryWatch spoke to several pro-life ministries to see how giving has been for them in the last year, and all reported that donors remain generous in the cause of protecting the unborn.
Read More(OPINION) On this day in history, July 10, 1965, the Rolling Stones topped U.S. charts for the first time with the single â(I Canât Get No) Satisfaction.â It signaled a shift. Beatlemania hit the U.S. in early 1964. The Beatles were playful, upbeat. The Stones were dark, restless. âSatisfactionâ struck a chord. It resonated with what C.S. Lewis called âa new approach to life.â Discontentment.
Read MoreThis weekâs Weekend Plug-in starts with a major story that receives too little attention. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Joseph Henrich, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University, has written a theory of how the Western mind and cultures became exceptional. He has coined the acronym WEIRD (for Western, educated, industrialized, rich and democratic) to describe the features of this.
Read More(REVIEW) âThe Starling Girlâ is, at its heart, a visceral reminder of what itâs like to grow up as a girl in strict religious environments. Itâs also a thorough picture of the grievances made about fundamentalist and evangelical Christian circles in two recent docuseries.
Read More(REVIEW) The encore performance at Christ Cathedral of âFiat Luxâ was billed as âPacific Symphony & Pacific Chorale in concert with Paul Jacobs,â and the opening pieces were programmed to additionally celebrate the refurbishment of the cathedralâs Hazel Wright Organ, the fifth-largest pipe organ in the world.
Read More(OPINION) In the new film, Jones confesses: "I don't believe in magic, but a few times in my life I've seen things, things I can't explain." But after a life wrestling with sacred mysteries, he concludes: "It's not so much what you believe. It's about how hard you believe it."
Read More(ANALYSIS) Sotomayorâs dissent poses an interesting inquiry, regardless of oneâs personal opinion of where the court should have landed on affirmative action: Does the Constitution uphold the spiritual and religious freedom of faith-based higher education institutions to engage in holistic, race-conscious admissions practices as an expression of their sincerely held institutional religious beliefs?
Read More(ANALYSIS) After weeks of wrenching testimony, jurors delivered a guilty verdict June 16, 2023, for the gunman who killed 11 worshippers in a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018 â the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. The next phase of the trial will focus on sentencing, and whether Robert Bowers should face the death penalty.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Minneapolis recently became the first major U.S. city to allow the âadhan,â or Muslim call to prayer, to be broadcast from mosques five times a day. In April 2023, the Minneapolis City Council unanimously approved a change to the cityâs sound ordinance, effectively eliminating time constraints that previously prevented the pre-dawn and evening prayer calls from being broadcast.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Religion in 21st century America has become an enclave for people who have done everything âright.â They have college degrees and marriages and children and middle-class incomes. For those who donât check all those boxes, religion is just not for them.
Read More
