His Instagram account proclaims “GOD FIRST!” and U.S. Olympic swimmer Hunter Armstrong tries to be faithful to that description whether he’s winning gold medals or not in Paris this summer. “That’s the first thing I want people to see and know about me,” he said. “As we grow, we have to make sure we have our priorities in line. I keep God as a priority. I can’t really live without Him. I can live without swimming or being an Olympian or any of that stuff.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) Here’s a lesson that I’ve learned over the last couple of years: If the first book you write gets any traction at all, you will be remembered for that work for years to come. Not that it’s a bad thing. I am still giving presentations to different groups that use graphs that I first put together over five years ago. People want to read “The Nones” and talk about it. That’s truly a blessing. I think I speak for most academics when I say that I’m just glad that anyone wants to read what we spend years writing.
Read More(REVIEW) In Birmingham, the painting is spotlit and seems to glow amid the gloom. Here, it forms the centerpiece of "Mirror Martyr Mirror Moon,” an immersive exhibition by the Dublin-based contemporary artist Jesse Jones, which responds directly to Artemisia’s work with film, sculpture and installation. Before reaching Artemisia’s painting, you are confronted with "Head of Prudence" on loan from the Barber Institute of Fine Arts.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Why rake muck? For one thing, it’s biblical. Recall Scripture’s narratives about the venerated King David’s adultery and homicide or St. Peter’s multiple denials of Jesus Christ. It encourages healthy reflection on the forgiveness of sins, the ways power is misused, the dangers of celebrity worship, the ongoing impact of racial evil and the value in continually taking fresh looks at our own attitudes rather than remaining captive to the cultural assumptions in which we were born and raised.
Read More(REVIEW) What “white savior” and “white guilt” movies both do is create a fantasy about Christian history that makes us comfortable. In reality, Western Christian history is far more complicated. Filmmakers like Tamahori simply replace one fantasy with another. And, ironically, miss out on a much better movie. “The Convert” has enjoyable pacing and individual performances, but its shallow treatment of its well-worn cliches will make few believers.
Read More(OPINION) Among the central tenets of almost any type of spiritual pursuit is that the pilgrim involved in it must become converted. Adherents need to be transformed from one kind of person into another kind of person, preferably a better one. “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind,” St. Paul admonished the Roman Christians.
Read MoreBibleDojo, an interactive online platform, merges faith and technology in an effort to increase biblical literacy and fluency among Christians. Launched this past January, the program features click-through, dojo-themed lessons that aim to strengthen Christians’ reading skills for different genres of the Bible.
Read MoreA dance troupe performing at the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics drew the ire of Christians around the world after they appeared to mock Jesus and the Last Supper. The festivities drew controversy when a group of performers — including drag queens — struck poses behind what looked like a long table.
Read MorePlans for a new church connected to the embattled International House of Prayer Kansas City (IHOPKC) have been canceled, according to an email sent to the IHOPKC community Wednesday morning. Also, former IHOPKC Executive Team member Isaac Bennett and his wife, Morgan, who were planning to pastor the new church, have left the 24/7 prayer ministry.
Read MoreA Colorado church will continue to house homeless people in RVs on its church property, thanks to a judge’s preliminary injunction. In an 18-page order, Justice Daniel D. Domenico temporarily blocked the community of Castle Rock, Colorado, from enforcing zoning regulations, prohibiting The Rock Church from housing people on its property.
Read MoreNews doesn’t happen on a 9-to-5 schedule. Particularly during the 24/7 era of social media, journalists find themselves on the clock pretty much all the time.
Read MoreWe’re talking about the Olympics. As you would expect, we focused on the role that religious faith can play in the lives of many athletes in a global event of this kind.
Read MoreWith the Olympic Games opening in Paris later this week, Southern Baptists have already been working in and around the city, capitalizing on the event as a bridge to spread the Gospel.
Read MoreAt the Summer Games, lots of skin is on display and many athletes use it as a testament to faith. There’s Anthony Davis — usually playing for the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers — with a cross and praying hands across his forearm. Fellow basketball pro Jayson Tatum, of the Boston Celtics, has a collection of religious tattoos, including “God’s will” and “Proverbs 3:5-6” across his back.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Sadly, France has barred its athletes from wearing a hijab while taking part in the Paris-based Olympic and Para-Olympic games. In so doing it continues its radical campaign to ban religion from anything other than the most private matters. This ban does not apply to athletes from other countries, and many women participants from the Muslim world will have still their heads covered, even though their own country, unlike France, might not require it.
Read More(REVIEW) “Sing Sing” — the latest film from celebrated independent film studio A24 — tells the story of Divine G, imprisoned at a maximum security prison (Sing Sing) for a crime he didn't commit. He finds purpose by acting in a theater group alongside other incarcerated men. The film is based on the book, “The Sing Sing Follies,” which tells the true story of Divine G and the theater program he founded while incarcerated.
Read MoreAs a first-time lead pastor who formerly served as a worship pastor, Aaron Petre is bringing both experiences together to the benefit of small churches in his city and state. Petre’s background spans that from large congregations to his current role leading Enchanted Hills Baptist in Tucson, which averages 50-70 for Sunday worship. He has led cross-denominational worship conferences for 500 attendees as well as similar, smaller gatherings on behalf of the Arizona Mission Network.
Read More(REVIEW) Adventurous, dangerous, fabulous, redemptive and revolting: Medieval travel was all of this and more, as Bale describes, drawing upon a host of period narratives to paint a vivid picture of the experience during an era dominated in the West by pilgrimage. The reasons that pilgrims embarked for places like Canterbury, Santiago de Compostela, Rome and Jerusalem (the holiest and most desirable of all) were manifold.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Wednesday marked the fourth time that Prime Minister Netanyahu has addressed a joint session of Congress, the most of any world leader in history. His staunchest critics have claimed that the real reason for his visit to the States was “to enlist domestic American support to keep waging the war” rather than to end the war and bring home the hostages.
Read More(ANALYSIS) Mamaw was a lifelong Democrat who distrusted organized religion, including “holy rollers” and snake handlers, cursed like a sailor and, when she died, her house contained 19 loaded handguns. But the soft heart and steel spine of the family’s “hillbilly terminator” provided stability when needed.
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